Government Deepens Participatory Governance Through Budget 2026 National Forum
Basseterre, St. Kitts, October 29th 2025 (PMO) — Stakeholders from across St. Kitts and Nevis, including senior civil servants, private-sector leaders, students, and community representatives, are currently engaged at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort for the Budget 2026 National Forum, held under the theme “Turning Conversations into Action: Building Our Sustainable Island State Together.”
The forum, hosted by the Ministry of Finance under the leadership of Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Hon. Dr. Terrance Drew, represents another milestone in the Government’s commitment to transparency, accountability, and participatory governance. It underscores the administration’s belief that the national budget must be shaped with the people, not merely for them.
In his opening remarks, Acting Financial Secretary Mr. Carlton Pogson described Budget 2026 as “a people-centred instrument of national development,” noting that the consultations held over the past weeks, in Saddlers on October 16 and Sandy Point on October 23, were critical in ensuring that citizens’ voices directly inform government priorities.
“The budget process is not confined to government offices,” Mr. Pogson affirmed. “It belongs to the people. Through these consultations, we affirm our belief that good governance begins with listening.”
He emphasized that Budget 2026 seeks to strike a careful balance between fiscal discipline and social investment.
“These are not competing objectives; they are complementary imperatives,” he said. “Fiscal discipline ensures stability and credibility, while social investment ensures equity and opportunity. Together, they form the foundation of sustainable development.”
Participants at today’s forum will engaged in lively dialogue following presentations by Mr. Trevor Blake, President of the St. Kitts and Nevis Chamber of Industry and Commerce, and Mr. Aquanjé Robinson, Executive Research Officer in the Ministry of Environment, Climate Action and Constituency Empowerment. The day will culminate with a fireside chat featuring Prime Minister Drew and Financial Secretary Pogson, moderated by Mr. Ian Richards of SKNIS, focusing on how Budget 2026 fuels progress toward the Sustainable Island State Agenda.
The Budget 2026 National Forum forms part of an ongoing series of nationwide engagements designed to make the budget process more participatory, transparent, and empowering. Under Dr. Drew’s leadership, the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis has brought budget consultations directly to communities, a first in the Federation’s history, ensuring that citizens understand the nation’s fiscal direction and play a role in shaping it.
As the Acting Financial Secretary concluded, he stressed that “Progress is not powered by policy alone. It is empowered by people, by their ideas, their energy, and their belief in a better future. Budget 2026 must be our collective roadmap, how we turn vision into action, and action into impact.”
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