Speaking to a distinguished group of politicians, including His Excellency Charles Savarin, president of Dominica, and The Right Honorable Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister of Dominica, numerous high-level businesspeople and journalists, Mr. Mohammed Asaria, Managing Director of Range Developments, described the hotel’s development as transformative for Dominica’s tourism industry.

“This hotel marks the advent of a new stage in its development life cycle,” he said. “The possibilities for Dominicans to benefit from this hotel are endless – a multitude of small businesses have already been created. At least 40 local enterprises have been established, and this is what we all must be most proud of; the fact that we have provided opportunities for these individuals to flourish.”

“The economic outcome for the island has been nothing but positive, with a direct financial contribution of USD$40million from government fees. More than 400 local workers were employed at various stages of construction – with four million working hours completed without a major accident while building 250,000 square feet of 5-star built-up areas. More tourists will come to the island, and more than 150 jobs alone will be created at the hotel, with at least double that figure benefitting indirectly.”

“This hotel – Cabrits Resort & Spa Kempinski, Dominica is a lighthouse in the Caribbean’s CBI marketplace,” concluded Mr Asaria.

The spotlight for Range now switches to Grenada, specifically the Six Senses La Sagesse in Saint David’s Parish, an unspoiled area of remarkable natural beauty boasting ‘one of the top ten beaches in the Caribbean’ according to The Sunday Times.

Grenada’s CBI program is the only one in the Caribbean that offers visa-free access to China. It is also the only one that holds an E-2 Investor Visa treaty with the US, allowing citizens to be eligible to apply to the US for a non-immigrant visa.

Its appeal has been further enhanced by improvements to the country’s Citizenship-by-Investment unit, which is simplifying its processing procedures, and consolidating its position as one of the most sought after citizenship program in the Caribbean. According to a statement from the unit, the move to a two-step system will represent a ‘significant enhancement’ for the program.

The first step for potential investors is to produce key documents, including passport, marriage certificate, proof of funds, bank references, among others, which can be used for pre-screening candidates before final applications are lodged. While the formal processing does not begin until the application is fully completed and all fees paid, the aim is expected to cut down on unnecessary delays.

The unit has also moved to make the required documents more responsive to local customs, and less draconian on specific wordings. For example, confirmation of address need no longer be solely proven by a utility bill, but can also be confirmed by a letter from a landlord; a family book for Arab families can be used as a substitute for a marriage certificate.

These are just the latest enhancements to Grenada’s CBI program. The unit is also preparing to automate most of its work using application processing software.