State of the Citizenship by Investment Programme Speech by Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Terrance Drew
Fellow Kittitians and Nevisians, home and abroad, and all those who have chosen our beloved Federation as your home.
I stand before you today to give a report on the state of our CBI and to present our Saint Kitts-Nevis Labour Party Administration’s plan for our Federation’s necessary transformation into a Sustainable Island State. I, therefore, ask for your attention, because what we are building together will shape the future of generations to come.
Two years ago, when we took office, the Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme directly contributed between 60-70 percent of our Federal revenue. We were overly dependent on CBI—our proverbial economic eggs were all in one basket. Unlike nations that rely on natural resources like oil and gas, which have stable and consistent demand, CBI has never been a guaranteed industry.
Consider this: planes and cars need oil and gas to move. Power stations need them to produce electricity. But no nation can truly say that citizenships will always be in demand. The reality is simple: the CBI is vulnerable to international politics and scrutiny.
In 2022, when our Administration took office, our international partners had their eyes squarely on our CBI programme. The ill-conceived Team Unity Prison Project had resulted in tens of thousands of citizenships being issued from a single venture, putting our visa-free access to the UK and the EU in grave jeopardy.
I want to make this clear today: Saint Kitts and Nevis was on the brink of losing that precious visa-free access. If we had not taken bold, immediate action, we would have lost that privilege. The evidence was overwhelming. This was confirmed, both publicly and privately, by our international partners. The previous administration had risked our country’s reputation for short-term financial gain, pushing us dangerously close to an economic cliff.
When we took office on August 05, 2022, we faced a stark choice: either to continue down the path of reckless exploitation of CBI, or make tough decisions to secure our long-term future. We chose the latter, because we were determined to preserve the good name of Saint Kitts and Nevis.
We initiated a full investigation into our CBI programme and received our first report in October, 2022. Shortly thereafter, we commenced a comprehensive legislative review of our CBI regulations. On December 01, 2022, I travelled to Dubai—the epicentre of the global CBI industry—to announce major reforms to our CBI programme under the banner of Sustainability and Good Governance.
By December 23, 2022, we enacted new CBI regulations into law. We introduced a Board of Governors to oversee CIU operations, implemented a Technical Committee to review files, and for the first time in 40 years, criminalised underselling practices. We also made it clear to the world that Saint Kitts and Nevis would lead by example in raising CBI standards.
We acted swiftly, because we knew what was at stake. We did not stop there. In February 2023, our Federation hosted the Historic US-Caribbean Roundtable on CBIs at the Park Hyatt. Five Caribbean Prime Ministers, along with U.S. Treasury officials and the Governor of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, met to establish a new set of principles governing CBI practices across the region.
The result was a collective agreement on six key principles, including:
1. Standardised treatment of denials,
2. Virtual or in-person interviews during the due diligence process,
3. Additional checks through Financial Intelligence Units,
4. Independent audits of Citizenship by Investment Units,
5. Retrieval of cancelled passports,
6. And the suspension of Russian and Belarussian applicants.
These principles were systematically put into practice by all CBI-operating OECS states. By July 2023, after continuous dialogue with our international partners, we enacted further reforms, increasing the minimum qualifying investment to US$250,000.
Today, I stand before you to say that our efforts have borne fruit. The Saint Kitts and Nevis CBI programme has been saved. Not only have we re-established it as a leading CBI programme in the world, but we have also set a new standard of regional cooperation with our OECS colleagues. In March 2024, we signed a historic Memorandum of Agreement with the CBI 5 countries, establishing new reforms that ensure CBI in our region is both ethical and sustainable.
Now, you may ask—what is the new CBI reality? Let us examine the numbers.
• In 2019, CBI generated EC$443 million for the Federal Government.
• In 2020, it generated EC$271 million.
• In 2021, EC$543 million.
• In 2022, EC$669 million.
• In 2023, EC$620 million.
In 2024, up to September, CBI has generated EC$218 million—less revenue to date, compared to previous years. This decline was expected as a result of the necessary reforms and market adjustments to save the programme over the long term. Believe me, without these changes, all would have been lost. This now signals that the era of gross mismanagement is over.
Instead, CBI will now fuel real, tangible, sustainable projects that will create permanent jobs and opportunities for the people of Saint Kitts and Nevis.
And that brings me to our Sustainable Island State Agenda—An Economic Pivot of Hope and Opportunity.
Over the next two to three years, we anticipate an economic boom in construction, tourism, agriculture, and sustainability projects. This will be driven by a pivot from our dependency on CBI to SEED; the Sustainable Economic Expansion and Diversification pillars of our Sustainable Island State Agenda. This is a fundamental part of Saint Kitts and Nevis’ National Development Planning Framework – a comprehensive guide to the evolution of our economy for the next 15 years.
