Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit says the Citizenship by Investment Programme (CBI) is a vehicle being used to shield Dominicans from draconian taxation and maintain their socio-economic standards, as he warned against plans by the opposition to phase out the programme should it win the next general election.
Under the CBI programme, Dominica provides citizenship to foreign investors in return for making a substantial investment in the country’s socio-economic development. Skerrit speaking at the launch of the candidate of the ruling Dominica Labour Party (DLP) for the upcoming by-election for the Roseau North constituency on Sunday night, said that the reality is that ‘we are living through one of the most significant periods of change in modern history.
‘Around the world, old assumptions are being challenged. International alliances are shifting. Powerful countries are increasingly putting their own interests first. There was a time when you had to read between the lines of international affairs to understand that countries were acting in their own interests. There was a time when self-interest was carefully wrapped in diplomatic language and polite declarations.
‘Today, there is no need to read between the lines. The message is written in bold print for the entire world to see. Countries are openly putting their own interests first. They are openly protecting their own industries and their own economies. They are openly pursuing policies designed to benefit their own citizens. Whether it is trade, immigration, investment or foreign aid, the signal is unmistakable: every nation is looking after itself first.’
Skerrit said such new policies are seen in the growing competition for investment, in the tightening of immigration policies and even in the struggle of small island states to access climate financing that has been promised for years.
‘That is not a criticism. It is a reality. It is how the world works. But it means that countries like Dominica must be even more strategic, even more innovative and even more determined to protect ourselves. Because if every nation is looking after itself, then we must ensure that somebody is looking after Dominica.
‘One of the vehicles used to shield Dominicans from draconian taxation and maintain the socio-economic standards of our citizens is being challenged. That vehicle is the Citizenship by Investment Programme,’ he warned.
Leader of the main opposition United Workers Party (UWP), Dr. Thomson Fontaine says a future UWP administration would pursue a gradual phase-out of the CBI, indicating that Dominica must reduce its heavy dependence on revenues generated by the initiative.
He told a news conference recently that while he acknowledges the significant contribution the programme currently makes to government finances, it is no longer sustainable as the country’s principal source of revenue.
According to the former International Monetary Fund (IMF) economist, the CBI programme now accounts for approximately 60 per cent of government revenues, a level of dependence he believes poses long-term risks to the country’s economic stability.
Fontaine said the UWP’s recently unveiled ’10 Pillars to Shared Prosperity’ development plan does not place reliance on CBI revenues at its centre because the party believes the programme faces increasing international and regulatory challenges.
‘It is clear that this programme is not sustainable,’ Fontaine said, adding that while the programme may have served the country well in the past, changing international circumstances require Dominica to begin preparing for a different economic future.
But he told reporters that his party would not abruptly terminate the programme and that any transition would be managed responsibly and implemented gradually to avoid economic disruption as the UWP government seek to diversify the economy by placing greater emphasis on sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, renewable energy, artificial intelligence and water-based industries.
But Skerrit told DLP supporters on Sunday night he has listened ‘carefully’ to Fontaine’s comments on the CBI and that ‘citizens deserve to hear a serious discussion about the future.
‘They deserve to understand what vision is being offered. They deserve to know how that leader intends to navigate the challenges facing the nation.
‘Vision without action is a daydream. But action without vision is a nightmare. At this most vulnerable time, there is a division within the country on the path forward,’ he said, adding he was ‘blown away’ by Fontaine’s suggestion that his administration would dismantle the CBI programme.
‘This country has thousands of professionals, and this is what the UWP came up with as their vision for Dominica. Basically, you hear that a storm is coming, you see it on the horizon, and your answer is taking a sledgehammer to your strongest shelter.
‘A shelter that has shielded Dominicans from the kind of draconian taxation being experienced elsewhere, while simultaneously financing national development and protecting our social and economic progress. As the young people would say, ‘make it make sense.’
Skerrit acknowledged that no programme is perfect.
‘Every programme can be improved. Every programme can be strengthened. Responsible governments must always be prepared to review and reform policies where necessary. However, there is a significant difference between improving a programme and dismantling it altogether.
‘The people of Dominica deserve to know what would replace it. They deserve to know how critical projects would be financed. They deserve to know how future investments would be supported. Those are legitimate questions, and they require clear answers,’ he said, dismissing the opposition plans as amounting ‘to throwing the baby out with the bathwater’.