Saint Martin’s Accession to the OECS – A Landmark Development for Regional Integration

Excerpt and Photo from pressroom.oecs.int

The Territorial Council of Saint Martin officially advanced its position towards associate membership in the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) on March 19, 2025, marking a pivotal moment in the region’s ongoing efforts toward greater integration and collaboration. The Opening Ceremony of the 76th Authority Meeting of the OECS and the Accession Ceremony of Saint Martin to the OECS was held at Secrets St. Martin Resort and Spa, and was filled with cultural vibrance and reminders of the successes, goals, and benefits of regional integration.

Saint Martin is now the 12th Member State of the OECS, joining the Protocol Member States of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the Associate Member States of Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, Martinique and Guadeloupe. It is now the third French Overseas Territory with associate membership, highlighting their eagerness to strengthen connections in the region through diplomacy and development.

Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, Hon. Philip J. Pierre, and Chair of the OECS Authority, in his remarks on the occasion said,

At the ceremony, the President of the Territorial Council of Saint Martin, Louis Mussington, expressed thankfulness that the moment of accession was finally happening.