CTU ICT Week in Cayenne: Caribbean telecom ministers and regulators met in French Guiana for CTU ICT Week 2026, with Trinidad and Tobago pushing digital government and AI, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines elected Vice-President of the CTU Council of Ministers while Hon. Konris Maynard was elected CTU President—setting the agenda on resilience, inclusion, cybersecurity, and regional coordination. Connectivity for French Guiana and neighbors: EllaLink formally launched the EllaLink Caribbean Gateway initiative, a new fibre-optic submarine cable running from Cayenne to Martinique and Guadeloupe, with western branches for Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire, aiming for service by end-2029 after moving from design to committed investment. Cross-border crime warning: At the INTERPOL Americas conference in Georgetown, officials warned that syndicates are increasingly laundering cocaine profits through illegal gold mining, and stressed that delays in sharing intelligence across borders can let criminals act first—citing Operation Guyana Shield as a model of coordinated action across Guyana, Brazil, French Guiana and Suriname. Regional health rule affecting travel: Costa Rica will require a yellow fever vaccination certificate for travel starting Oct. 1 to eight higher-risk destinations, including French Guiana, with exemptions for age, pregnancy/breastfeeding, and specific medical conditions. Space policy backdrop (EU): EU officials renewed calls for autonomous access to space and more launch capacity, with French Guiana’s spaceport highlighted as part of a coordinated network.