Basseterre, Saint Kitts, February 18, 2026 (PMO): Prime Minister the Hon. Dr. Terrance Drew has announced plans to launch a new comprehensive youth-focused strategy aimed at strengthening employment opportunities and aligning young people more directly with the evolving national economy.
The Prime Minister made the disclosure during his February 17 Round Table engagement, noting that the initiative will consolidate existing youth programs under a unified national framework.
“We are going to chart a new strategy, which I will announce in about six weeks, that will deal specifically with the youth. We are going to bring all of the programs geared towards youth under one umbrella.”
While Saint Kitts and Nevis currently records strong labour participation, with over 30,000 individuals actively paying into Social Security, the Prime Minister acknowledged that youth remain the demographic most vulnerable to unemployment and skills mismatch.
“Youth have the highest risk of being unemployed,” he explained, adding that the new initiative will directly target that gap and create clearer pathways into sustainable careers.
The strategy will build on ongoing investments in technical and vocational certification, cybersecurity training, renewable energy skills development, and digital innovation, areas where young people have already secured multi-million-dollar contracts and demonstrated significant entrepreneurial success.
Prime Minister Drew underscored that preparing young people for emerging industries is central to the Sustainable Island State Agenda and to long-term economic resilience.
“This will deal directly with youth and the economy,” he said, signaling that further details will be shared publicly in the coming weeks.
The Government remains committed to ensuring that the Federation’s young people are not only participants in development but drivers of it.
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