Youngest CARICOM Prime Minister to Co-Chair Summit with PM Modi

The current youngest Prime Minister in the Caribbean Community is all set to co-chair the CARICOM – India Summit with Narendra Modi in Georgetown.  

The 2nd edition of the summit is scheduled to take place from November 20 to 24, 2024 in Guyana with the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the special guest. The summit will also see participation of all heads of Governments and delegates from 15 member CARICOM states.  

Grenada’s 44-year-old Dickon Mitchell, who is the youngest ever Prime Minister of Grenada, will be co-chairing with his Indian counterpart. 

The opening ceremony on Wednesday will kickstart with special remarks from the Dickon Mitchell- CARICOM Chair, President of Guyana- Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali and Prime Minister of India- Narendra Modi as well as Secretary General of CARICOM, Dr Carla Barnett.  

Who is Dickon Mitchell- Youngest Prime Minister of Grenada 

Dickon Amiss Thomas Mitchell mostly known as Dickon Mitchell is currently the Prime Minister of Grenada. He was sworn in as the Prime Minister of the tri-island state comprising of Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique on June 24, 2022, and is also the head of the National Democratic Congress. 

Mitchell, 46, was sworn in as the 9th Prime Minister of the country and was the youngest person to ever be elected to the office at the age of 44 years on 24 June 2022. 

Moreover, the Grenadian Prime Minister was named as the Chairman of the CARICOM in July 2024 and since then he has been advocating for climate justice at international platforms.  

Notably, the Chairmanship of the CARICOM is held in rotation by the regional Heads of Government in the 15 CARICOM member states.  

How Old is Dickon Mitchell 

Born on October 8, 1978, Dickon Mitchell is an attorney at law by profession and he graduated from UWI Cave Hill Faculty of Law Graduate in 2000.  

In 2002, PM Mitchell completed the Hugh Wooding Law School’s Legal Education Certificate following which he worked as a lawyer and represented several individuals and business entities.  

Following over a decade serving in Grenada as a lawyer, Mitchell started a law firm in 2016, “Mitchell & Co”. Soon after, he decided to move his career a step forward, which led him to join the field of politics.  

Just eight months into his political career, he led his party to a huge victory in 2022 by securing 9 out of 15 parliamentary seats across Grenada.

One of the major highlights of his victory was the fact that he ousted Dr Keith Mitchell who was the longest serving Prime Minister Grenada has ever had as he held the office for just over 13 years.  

Mitchell’s Political Career  

Soon after assuming the chair of the Prime Minister, Dickon Mitchell made significant strides which included benefitting the citizens and developing the overall country. 

In April 2024, he was named among top three Caribbean Global Leaders in the Caribbean Global Awards. Ranked at the 3rd place, the leader stood above popular leaders, such as Jamaica’s Andrew Holness and Antigua and Barbuda’s Gaston Browne. 

He introduced several major initiatives in healthcare, education, agriculture, tourism and several others, which turned out to be beneficial for people living across the tri-island state. 

These included the removal of school fees at pre-primary, primary and secondary school levels, payment of docked salaries, payment of pensions, twice monthly payment of salaries, cost of living relief measures and much more.  

Apart from this, he was also winner in all local People’s Choice Award 2022. The online event amassed more than 6000 votes from viewers across the Caribbean and people chose PM Mitchell as the winner among all Caribbean Prime Ministers.  

The Prime Minister Mitchell also managed the tri-island state after the earliest formed Category 5 Hurricane made landfall in Carriacou and caused severe destruction in Petite Martinique as well as mainland Grenada in June 2024. Due to this, he made to the TIME Magazine’s “TIME 100 Climate 2024” list, released on 12 November, 2024.  

“Dickon Mitchell, the Prime Minister of Grenada since 2022, knows all too well the devastation a natural disaster can visit upon a small island nation like his. He also understands why climate resiliency is so urgent for countries facing financial and structural ruin,” The TIME Magazine.  

Soon after the destruction caused, he launched Project 500, under which PM Mitchell vowed to provide affordable and sustainable housing to the needy individuals across the island nation.  

The homes which will be built under Project 400 will feature energy efficient roofing, windows, low flow plumbing fixtures as well as rainwater harvesting systems. The first phase of this project was launched in June 2024 and the authorities conducted 17 homes following which homeowners were taken on a tour to visit these sites.  

Bilateral Ties between India and Grenada 

Notably, India established diplomatic relations with Grenada on October 1, 1975, and since then the two countries share a good bond. India’s top exports to Grenada include vehicles and parts, pharmaceuticals, iron and steel, Tobacco, clothing and accessories, coffee, tea, mate, spices, electrical machinery and copper.  

On the other hand, exports from Grenada to India includes nutmeg, mace, Cardamons and air conditioners. In 2022, Grenada exported a total of $1.25 million to India and India exported $4.49 million to Grenada back in 2017. 

Over the last five years, the exports of Grenada to India have increased at an annual rate of 34.8 percent, from $281k in 2017 to $1.25M in 2022. 

There has been exchange of government leaders of both countries at various times since 2006 and India has also helped Grenada in various spheres. India fully funded two infrastructure projects in Grenada including Union Community Centre in the Parish of St. Marks and BelleVue Road Project.  

Several other projects have also been funded by the Indian government including an ICT Centre for Excellence & Innovation, new incinerator for the General hospital project and much more.  

Moreover, Grenada comprises of a big community of Indian diaspora which is why they celebrate the Indian festivals with huge celebrations. Several festivals including Holi, Diwali and several others.  

Youngest Grenadian PM co-chairing India-CARICOM Summit with PM Modi: Significance  

Being the youngest Prime Minister of Grenada, the co-chairing of India CARICOM Summit is being seen an idle opportunity for the leader of the small island nation to share a stage with an experienced and well-known international leader.  

It will also allow him to explore several new insights of political landscape and enhance collaboration of multiple levels of development.  

The summit will also be the first time when PM Mitchell and PM Modi will come across each other face to face, giving them the opportunity to discuss several issues being faced by the small island developing states and explore areas to overcome those problems.  

The Prime Ministers are also expected to explore the historic partnership between the two countries to strengthen the overall Caribbean-India cooperation on energy, health and innovation.  

At the CARICOM-India Summit, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also be conferred with Dominica’s Highest State Honour for his unwavering commitment during the COVID-19 pandemic. He will be honoured by Commonwealth of Dominica’s President Sylvanie Burton.