{"id":236343,"date":"2025-05-09T07:05:21","date_gmt":"2025-05-09T11:05:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=236343"},"modified":"2025-05-09T09:25:21","modified_gmt":"2025-05-09T13:25:21","slug":"oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/","title":{"rendered":"OECS leaders at odds over CBI programme"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a><\/div>
\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHAT\u2019S APP GROUP<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

(CMC) \u2014<\/strong> Two leaders from the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) are at odds over the benefit of the controversial Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme <\/a><\/strong>that some regional countries use to attract foreign investments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under the CBI programme, foreign investors are provided with citizenship of a country in return for making a significant contribution to the socio-economic development of that country.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>
\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves, has stood out as the only independent OECS country without a CBI programme.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

However, St Vincent\u2019s main opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) in Kingstown used to cite the CBI programmes in EU nations, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Malta.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI explained my opposition and the government\u2019s opposition to selling passports and selling citizenship.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

First of all, it\u2019s wrong in principle,\u201d Gonsalves said, reiterating that citizenship is the highest office in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe highest office in the land can\u2019t be for sale. <\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

And the passport is the outward sign of the inward grace of citizenship, and that too, is not a commodity for sale,\u201d Gonsalves said, noting that the CBI is \u201creckless, not sustainable, because \u2026 the countries you\u2019d want to go \u2014 Canada, Britain, United States and Europe \u2014 they\u2019re going to be closing their doors on it\u201d.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll the signs are there, and it\u2019s reckless to run your government on passport money and citizenship money.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But his Antigua and Barbuda counterpart, Gaston Browne, has taken umbrage at Gonsalves\u2019 statement, rejecting his suggestion that the CBI could result in visa restrictions for countries that operate the programmes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know why Ralph believes that the CBI countries will lose visa-free access, and that St Vincent and the Grenadines will be able to retain visa-free access,\u201d Browne said on his weekly radio show. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt the end of the day, we\u2019re operating within the same space, and as I said before, the same stick that beats the wild goat is the same one that going beat the tame.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Antigua and Barbuda prime minister, who, along with Gonsalves, met with the United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, in Washington on Tuesday, said that OECS countries should be supporting each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey may use CBI to stop our visa-free access, but they\u2019ll use some other reason to stop visa-free access to St Vincent and the Grenadines. So, it is not appropriate for Ralph to be trashing us with the hope that we lose our visa-free access.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Dominica, St Kitts-Nevis, and St Lucia each have a CBI programme. While St Vincent and the Grenadines had a CBI programme, Gonsalves\u2019 Unity Labour Party (ULP) administration rescinded after it came to office in 2001.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since then, Gonsalves has remained firmly opposed to CBI, and the NDP has promised that should it win the next general election, widely expected by November, ahead of the February 2026 constitutional deadline, it will reinstate the CBI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Browne said that CBI helps Caribbean countries to meet their developmental needs amid a hostile global environment, telling radio listeners, \u201cthese international institutions and these large countries don\u2019t care about us\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re on the fringes of global development. And if we don\u2019t try and have a little carve out somewhere in order to protect the living standards of our people, we\u2019re going to see a denigration in the living standards.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Antigua and Barbuda prime minister said that he supported CBI even when he was in opposition, and it was not a popular policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd by standing on the truth and telling the people of Antigua and Barbuda that CBI will raise the necessary revenues to help us to literally salvage our financial situation, who you think benefited the most from it?\u201d he said, adding that St John\u2019s CBI programme is now into its 11th year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt pays to stand on the truth. And I\u2019ll say this to you: any country in the Caribbean who feel that they want to raise additional revenue and they want to engage in any immigration investment programme, investment immigration programmes are not legitimately corrupt.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Responding \u201cconstructively\u201d to Gonsalves\u2019 statements, Browne said: \u201cFirst of all, I felt that Ralph\u2019s statement was unfortunate, and for somebody who I admire, especially his language skills when it comes to good language, Ralph is not short of good language, and I think this was a deliberate and provocative attack on member states within the OECS, his colleagues.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd, as small, vulnerable countries, we always encourage leaders to stand in solidarity with each other, recognising that the same stick that beats the wild goat is the same one that will beat the tame.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Browne said nonetheless he was shocked that Gonsalves \u201ccould be so reckless with his language to treat all of us with the same broad brush\u201d and that he could not admit or deny any corruption in any other CBI programme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd I want to say to Ralph definitively that the accusations that he made of corruption in these programmes, which would have included Antigua and Barbuda, certainly don\u2019t apply to our country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Browne said St John\u2019s runs a legitimate investment immigration programme that is no different than the EB-5 visa programme in the United States, under which people who invest can become permanent residents, a pathway to citizenship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s no different than the one in Canada. It\u2019s no different than those in the European Union,\u201d Browne said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI also want to say to Ralph that we have not published a single application without appropriate due diligence, which includes international due diligence agencies and regional institutions, global institutions, including INTERPOL (the International Criminal Police Organization) and the Trinidad-based Caricom (Caribbean Community) Implementing Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS) here within the Caribbean region, or JRCC (The Joint Regional Communications Centre) for that matter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said that certainly in the case of Antigua and Barbuda, it is not true that CBI applications are processed without due diligence