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Harriet James @harriet86jim

Globally renowned as nature’s playground owing to its dramatic peaks, ravines, and adventure-filled terrain that leave visitors speechless, Dominica’s thriving tourism industry is attracting rich Kenyan investors into buying a share of the beauty the island has to offer.

Marketed as an island that juts up from the glistening waters of the Caribbean, the Dominica government has embarked on a programme to woo African investors using it’s verdant tapestry of lush rainforests, towering mountains, rushing rivers, welcoming waterfalls, and volcanic wonders—everything you need to rejuvenate your mind and body, promising great returns and citizenship, in a programme known as Citizen by Investment (CBI).

Dr Michael Lawrence, the director of  Oriental Developers (Caribbean) Limited, which develops major hotels under Dominica’s CBI Programme told Travelwise in his recent visit to Kenya that the Caribbean island has made it possible for investors in their hotel developments to obtain the citizenship of Dominica.

“One option available to applicants seeking to obtain citizenship by investment in Dominica is the opportunity is to invest in a government-approved project, which encompass real estate developments, such as hotels, villas, and resorts. 

“While there is another way of acquiring Dominican citizenship, which is by contributing to a government fund, our target is those with a more entrepreneurial spirit, those who wish to invest in a select list of luxury resorts and hotels,” said Dr Lawrence. 

CBI is the process of obtaining a second citizenship and passport by investing in the economy of the host country.

They legally confer citizenship status faster than traditional immigration processes.

 Many countries, mostly in the Caribbean are granting nationalities to people who can contribute to their economies either by investment or donation through the citizenship by investment programme.

For over 30 years, the Dominica government has provided an option to individuals called the Economic Diversification Fund whereby persons make a non-refundable contribution in exchange for citizenship. 

This donation, also referred to as the Donation Option — is redirected to sectors of the economy that require improvement. 

Global residence and citizenship advisory firm Henley & Partners in its latest report said that Kenya saw tremendous growth in enquiries of 116 per cent between mid-November 2019 and the same period in 2020 about CBI.

“Increasingly, wealthy individuals see investment migration as more than a competitive advantage.

It is no longer a luxury, but as an absolute requirement in this volatile world,” says Dr Juerg Steffen, the company CEO. 

The growing interest among the wealthy in Kenya in finding a second home or ‘plan B’, has led to setting up of an office in Nairobi by Oriental Developers (Caribbean) Limited.

Acquiring a second passport has a greater advantage when it comes to doing business, going on vacation or even acquiring a second home abroad should things be difficult or should there be war at home. 

A Kenyan citizen, for example, who also possesses a Dominica citizenship has the ability to travel to 140 countries, including many jurisdictions in the Americas, Europe, and Asia than their countrymen with just a Kenyan passport. 

“We are currently constructing Anichi Resort and Spa, a member of Marriott International’s premium brand-the Autograph Collection, which will be available to investors who may eventually want to become citizens,” said Dr Lawrence.

Situated on a 12-acre prime property at picturesque Picard Beach, Portsmouth, the resort’s world-class architecture and amenities position it as Dominica’s most luxurious, desired destination. 

Some of the benefits of having a Caribbean citizenship, include access of countries, which offer free education, such as Germany.

Young families with school-age children or university students can enjoy such benefits when they are citizens saving money. There are also immense opportunities, such as access to work in the country. 

“The Caribbean islands are also proving attractive because their investment threshold is not that expensive, making it accessible even to the middle class,” says Dr Lawrence.

The process of acquiring the countries’ citizenship can take between two or three months since background check has to be done to ensure that one is not a terrorist or involved in drugs or other illegal activities.  

The government has so far approved six or seven development projects where if you invest a minimum of US$200,000 (Sh21.5 million), one can acquire citizenship of Dominica where the money would be invested back and the purchaser gets a share into the asset (hotel).

“What we are selling is a lifestyle, it is not a mass market product. It is for persons who have reached that point in their life where they have achieved the financial success, which enables them to make such investments,” says Dr Lawrence, adding,

“The second advantage of this is that the investor does not have to reside in Dominica to be able to invest in the project and acquire Dominica’s citizenship.

Also, the investor will continue to receive returns on their investment in five years, the investor is able to sell their shares and recuperate their money and still retain citizenship of the Commonwealth of Dominica.” 

He says the citizenship, includes the person’s family together with their parents and any of their dependent siblings.

They anticipate that the hotel will be completed by the end of next year and those who have invested will be paid two per cent returns during construction and 3.6 per cent yearly returns based on the resort’s performance.

More importantly, if you do not reside in Dominica, you do not pay taxes on the profits you generate outside of Dominica.

The investment is secure since all the payments made is deposited into the Government of Dominica’s escrow account.

While international travel may not be in the cards for the time being, according to the 2021 Global Ranking in the Henley Passport Index, countries such as the US, UK, Switzerland, Norway, Belgium and New Zealand are ranked number seven as the countries with the strongest passports as her citizens can access 185 countries.

Even though the rankings do not take into account the current Covid-19 pandemic, vaccinations will be a critical factor for international travel, and a stronger passport still remains king when it comes to being a citizen with the privilege to travel.

“Just a year ago, all indications were that the rates of global mobility would continue to rise, that travel freedom would increase, and that holders of powerful passports would enjoy more access than ever before,” Dr Christian H. Kaelin, chairman of Henley & Partners, explained in the January report. 

“The global lockdown negated these glowing projections, and as restrictions begin to lift, the results from the latest index are a reminder of what passport power really means in a world upended by the pandemic,” it stated.

Dr Lawrence is optimistic that with the current vaccination trend in the major travel markets such as the USA, UAE, China, Europe as well as Canada, by the end of the year, tourism will be back on the upswing and that the passport will still be stronger giving you access to travel as a VIP.