The push for deeper integration across the Eastern Caribbean has gained a high-profile endorsement, as Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne has laid out a vision for a future political union among member nations of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).
Speaking during an interview with local outlet Pointe FM, Browne — who currently holds the chairmanship of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union — argued that decades of coordinated economic and functional policy have already created a strong, viable foundation for OECS countries to build toward ever-closer political alignment.
“I would love to see, eventually, that we set the platform based on increased cooperation among OECS countries, that we could have a political union in the future,” Browne told listeners. “I may not be around to see it completed, but I am of the view that it is the closest subgrouping, certainly in the hemisphere, to move towards having a political union.”
The prime minister stressed that the immediate goal is not to rush into formal political unification today, but rather to lay the policy and institutional groundwork that will allow coming generations to advance the project to its final stage. He pointed to a range of existing cross-border collaborative efforts, including coordinated monetary policy, joint planning for transportation networks, and shared energy development initiatives, as proof that integration already delivers tangible benefits for regional populations.
Browne argued that deeper, broader integration would cut administrative and operational costs across the region while also improving the quality of public services available to residents of OECS member states. He outlined a series of near-term cooperation initiatives that build on existing progress, including proposals for a shared regional airline, centralized joint procurement systems for public sector goods and services, and cross-border partnerships to expand renewable energy generation across the Eastern Caribbean.
To further streamline resource use and eliminate redundant overhead, Browne also proposed that OECS nations explore consolidating diplomatic representation overseas. He noted that many small OECS states maintain separate diplomatic missions in the same countries, a practice that wastes limited financial and human resources. As an example, he pointed to representation in Canada, asking: “There’s no reason why we each have to have a mission in Canada,” suggesting that joint, shared diplomatic missions managed collectively by OECS member states would deliver the same level of service at a far lower cost to national governments.