... New Deep-Water Port to Create Digital Trade Corridor, Bypassing European Detours
The Managing Director of Aquarian Consult and founder of Gemini Integrated Commodities, Aisha Maina, has completed a week of high-level engagements that secured a landmark $40 million investment quote to establish a commercial trade corridor between Africa and the Caribbean, reports ITREALMS.
This investment, anchored by a new deep-water port, is a major step toward building what Maina described as a "physical backbone of a trade bridge that has been too long in the making."
The investment was the centerpiece of a trade mission that included stops in Grenada, Jamaica, and Trinidad. At the Afreximbank Afri-Caribbean Trade and Investment Forum in Grenada, Maina co-signed a $40 million Letter of Interest with Afreximbank and the Government of St. Kitts & Nevis.
This agreement, ITREALMS gathered, will finance a Panamax-capable deep-water port in Basseterre, which will be the heart of a 10-square-kilometer special economic zone. The zone is designed for agro-processing, light assembly, and bonded warehousing, and is expected to attract an additional $300 million in private investment and create thousands of jobs.
For African IT professionals and businesses, the project promises significant technological and logistical advantages, as the new corridor is designed to provide end-to-end digital customs visibility, eliminating the need for costly and time-consuming European detours. Maina, speaking at an event in Montego Bay, noted that the route could cut sailing times from Lagos to Basseterre to approximately seven days.
“If the private sector does not take charge of the process, we will remain where we have been,” Maina told delegates, emphasizing the need for decisive action. The feasibility studies for the project are set to begin in August, with financial close targeted for the first quarter of 2026.
The project is particularly strategic for Saint Kitts & Nevis, a nation with fewer than 60,000 people. It will position the federation as a crucial logistics hub connecting 19 African and 12 Caribbean Commonwealth members. The port's development represents a tangible move from policy discussions to hard infrastructure, a point highlighted by Minister of Agriculture, Honourable Samal Duggins, who stated, "Facility after facility, deal after deal, we are not just talking transformation; we are delivering it."
Maina's engagements concluded in Port of Spain, Trinidad, where she delivered a keynote on the importance of Trans-Atlantic trade, linking new financing tools and port logistics to broader goals of youth employment, food security, and diversified exports. The initiative is a clear signal that African and Caribbean leaders are committed to leveraging infrastructure and technology to unlock mutual economic growth and self-reliance.
For African IT professionals and businesses, the project promises significant technological and logistical advantages, as the new corridor is designed to provide end-to-end digital customs visibility, eliminating the need for costly and time-consuming European detours. Maina, speaking at an event in Montego Bay, noted that the route could cut sailing times from Lagos to Basseterre to approximately seven days.
“If the private sector does not take charge of the process, we will remain where we have been,” Maina told delegates, emphasizing the need for decisive action. The feasibility studies for the project are set to begin in August, with financial close targeted for the first quarter of 2026.
The project is particularly strategic for Saint Kitts & Nevis, a nation with fewer than 60,000 people. It will position the federation as a crucial logistics hub connecting 19 African and 12 Caribbean Commonwealth members. The port's development represents a tangible move from policy discussions to hard infrastructure, a point highlighted by Minister of Agriculture, Honourable Samal Duggins, who stated, "Facility after facility, deal after deal, we are not just talking transformation; we are delivering it."
Maina's engagements concluded in Port of Spain, Trinidad, where she delivered a keynote on the importance of Trans-Atlantic trade, linking new financing tools and port logistics to broader goals of youth employment, food security, and diversified exports. The initiative is a clear signal that African and Caribbean leaders are committed to leveraging infrastructure and technology to unlock mutual economic growth and self-reliance.
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