Barbados touts free movement as a growth blueprint at UN migration forum

Barbados told a UN conference that migration is central to small island states’ economic resilience and identity.

At the International Migration Review Forum, Home Affairs Minister Gregory Nicholls said his government is turning pledges into action. As of October 1, 2025, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, and St. Vincent & the Grenadines launched full free movement – granting nationals the right to live, work, and reside indefinitely across all four states, with guaranteed health care and education.

“This is not generosity,” Nicholls said. “It is an obligation built on political will.”

Barbados is also drafting a national migration policy aligned with CARICOM. Nicholls called climate displacement an urgent reality, urging reform of global climate finance and full resourcing of the UN Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund.

He added that the Barbadian diaspora in Britain, Canada, and the US will be tapped for investment and skills transfer.

“Migration, managed well, is not a burden,” he said. “It is an engine for creativity, innovation, and growth.”