ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC—The Government of Grenada has established diplomatic relations with several African nations as part of its foreign policy to develop and strengthen its relationships with countries on that continent.
The government has also signed visa waiver agreements with some nations with which the island already has diplomatic relations.
Foreign Affairs Minister Joseph Andall told the Parliament while contributing to the EC$1.9 billion (One EC dollar = 0.37 cents) budget debate that Grenada has recognized that to facilitate business, not only the movement of goods but also the movement of people must be encouraged, and this is the main reason for the visa waiver agreements.
“We have been aggressively pursuing the signing of visa waiver agreements with several countries across the globe,” as he shared with the Parliament the names of the African Nations with which Grenada has signed visa agreements.
“We recently signed with Ghana and await their Parliament’s ratification. They recently changed government, so if anything, there will be little delay. We have recently engaged Egypt; it is just a matter of time; we have already signed with the Republic of Benin and the Kingdom of Morocco. We are currently discussing this with Qatar, Angola, and South Africa,” Andall told the Parliament.
He explained that Grenada already has a road map with the Kingdom of Morocco on the way forward.
“There is already a road map with Morocco which includes the island receiving scholarships and fertilizers, signed an agreement on the use of renewable energy where Morocco has developed quite a bit of expertise and they are quite willing and prepared to share with us,” he said. The roadmap also includes an agreement on health and tourism.
“These are areas that we are going to continue collaborating with the Kingdom of Morocco so that it can all come down to the benefit of our country,” he told the House before sharing the list of countries Grenada has established diplomatic relations with within the 2024 fiscal year.
“Mr Speaker, in the last reporting period, we have established diplomatic relations with Bangladesh, Cape Verde, Mauritius, Lesotho, Andorra, and the kingdom of Jordan. All of these signings allow us to engage with a wider cross-section of people; it gives us more options, therefore more leverage, and more opportunities,” Andall disclosed.
“We are currently in discussion with The Gambia, Senegal, the Philippines, South Sudan, and Mauritania for establishing diplomatic relations,” he added.
“It’s a competitive world out there.
We have to start seeing certain things not just as expenses but as investment,” said Andall, whose ministerial portfolio doesn’t only cover Foreign Affairs but includes Trade & Export Development. That ministry will receive 1.2% of the EC$1.9 billion Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for 2025.
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