Antigua and Barbuda is in line to get another significant form of assistance from
the People’s Republic of China, which is acknowledged as the country’s most
important developmental partner.
Reporting in his recent trip to the PRC, Prime Minister Gaston Browne hailed the
trip as being very fruitful with both countries signing a number of Memoranda of
Understanding through which Antigua and Barbuda will get additional
developmental assistance from China.
This time, the assistance is coming in the form of Chinese help with the re-piping
that is now taking place here on Antigua. “We were able to sign infrastructural
development assistance agreement; in fact, one of the most exciting is the re-piping
of St. John’s, to start, then eventually the whole of Antigua and Barbuda. As you
know we have an aging piping infrastructure and we were able to exchange Letters
of Commitment with the Chinese government. Normally, this would take up to two
years, but we were able to get this matter accelerated to the point where within the
next twenty-four months we should see some commitment regarding the funding,”
PM Browne reported.
The move to request Chinese funding for the re-piping exercise is an essential part
of the government’s move to improve the production and distribution of water
throughout both Antigua and sister isle Barbuda.
During the trip, other MOU were signed including one dealing with the whole
issue of climate change. Antigua and Barbuda has been a vocal advocate for global
action on this critical issue noting that as a small island state it faces an existential
threat from the impact of climate change, although its contributions to the
phenomenon is negligible at best.
The was also an agreement signed between the Antigua and Barbuda delegation
and a university in China for collaboration with the University of the West Indies
Five Islands Campus to conduct joint research.
“We are confident that due to this trip, the relationship between the PRC and
Antigua and Barbuda will be enhanced, not only at the macro leadership level,
based on the strong relations we currently enjoy with the Chinese leadership, but
also at the micro-business level in which we have also visited a number of
businesses in bio medics, in climate change, including electric vehicles, and we are
hoping that we can encourage two of those EV firms to do business here in
Antigua and Barbuda,” the prime minister revealed.
The prime minister and delegation returned from the trip to the PRC on Monday.
