Saturday from Roseau. The week’s threads.
Visa-bond pressure continues
Dominican citizens are operating under the same US visa-bond regime imposed in January — $5,000 to $15,000, refundable if a visa is rejected. The opposition and civil society groups continue to argue the local diplomatic response should have been more aggressive at the negotiation stage; the government continues to argue the situation has been stabilized through structural reforms to the CBI program.
The day-to-day reality for ordinary Dominicans is the same it was three months ago: a US trip is now a financial decision in a way it wasn’t last year.
Skerrit pushes CBI reforms
PM Roosevelt Skerrit has continued to push the CBI reform agenda, including enhanced due-diligence layers, real-time information sharing with US partners on the agreement framework, and tightened scrutiny on the source-of-funds verification stage. The work is being done quietly — the political pressure to do it visibly is constant.
The opposition position remains that the public is owed a full accounting of every detail of the agreement reached with US authorities. That call has not yet been met.
Geothermal progress
The Roseau Valley geothermal project continues toward commissioning. The plant is expected to displace a significant share of diesel generation when fully online and is the centerpiece of the country’s transition strategy. The technical work has stayed broadly on schedule despite global supply-chain pressure.
For diaspora investors looking for legitimate Dominica exposure, this is the project to track — the economics are real and the social-license dimension is unusually strong.
Quick hits
- Tourism: Boiling Lake hike continues to anchor the eco-tourism segment; cruise-day numbers up on the spring shoulder.
- Regional CBI alignment: Coordinated reform schedule continuing with Antigua, St Kitts, St Lucia, Grenada under the Washington deadline framework.
- Education: Ongoing teacher training expansion and curriculum modernization through the OECS framework.
Tradewinds Brief Newsroom. Sources: Dominica News Online, regional wire.