We’ve laid the groundwork for the Sustainable Island State Agenda and the National Development Planning Framework, and now we’re ready to share a snippet of the fruits of that labour with you.
Let me introduce you to some of these transformative projects:
1. The New JNF Climate-Smart General Hospital at Camps funded by The Republic of China (Taiwan)
Work is steadily progressing on this hospital. It will be hurricane-resistant, modern, and powered by renewable energy. It is also set to become one of the leading hospitals in the Caribbean, in setting and service, so I invite our healthcare professionals at home and abroad to help us bring this vision to life.
2. The New Basseterre High School at Victoria Road Basseterre, funded by CBI
The school will be a world-class educational institution, and we expect construction to start by the second quarter of 2025.
3. The Smart Homes Initiative, funded by CIBC Caribbean
This initiative will bring hundreds of homes to our people, with 90 percent of the construction workforce being local. Construction will begin with at least 100 hurricane-resistant homes by the end of 2024.
4. The 2 million gallon per day Basseterre Desalination Plant, funded by The Federal Government.
This critical project, in the final pre-construction stages, will provide fresh, consistent water to our people by the third quarter of 2025. When construction begins, by the end of this year, it will also create numerous construction jobs and permanent positions for plant workers when it opens next year.
5. The Needsmust Power Plant Expansion, funded by: The Saudi Fund for Development
This project will strengthen our electrical grid by installing modern, fuel-efficient power generators, ensuring a stable energy supply for homes and businesses alike.
Our agricultural sector is also undergoing a transformation, as we seek to reduce our dependence on imports and empower our local farmers. In this regard, we have partnered with Tabasco to provide our farmers with an unprecedented opportunity to cultivate high-quality peppers for export. Your Government has secured the necessary equipment and location to support this initiative, ensuring that our farmers can benefit from this lucrative global market.
Beyond these major projects, we are committed to further diversification through a series of high-impact developments.
6. Geothermal Energy. The Federal Government and the Nevis Island Administration are advancing negotiations with two major investors to finally bring our geothermal energy potential to life. This could become a game changer for our Federation’s energy independence and resilience.
7. The Reinvigoration of Kittitian Hill. Our administration is actively courting investors to bring Kittitian Hill back to life, offering new opportunities for tourism and community development.
9. Christophe Harbour Redevelopment. We are in discussions with new investors who will inject capital into Christophe Harbour, enhancing our high-end tourism offerings, particularly in yachting, and creating significant employment opportunities.
8. The Prime Creative Arts Center. This iconic facility at Half Moon Heights will be a historic hub for creative and artistic expression, providing a platform for our artists and fostering cultural pride.
These projects and the many others that I will speak about in further detail during my Budget Presentation in a few weeks represent this government’s resolute commitment to improving the lives of every Kittitian and Nevisian. The opportunities are vast, and they represent a brighter, more sustainable future for all of us.
We have a plan. A boom is coming to Saint Kitts and Nevis. For the past two years, we have been planting the SEED for our Sustainable Island State Agenda. Now, it is time to water that SEED, so the plant of prosperity and sustainability can flourish.
We must aim higher. We must envision a future where every citizen has the chance not only to survive but to thrive—where they aspire to become their best selves and, ultimately, to be self-sustaining.
Government alone cannot drive this transformation. To fully capitalise on the Sustainable Economic Expansion and Diversification (SEED) Pillars of our Sustainable Island State Agenda, we need you. We need you to commit to diligent work and productivity, to embrace innovation and entrepreneurship.
We need our diaspora to come home—to bring their skills, experience, and passion back to the land of your ancestors. We need all hands on deck to seize the opportunities coming our way in construction, tourism, agriculture, and sustainability.
I invite every citizen who is committed to seeing Saint Kitts and Nevis rise to join us in nurturing the SEED of our future. We have worked tirelessly over the past two years to lay the groundwork for this era of Foreign Direct Investment. Now we must keep that wealth here, reinvesting in our people and our future.
We relied on sugar, but international market forces pushed us out of that industry. We turned to CBI, but gross mismanagement by the previous administration has reshaped that landscape as well. Now, it is time for Saint Kitts and Nevis to unlock its full potential by diversifying, no longer bound by a single market or external forces.
It is time to fully implement the SEED Pillars of our Sustainable Island State Agenda, a fundamental element of our National Development Planning Framework. Our moment is here. We have planted the SEED of hope for a prosperous, resilient nation. Now, it’s time for all of us to work together, water that SEED, and ensure it grows.
The future belongs to us. Let’s do this together!
Thank you, and may God continue to bless Saint Kitts and Nevis.