and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd even if, Ralph, you are speculating that there may be corruption in other programmes, I do not appreciate you literally treating us with a broad brush and to implicate one of the best-run investment immigration programmes in the world \u2014 the Antiguan and Barbudan programme\u2013 with the type of adjectives and mismanagement and corruption that you\u2019re talking about,\u201d Browne said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHAT\u2019S APP GROUP<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHAT\u2019S APP GROUP<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHAT\u2019S APP GROUP<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHAT\u2019S APP GROUP<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHAT\u2019S APP GROUP<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHAT\u2019S APP GROUP<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHAT\u2019S APP GROUP (CMC) \u2014 Two leaders from the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) are at odds over the benefit of the controversial Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme that some regional countries use to attract foreign investments. Under the CBI programme, foreign investors are provided with citizenship of a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":236179,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-236343","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nCBI Programme: A Controversial Investment Tool - Antigua News Room<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Explore the CBI programme and its impact on foreign investments in the Eastern Caribbean and the debate surrounding it.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"OECS leaders at odds over CBI programme\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Explore the CBI programme and its impact on foreign investments in the Eastern Caribbean and the debate surrounding it.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Antigua News Room\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-05-09T11:05:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-05-09T13:25:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"514\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"770\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"anr_staff\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"anr_staff\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"anr_staff\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f66ae26f5698168092c3ef9bccb12038\"},\"headline\":\"OECS leaders at odds over CBI programme\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-05-09T11:05:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-09T13:25:21+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/\"},\"wordCount\":1129,\"commentCount\":7,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:514\/h:770\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/\",\"name\":\"CBI Programme: A Controversial Investment Tool - Antigua News Room\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:514\/h:770\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-05-09T11:05:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-09T13:25:21+00:00\",\"description\":\"Explore the CBI programme and its impact on foreign investments in the Eastern Caribbean and the debate surrounding it.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:514\/h:770\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:514\/h:770\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg\",\"width\":514,\"height\":770},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"OECS leaders at odds over CBI programme\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\",\"name\":\"Antigua News Room\",\"description\":\"News As It Happens\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Antigua Newsroom\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg\",\"width\":1260,\"height\":1260,\"caption\":\"Antigua Newsroom\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/AntiguaNewsRoom\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/antiguanewsroom\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f66ae26f5698168092c3ef9bccb12038\",\"name\":\"anr_staff\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96\",\"caption\":\"anr_staff\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/author\/anr_staff\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"CBI Programme: A Controversial Investment Tool - Antigua News Room","description":"Explore the CBI programme and its impact on foreign investments in the Eastern Caribbean and the debate surrounding it.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"OECS leaders at odds over CBI programme","og_description":"Explore the CBI programme and its impact on foreign investments in the Eastern Caribbean and the debate surrounding it.","og_url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/","og_site_name":"Antigua News Room","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom","article_published_time":"2025-05-09T11:05:21+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-05-09T13:25:21+00:00","og_image":[{"width":514,"height":770,"url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"anr_staff","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@AntiguaNewsRoom","twitter_site":"@AntiguaNewsRoom","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"anr_staff","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/"},"author":{"name":"anr_staff","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f66ae26f5698168092c3ef9bccb12038"},"headline":"OECS leaders at odds over CBI programme","datePublished":"2025-05-09T11:05:21+00:00","dateModified":"2025-05-09T13:25:21+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/"},"wordCount":1129,"commentCount":7,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:514\/h:770\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/","name":"CBI Programme: A Controversial Investment Tool - Antigua News Room","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:514\/h:770\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg","datePublished":"2025-05-09T11:05:21+00:00","dateModified":"2025-05-09T13:25:21+00:00","description":"Explore the CBI programme and its impact on foreign investments in the Eastern Caribbean and the debate surrounding it.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:514\/h:770\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:514\/h:770\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/ralph-e1746704556566.jpg","width":514,"height":770},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/oecs-leaders-at-odds-over-cbi-programme\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"OECS leaders at odds over CBI programme"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/","name":"Antigua News Room","description":"News As It Happens","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization","name":"Antigua Newsroom","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg","width":1260,"height":1260,"caption":"Antigua Newsroom"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom","https:\/\/x.com\/AntiguaNewsRoom","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/antiguanewsroom\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f66ae26f5698168092c3ef9bccb12038","name":"anr_staff","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96","caption":"anr_staff"},"url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/author\/anr_staff\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/236343","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=236343"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/236343\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":236380,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/236343\/revisions\/236380"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/media\/236179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=236343"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=236343"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=236343"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}