Climate Justice
Climate Change – A Brief Understanding of its Impact on Small Islands
By 
Dale Elliott |
Change is the only constant on Earth…
Caribbean CBIs
St. Lucia Citizenship by Investment
Reaching for a Higher Standard
By Dale Elliott and Bibi Khatoon |
St. Lucia’s Citizenship by Investment (CBI) program came later than others in the region. Initially, it operated at a deficit as the program was established. In April 2022, Prime Minister Philip Pierre hailed CBI receipts of $38M USD during his annual Budget Address.
In the face of European and US objections to the way the programs risk being used to avoid taxation, launder money or even support terrorism, St. Lucia’s former Prime Minister is urging all CBI programs to be merged under the control of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).
Agents, politicians and the former head of St Lucia’s CBI Program say there is a need to improve public awareness and transparency. They contend that ordinary citizens need to understand how CBI funds benefit them in helping to offset disasters, manage debt and brace for unexpected economic shocks.
PetroCaribe
Venezuela, PetroCaribe, and the “Orgy of Corruption”
By Ingrid Arnesen, Jim Clancy, Dale Elliott and Kimone Francis |
How An Oil Alliance Founded by then-Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to Confront U.S. Influence in the Caribbean Collapsed into Broken Deals, Dashed Hopes and Rampant Corruption.
PetroCaribe
PetroCaribe Country Report: Dominica
By Dale Elliott |
With A Little Help From My Friends — How a Tiny Island Weathered Hurricanes and Storms of Political Controversy
In March 2015, at a PetroCaribe Summit, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro reaffirmed his commitment to the 17 participating Caribbean and Latin American countries, even calling for greater socio-economic development and more integration among its members. Fast forward just three years later and the entire framework has collapsed.
It wasn’t hard to see it coming. After riding on a crest of US$ 100+ for 4 years, oil prices would plummet in 2014 and would come to rest at US$40 two years later before recovery. Aging infrastructure and poor management would cripple the oil output of neighboring Venezuela. Both were the very lifeblood of PetroCaribe.
The program was designed to pump oil at market prices to Venezuela’s neighbors but with a lucrative repayment plan that empowered political leaders with social spending beyond their former means. In return, Caracas expected it would enjoy political cover from all those sharing the riches. While PetroCaribe clung to dear life, the oil in its veins was quickly running dry.