Citizenship by Investment: Lifeline for the OECS Sub-Region

ST. JOHN, Antigua and Barbuda – 25th April 2025……… Prime Minister the Honourable Gaston Browne, alongside several regional leaders, has once again highlighted the critical role of Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programmes as a lifeline for small island states in the OECS sub-region.

The importance of these programmes was reaffirmed during a high-level regional leadership forum at the Caribbean Investment Summit 2025, currently underway in St. John’s, Antigua.

The summit, themed “Integrity, Stability, Sustainability,” has brought together three other Prime Ministers from the OECS region, as well as the Attorney General of Saint Kitts and Nevis. United in purpose, the leaders emphasized that the very survival and development of their small economies depend heavily on the revenues generated through CBI programmes.

“Our international partners may view these programmes as insignificant or vulnerable to abuse, but for us, they are a lifeline,” stated Prime Minister Browne. “They must be preserved, strengthened, and expanded to continue providing the critical revenue needed to improve the quality of life for our people.”

Leaders from Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, and Saint Kitts and Nevis echoed this sentiment, each offering tangible examples of how CBI funds are transforming their societies.

Grenada’s Prime Minister, the Honourable Dickon Mitchell, explained: “We have established a special fund housed within the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank. By law, a percentage of our CBI revenue is directed into this reserve fund to serve as a financial buffer in times of natural disasters.”

Dominica’s Prime Minister, the Honourable Roosevelt Skerrit, noted the wide-ranging public benefits made possible by CBI proceeds: “In just two years, we’ve constructed one hospital and 12 health centers. Our housing programme delivers homes at little or no cost to our citizens.”

Attorney General of Saint Kitts and Nevis, the Honourable Garth Wilkin, pointed out how the CBI programme directly reduces the cost of living: “CBI funds allow us to subsidize cooking gas, vehicle fuel, and electricity. Through our STEP programme, the government pays unemployed citizens who are placed in roles within the private sector.”

Looking ahead, the leaders pledged a renewed commitment to transparency and good governance with the rollout of CBI 2.0—a more robust, unified system featuring biometric vetting, real-time compliance monitoring, and the creation of a single OECS regulatory authority.

“We are determined to preserve the integrity and transparency of these programmes so that the people of our nations can continue to benefit,” said the Honourable Philip J. Pierre, Prime Minister of Saint Lucia.

The leaders emphasized that without the financial support provided by CBI initiatives, many critical projects—ranging from infrastructure to hurricane recovery—would still be on the drawing board or never conceptualized at all.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Browne announced a timeline for the establishment of the new OECS regulatory authority during the summit’s opening cocktail reception at Hodges Bay Resort.

“We are committed to harmonizing our programmes across the region,” he said. “The new regulatory authority will be operational before the end of the year. It will reinforce the integrity of our systems and place our respective programmes beyond reproach.”