ST. CROIX USVI – BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS (October 2024) – On Wednesday, October 23, 2024, at 2 pm EST, Governor Albert Bryan Jr. hosted a press conference in Government House in St. Croix to announce and unveil a historic landmark and an unprecedented regional economic development relations, and cooperation partnership with the Barbados-based, Pleion Group Inc and its subsidiary company, Connect Caribe, a regional ferry service organization established to provide maritime transportation for the movement of people and cargo within the Caribbean for the purpose of enhanced trade and regional connectivity.
The partnership is to establish St. Croix, US Virgin Islands (USVI), as the third (3rd) regional transportation hub to create a major Maritime Ferry Network of moving people and cargo throughout the Caribbean with CARICOM’s member States of Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago as the two other main hubs to better connect regional economies in promoting and improving trade and commerce between the US and the Caribbean.
This press conference formally introduced the Caribbean Americas Single Economy (CASE), “Making the CASE,” a US Virgin Islands public private partnership, major public policy, and macroeconomic development initiative to ensure the USVI is more incorporated and aligned geopolitically and economically to foster trade relations. Using technology and transportation to open new markets opportunities for local USVI businesses to export throughout the region.
With respect to this historic development, Ambassador Dr. Andre Thomas, Chairman and CEO of Pleion Group Inc. and Connect Caribe, expressed enthusiasm, stating, “We are thrilled to join hands with Governor Bryan and the principals of the Caribbean Americas Single Economy (CASE) to launch this transformative partnership that will change the face of Caribbean trade and connectivity.”
“The signing of this landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands and key private sector leaders marks a pivotal step in the establishment of the Connect Caribe Hub, a transformative supply chain and logistical corridor. This hub will strengthen connections between the U.S. Virgin Islands and broader markets, facilitating smoother and more efficient trade routes across the Caribbean and to the United States, Ambassador Thomas added.
He further stated that, “With U.S.-Caribbean trade valued at over $50 billion annually, and approximately $25 billion of that passing through the U.S. Virgin Islands, the creation of the Connect Caribe Hub is set to revolutionize the region’s trade landscape. By utilizing the Connect Caribe maritime network, this initiative will enable faster, more cost-effective cargo movement across the Caribbean. In addition to enhancing logistical efficiencies, this hub will serve as a gateway for Caribbean manufacturers to expand their market reach, providing direct access to U.S. consumers. This innovative partnership will not only boost economic growth in the region but will also position the U.S. Virgin Islands as a central player in the future of Caribbean trade and commerce, not only streamlining the movement of people and cargo but also strengthen the region’s ability to compete on the global stage, opening new doors for trade, tourism, and collaboration between the Caribbean and the United States.”