Prime Minister Gaston Browne has defended the government’s decision to make Spanish the official second language of Antigua and Barbuda, saying the policy addresses economic integration, diplomatic competitiveness and the social inclusion of a Spanish-speaking population he estimated at roughly ten percent of the country.

Cabinet approved the initiative on May 14, directing the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology to begin restructuring the national curriculum so that Spanish becomes a compulsory core subject from pre-school through secondary level.

The Cabinet also approved a Dominican Republic Integration Programme, known as DRIP, to formalise economic, cultural and institutional ties between the two countries.

Speaking on his weekly radio programme on Point FM, Browne said the policy had drawn criticism he considered misplaced.

He pointed to the existing linguistic reality of Antigua and Barbuda, where Spanish is already the most widely spoken second language among residents, driven largely by a Dominican-origin community whose members he said are descended in part from Antiguans who emigrated decades ago.

“The most popular second language that is spoken in Antigua and Barbuda is not Mandarin or French. It is Spanish,” Browne said.

He argued that teaching Spanish would open market access in South America, support Antiguan candidates for positions in regional and international organisations and help integrate the Spanish-speaking community more fully into the economy.

He noted that Antigua and Barbuda had sponsored Ecuadorian diplomat and former foreign minister Maria Espinosa as a candidate for United Nations Secretary-General, describing her multilingualism as a key qualification.

Browne also pointed to the country’s historical connections to the Spanish-speaking world, including Antiguan labourers who helped construct the Panama Canal, and Caribbean links stretching through Venezuela and the Dominican Republic.

“If our Antiguans and Barbudans in the future are going to become secretary generals, or viable candidates to become secretary generals of the UN, of the OAS, and so on, they have to have a second language,” Browne said.

He rejected the suggestion that Antiguan dialect should serve as the country’s second language, saying it develops naturally and does not require formal instruction.

He also dismissed concerns that the policy would create implementation challenges, pointing to the existing network of Spanish instruction at the Venezuelan Embassy and the longstanding presence of Spanish classes in Antiguan secondary schools.