By Val Matthias. Updated 8:56 a.m., Sunday, May 17, 2026, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).
The head of Invest SVG has called for an end to what she described as a growing divide between Vincentians living overseas and those at home, saying members of the diaspora should be seen as equal partners in national development.
Speaking during the Toronto leg of the “Home Is Where the Heart Is” investment outreach programme, newly appointed Executive Director Anna Young said overseas Vincentians often felt excluded from discussions about the country’s future.
“Too often I hear from an unfortunate divide where members of our diaspora sometimes are told, what happens in St Vincent is not your business, because you live abroad,” Ms Young said. “That thinking is self-defeating and it must stop.”
Ms Young, who said she had spent the past 36 years living overseas, told the audience she personally understood the experience of migration and the challenges faced by Vincentians abroad seeking to reconnect with their homeland.
“A Vincentian living in Toronto, Montreal, New York City, London is no less a Vincentian than someone living in SVG,” she said.
The comments came as Invest SVG continued its diaspora outreach campaign aimed at encouraging overseas Vincentians to invest in sectors including tourism, agriculture, housing and agro- processing.
Ms Young said the agency intended to make diaspora engagement a central part of its investment strategy.
“At Invest SVG, and certainly under my leadership, our approach to diaspora will be one of partnership, belonging, and respect,” she said.
She described members of the diaspora as “stakeholders” and “partners in national development”, adding: “You are actually our most valuable export.”
The Toronto engagement formed part of a broader international initiative launched by Invest SVG to strengthen ties with Vincentians overseas and encourage foreign direct investment. Previous sessions were held in London and Tortola, with another event planned for New York later this month.
Ms Young also encouraged Vincentians abroad to become more directly involved in investment opportunities back home, warning that foreign investors were already expressing strong interest in several local ventures.
“We are open for business,” she said. “The opportunities are there.”
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