Last Updated on February 28, 2025, 1:10 AM AST by Anthony Morris
The St. Kitts and Nevis Citizenship by Investment Unit (CIU), which oversees the world’s oldest Citizenship by Investment (CBI) Programme, and ensures integrity, efficiency and transparency, has completed 100 days. The unit, which operates under six guiding principles, aims to give investors a smooth experience and protect the island-nation’s reputation as one of the world’s most trusted CBI destination.
The six principles are transparency, communication, good governance, transformation, global leadership and sustainability.
The investment immigration industry has witnessed much positive transformation in the last couple of years and the CIU has been the ultimate beneficiary. The unit was recently changed into a statutory body, led by the Executive Chairman, Calvin Juste, which is also St. Kitts and Nevis’s special envoy for investment, development and international business relations.
The CIU revealed the launch of the office of the chairman in a press release in January and the development comes at a time when the unit strives for an ambitious transformation. The office of the chairman has three broad goals: supporting economic growth, promoting exceptional customer service, and reviewing real estate and development projects.
CIU backed by CBI’s rich experience
The CIU’s work is backed by St. Kitts and Nevis’s four decades of experience in the immigration of investment sector. Its CBI programme began in 1984, a year after it gained Independence, and it played a pioneering role for many other nations around the world. The reputation and the reliability the CBI has gained over the years inspires the CIU which seeks to build on the years of success and give the programme a fresh direction under a new leadership.
The unit had its inception only 100 days ago and already, the effects are visible. Under Juste and his team, this time has seen innovation and service delivery – transformation that builds on an already rich legacy of four decades of excellence in the CBI sector.
The success that the unit has achieved in the first 100 days has not remained restricted to the leadership of its chairman and the Board of Governors but also its other hard-working and dedicated members.
The CIU Board of Directors comprises distinguished professionals with a sea of experience in matters such as governance, finance, law and international relations and looks after the CIU’s strategic direction and governance.
Apart from Chairman Juste, the board includes Marsha Harris, a financial specialist; Damille James, a risk management expert; Louisa Lawrence, economist and financial consultant; and Kishma Mclean, who is skilled in anti-money laundering and financial compliance.
The past 100 days showed the CIU’s commitment to redefining leadership in the CBI sector with a high-capacity team, reflecting its integrity and transparency, and its objective to restore trust in the market. The CBI programme has courted controversies in many other countries with charges of non-transparency but St. Kitts and Nevis’s reputation in the field has remained clean.
International exposure, innovative thinking and unwavering focus on service while utilizing an international standard of excellence in everything it handles has powered the transformation. The executive team’s experiences and perspectives have helped in bringing strategic changes that not only streamline operations but also elevate the quality of services for clients as well partners. It is because of their efforts that the CIU has turned into an agile, response and competitive entity in just 100 days.
During its first 100 days, the CIU has ensured that the stakeholders are heard, problems are properly understood and the desired changes are implemented to improve productivity. It has eyed clear goals, strengthened operations and improved transparency and efficiency.
Here are some of the key achievements of the unit in its first 100 days:
- Setting up the chairman’s office: A key milestone of the CIU’s brief journey so far has been the establishment of the office of the chairman. It has brought an energized focus on economic growth, customer service and development. The office is the unit’s highest level of oversight.
- Massive increase in applications: In its just 100 days since the CIU’s inception, applications under St. Kitts and Nevis’s CBI have seen 169 per cent rise. This shows renewed global interest and trust in the country’s CBI programme. Juste called this phenomenal increase in such a short time truly exceptional. “We are incredibly proud of the progress we’ve made in a short period, but there’s still more work to do. This success is a testament to the dedication of our team and the trust placed in us by our stakeholders,” he said.
- Global outreach and success: One of the top features of the CIU’s functioning in its first 100 days has been continuous engagement with the stakeholders, including St. Kitts and Nevis’s international partners. The chairman has represented both the unit and the country on various global platforms and the engagements have produced positive results. The CIU chairman and the team have already travelled to more than 20 cities across four continents and took part in more than 500 engagements. The in-person talks play a key role in rebuilding trust and confidence in the Caribbean nation’s CBI programme.
- Structural goals: In its first 100 days, the CIU has seen structural reforms and strategic investments which will define the direction of the CBI Programme for the upcoming decade and beyond. The unit seeks to continue building on its successes and supported by an able team of experts, St. Kitts and Nevis is now more responsive to the demands of the global market.
- Technological innovation: The unit’s executive team has focused on the introduction of a cutting-edge digital system for processing which will only boost the system’s efficiency. The system is part of a broad digital transformation effort which looks to streamline processes, improve communication and improve the overall operation. The stakeholders will be the beneficiaries of the real-time updates on applicants’ statuses and it will improve transparency and reduce waiting time.
- A nicely crafted system: The CIU’s structure, which includes its able leadership team, ensures that each component of the CBI process – from policy-making to execution – works seamlessly and in coordination to deliver high-quality results.
The CIU is committed to cementing St. Kitts and Nevis as a leading force in the global investment migration industry.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
