_St John’s, Antigua and Barbuda_ – Prime Minister Gaston Browne has reaffirmed Antigua and Barbuda’s commitment to strengthening its Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme, highlighting a series of reforms aimed at addressing international concerns about transparency, vetting, and security.
Speaking at the 2025 Caribbean Investment Summit, Browne outlined the measures taken to enhance the integrity of the country’s investment migration framework, noting that the reforms were implemented in direct response to recommendations from partners such as the United States and the European Union.
“Our due diligence processes are multi-layered and internationally benchmarked,” he said. “We’ve adopted stronger vetting procedures, aligned with global sanctions lists, and introduced a residency requirement—measures that bolster both national and international confidence in our programme.”
Browne acknowledged that the CBI industry has come under heightened scrutiny in recent years, with growing concerns from foreign governments over the potential misuse of such programmes. He stressed, however, that Antigua and Barbuda’s programme has consistently met high standards of governance and compliance.
He also noted that while no system is entirely immune to risk, the few instances of abuse have been swiftly addressed, with citizenships revoked where appropriate. “These isolated cases reflect the residual risk faced by every programme globally,” he said, “not a failure of our due diligence.”
The Prime Minister emphasised that Antigua and Barbuda continues to work closely with international partners on intelligence sharing, policy alignment, and regulatory best practices to ensure that the programme remains secure, competitive, and respected.
The summit, held under the theme Integrity. Stability. Sustainability, brought together leaders and stakeholders from across the region to discuss the future of investment migration in the Caribbean, with a focus on regional cooperation and the preservation of access to key international markets.