A delegation from Grenada, comprising representatives of the Ministry of the Blue Economy and Marine Affairs, the Grenada National Sargassum Taskforce, the Grenada Solid Waste Management Authority, and the International Trade Center (ITC) participated in a technical study tour and training in Punta Cana under GIS´s Material and Energetic Utilisation of Organic Waste and Sargassum Project (BioWaste Caribbean).
The knowledge gained during the study tour will inform Grenada’s efforts to identify and develop a sargassum management system suited to the country’s coastal conditions and operational needs. With support from GIS, the initiative aims to assist the Government of Grenada in reducing the negative effects of sargassum influxes on coastal communities: public health hazards, compromised coastal environments, fisheries and other marine activities and sub-sectors.
From 24 to 28 August 2026, the delegation engaged with private-sector stakeholders in the tourism, waste management and sargassum sectors, including the Grupo Puntacana Foundation, DESMI and Bois d’Arc. The exchanges focused on sargassum containment and collection systems currently deployed in the Punta Cana region of the Dominican Republic, as well as sargassum utilisation.
Punta Cana Caribbean delegates visiting CIM. Photo: Nigel Gibbs
Through technical training and site visits, participants gained first-hand insight into the design, deployment and operation of offshore barriers, collection and pumping systems used to protect beaches, coastal ecosystems and tourism operations from large influxes of sargassum and bring fresher, cleaner sargassum onshore. The programme included close-up inspections of deployed barrier systems, a visit to DESMI’s operations at La Yola Marina and a tour of its assembly facility in Bávaro.
The study tour also explored approaches to recycling, waste management, composting facility management and the productive use of collected sargassum and organic waste. Visits to recycling facilities in Punta Cana and a new soil-amendment facility being developed by Bois d’Arc allowed the delegation to engage directly with local operators and examine practical options for processing and utilising sargassum after it has been removed from the marine environment.
Hosted by the Grupo Puntacana Foundation, the delegation also visited the GIS-supported Bio-S Laboratory to learn about the Foundation’s expanding research and testing capacity on sargassum and biowaste utilisation. Jake Kheel, Vice President of the Grupo Puntacana Foundation, said: “Over the past 15 years, our approach to sargassum management has been very practical and field-based — testing solutions at a small scale and building on what works. We have focused on floating barriers to prevent sargassum from reaching the coast, tested different collection systems, and worked in parallel to support valorisation. An important part of that has been giving entrepreneurs and companies access to collected sargassum so they can test new products and applications and help develop a viable sargassum valorisation industry.”
Presently, the Government of Grenada is actively seeking to create livelihood and economic opportunities for local communities through the productive use of sargassum and facilitating this through its efforts to collect up to 10,000 tonnes of the material in 2026.
Isaac Bhagwan, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of the Blue Economy and Marine Affairs, stated: “This study tour has been an eye-opening experience for the Grenada delegation. By seeing first-hand how sargassum is forecast, contained, collected and put to productive use — and by learning from more than a decade of successes and challenges in Punta Cana — we are better placed to assess which approaches could work in Grenada. The practical insights gained here will help us avoid costly mistakes and provide sound, evidence-based advice to guide the Government’s decisions.”
The BioWaste Caribbean project is supporting Grenadian stakeholders in the development of an appropriate sargassum containment and collection system, as well its productive use, while facilitating knowledge exchange with experienced operators and technology providers across the Caribbean.
Clemens Findeisen, GIS Team Leader for the BioWaste Caribbean project, noted: “Organic waste and sargassum management represent a shared regional challenge for the Caribbean, while also offering significant opportunities for innovation, collaboration and sustainable development. We are pleased to support this regional exchange with our partners from Grenada, which should lead to a concrete demonstration project in Grenada. The BioWaste Caribbean project, funded by the German Government, is implemented in Grenada, St Lucia, Jamaica, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Dominica, while the Dominican Republic and Barbados participate as peer-learning partners, bringing additional experiences and perspectives.”
About the BioWaste Caribbean project
The Material and Energetic Utilisation of Organic Waste and Sargassum Project (BioWaste Caribbean) is a EUR 10 million initiative funded by Germany through the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). It is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in cooperation with the Caricom Secretariat.
From 2025 to 2029, the project supports Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines in advancing sustainable organic waste management, circular economy approaches and innovative uses of sargassum, with the Dominican Republic and Barbados as peer-to-peer learning partners. The project also strengthens regional cooperation, promotes private-sector engagement, supports demonstration projects across the Caribbean and applied research. The BioWaste Caribbean project is implemented in close collaboration with GIS’s Circular Economy Caribbean Project.
GIZ
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