St Kitts and Nevis: Prime Minister Terrance Drew outlined that his government has decided to update certain aspects of the Citizenship by Investment Programme of St Kitts and Nevis to meet the demands and needs of the intelligent investment-minded person looking for an enriching base for their families and business.
Marsha Henderson- Minister of Tourism, Justin Kareem Hawley -Ambassador of St Kitts and Nevis to the UAE, and Micha Rose Emmett- CEO of CS Global Partners also attended the event. It was hosted by the Embassy of St Kitts and Nevis in Dubai in a collaboration with CS Global Partners- a leading Residency & Citizenship by Investment Government Advisory based in the United Kingdom.
PM Drew, who is on his first official visit to Dubai, addressed the stakeholders of the CBI Programme of St Kitts and Nevis at the cocktail evening on Thursday. He outlined the evolution of the CBI Programme of the nation in the last 40 years and stated that the Citizenship by Investment Programme of St Kitts and Nevis had given the opportunity to advance their people without over reliance on international financial aid.
PM Terrance Drew cited, “This review was done in consultation and in partnership with all stakeholders during the exploratory phase. We will continue to engage local and international stakeholders on an on-going basis to ensure that we are abreast of their salient needs.”
He asserted that for nearly 40 years, St Kitts and Nevis has been the pioneer of the global investor immigration industry. The programme has allowed the nation to thrive. It has given them the opportunity to advance our people without over reliance on international financial aid.
While emphasizing the evolution of the CBI Programme, PM Drew said that the Citizenship by Investment Programme first major evolution 27 years later in 2011 was bold and creative. Now, in the third iteration of its evolution, in 2022, after four decades of erudition and development, we must use that same creativity and boldness to ensure that: • that the programme transcends to the modern age; and the security infrastructure is enhanced and strengthened.”
“We need to ensure that our treasured Citizenship by Investment Programme is mutually beneficial for all stakeholders, from the people of St Kitts and Nevis, the investors themselves, to the developers, to the local service providers and the international marketing agents. While we have always been the benchmark of the global investor immigration industry, we understand that in order to remain as one of the most sought-after economic citizenship programmes in the world, we need to continue to evolve and forge a path for ourselves that is sustainable in the long term, “said the prime minister.
Shedding light upon three fun three fundamental principles, PM Drew cited that these principles have guided their decision-making with respect to the evolved version of our Citizenship by Investment Programme.
The three principles are as follows:
- Sustainability: PM Drew explained that they have crafted a sustainable model programme that will continue to be the envy of the international community by injecting high levels of integrity for decades to come through administrative improvements.
- Good Governance. On this point, he briefed that they have structured of their programme to allow for greater transparency and accountability, hallmarks of the good governance framework that solidifies the foundation of any successful endeavour.
- Pragmatism. While explaining the last point, PM Drew described that they have tailored the investment options to align with market realities while preserving the platinum brand their proud nation has developed and nurtured for four decades, operating the oldest Citizenship by Investment Programme in the world.
He further explained the three principles in detail. PM Drew asserted that the sustainable model Citizenship by Investment programme will involve the implementation of an improved multi-faceted approved real estate application process, the removal of loopholes and the strict enforcement of escrow and project milestone requirements.
To this respect, he announced that the government of St Kitts and Nevis is all set to make a Professional CBI Board of Governors that will be responsible for high level supervisory matters such as: • providing general oversight of the operations the CBI Unit; • developing and implementing policies and procedures for the Unit; • ensuring that application processing is completed efficiently within the time frames advertised without comprising the integrity of the programme; and • constantly monitoring the global investor immigration industry to ensure that our CBI regulations align with, and adjust to, international market forces.
Further, in the good governance agenda, PM Drew referred that a CBI Technical Committee will be charged with: • ensuring that all due diligence background checks are comprehensive; • reviewing all CBI applications thoroughly; and • making recommendations to the Prime Minister in his capacity as Minister of National Security, Immigration and Citizenship.
“We understand that in this highly competitive global investor immigration industry, time is of the essence. I, therefore, guarantee that the structures, human resources and other technical support will be provided to the CBI Board of Governors, the Technical Committee and the Head of the Unit to ensure efficient processing of citizenship applications by our CBI Unit, “said the prime minister on the good governance front.
As a pragmatic administration, he added that they know and appreciate that their CBI Programme’s investment options must align with market conditions.
He stressed that they however need to balance that pragmatism with the fact that St Kitts & Nevis citizenship is the platinum standard in the global investor immigration industry. The goodwill in the programme is not some whim or fancy, it is real. The number of their citizens and international marketing agents present this evening for this event is a testament to that fact.
PM Drew mentioned that they have a four-decade-old professional programme that has maintained a high standard and benefitted all of our stakeholders tremendously.
While highlighting the benefits of CBI Programme, he said that the evolved St Kitts and Nevis CBI Programme will invite bold and creative investors to the shores of the country and will facilitate the development of innovative industries in St Kitts and Nevis, the construction of real estate developments pursuant to this Administration’s 6 priority infrastructure list, and in all things, bring substantial benefit to the People of Saint Christopher and Nevis.
Emphasizing the significance of international business hubs, PM Drew stressed, “Our proximity to international business hubs allows access to a basket of regional blocs that can help them expand their mobility and do business no matter where they are in the world. This expansion also helps them hedge against declining demographics. We have created a name for ourselves as a financial nexus with an attractive citizenship programme underpinned by a sound legal framework and robust multi-layered due diligence.”
He also took to the platform and highlighted the major initiatives of the government brough out with the assistance of the CBI Programme of St Kitts and Nevis. PM Drew mentioned that the country is now in the transition phase where they are moving away from fossil fuels to exploring all the different mixes of renewable energy. The future certainly looks positive for a sustainable energy mix of solar, wind, geothermal and others and they are doing the work to make it happen.
“Other major projects in the pipeline include a housing programme, the construction of a new hospital, as well as a new High School in our capital city. These infrastructure projects will stimulate the construction industry, provide employment opportunities, while uplifting the surrounding communities. Job creation remains at the heart of the Government’s development plan. With more well-paying jobs being created, the more the economy with be stimulated. We are working tirelessly to create conditions necessary for sustainable economic growth and diverse business opportunities, “said the prime minister.
