Winners of the Fourth Annual CARIF Industry Awards Announced in Miami

The annual awards recognize the leaders, projects, public-sector initiatives and financing models advancing resilient infrastructure across the Caribbean.

MIAMI, September 15, 2026 – Winners of the fourth annual CARIF Industry Awards were announced today during a ceremony at the 10th Annual Caribbean Infrastructure Forum (CARIF), presented by New Energy Events at The Ritz-Carlton Coconut Grove in Miami.

The awards celebrate leadership, innovation and impact across the Caribbean infrastructure market. This year’s recipients were recognized on stage, with remarks from each winner.

This year’s awards spotlighted the people shaping strategy, the financial structures unlocking investment, and the projects and public-sector initiatives setting new standards for resilience and delivery.

The 2026 CARIF Industry Award winners:

  • Infrastructure Leadership MVP: Dr. Kenneth Romer
    Director of Aviation and Deputy Director General of Tourism, Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, Investments & Aviation
  • Best/Most Innovative Project: Powering Resilient Connectivity
    A Caban–Digicel Initiative
  • Best Policy or Public Sector Project: Soubise Climate Smart Fisher Facility
    Ministry of Climate Resilience, the Environment and Renewable Energy, Grenada
  • Best/Most Innovative Financing: Manzanillo Gas & Power
    IDB Invest

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“Across the Caribbean, the focus is shifting from defining the infrastructure gap to delivering solutions: how projects get financed, how resilience is built in from the outset, and how public- and private-sector partners can turn plans into projects and job creation,” said Michelle Ottey, Principal Investment Officer and Caribbean Hub Lead, Transaction Advisory at IFC, and member of the CARIF 2026 Awards Advisory Committee. “Together, this year’s winners show what progress looks like on the ground.”

Awards Advisory Committee

Winners were selected by an Advisory Committee of senior leaders from across the regional infrastructure and finance landscape:

  • Dustin D.P. Delany, Chair and Chief Managing Partner, Dentons
  • Michelle Ottey, Principal Investment Officer, Transaction Advisory, PPPs & Corporate Finance, International Finance Corporation (IFC)
  • Kemar Polius, Senior Director and Head of Corporate Banking and Sustainable Finance, CIBC Caribbean
  • Nuno Silva, Investment Officer, Delegation of the European Union to Barbados, the Eastern Caribbean States and the OECS

The ceremony closed the first day of CARIF 2026 and was followed by a cocktail reception at The Ritz-Carlton Coconut Grove. CARIF continues through September 16, bringing together governments, investors, developers, financiers and multilaterals working to develop and finance infrastructure across the Caribbean.

For more information on CARIF 2026, visit newenergyevents.com/carif.

About CARIF

The Caribbean Infrastructure Forum (CARIF), organized by New Energy Events, is the annual meeting place for the leaders developing and financing infrastructure across the Caribbean. Now in its tenth year, CARIF brings together senior public- and private-sector decision-makers to build partnerships, advance projects and address the region’s most pressing infrastructure needs.

About New Energy Events

New Energy Events produces senior-level conferences and market intelligence for the energy and infrastructure markets across Latin America and the Caribbean. We have worked in the region since 2009, bringing together governments, developers, investors, financiers and multilaterals to turn policy and capital into projects. Our portfolio includes CARIF, the Caribbean Renewable Energy Forum (CREF), the Geothermal Congress for Latin America and the Caribbean (GEOLAC) and the Hydrogen Congress for Latin America and the Caribbean (H2LAC).

 

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