Antigua & Barbuda signs declaration to join CAF Development Bank

Antigua and Barbuda is looking to join the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF).

Prime Minister Gaston Brown signed a declaration of intent to join CAF today on the sidelines of the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS4), which is being held in Antigua and Barbuda.

Brown said: “We are very happy to celebrate Antigua and Barbuda’s intention to join CAF. We are fully aligned and ready to work together on the opportunities that CAF can provide to small Caribbean islands like Antigua and Barbuda to achieve greater well-being for their inhabitants.”

In a statement, CAF said: “This signing opens doors for the country to expand its options for development financing, tapping into CAF’s technical expertise, financial resources, and knowledge services. Antigua and Barbuda’s confirmation of its interest in joining CAF is a strong signal of the organisation’s expanding presence in the Caribbean.”

CAF’s Executive President, Sergio Díaz-Granados, remarked: “The growing partnership between Antigua and Barbuda and CAF demonstrates our commitment to providing Caribbean SIDS with new options for development financing to support the Caribbean with tackling development issues that are affecting their communities. Additionally, it underscores the growing confidence that Caribbean countries are placing in CAF to provide swift and innovative financing solutions that will directly benefit their citizens’ well-being.”

Twenty-one countries including Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and the Dominican Republic make up the shareholders of CAF.