By OECS
Photos: OECS|Wikimedia Commons
The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) has formalized a strategic partnership through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Eastern Caribbean Robotics and Innovation Association (EC-RIA). Signed on February 26, 2026, by OECS Director General Dr. Didacus Jules and Chairman and Founder of EC-RIA, H.E. Dr. Ricardo Neil, in Basseterre, St. Kitts and Nevis, the MoU marks an important step toward advancing innovation, digital transformation, STEAM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education, entrepreneurship, youth empowerment, and institutional capacity development across the OECS region.
This collaboration is closely aligned with the OECS Commission’s Strategic Priorities, particularly Strategic Priority 2: Reinvent the Economy and Strategic Priority 5: Advance Equity and Inclusion. Through this MoU, the OECS and EC-RIA will work together to support innovation as a key enabler of economic transformation, while also creating more equitable access to opportunity for youth, women, underserved communities, and other groups across the region.
The signing brings together two organizations with complementary mandates and a common vision for future-ready development. The OECS continues to promote regional integration, functional cooperation, and sustainable development among its Member States, while EC-RIA has been advancing innovation, robotics, coding, entrepreneurship, and STEAM education across the Eastern Caribbean.
While the MoU is non-binding, it reflects a strong mutual commitment to cooperate in good faith and to pursue activities that advance innovation within the OECS region. It also creates a platform for future collaboration on specific projects and initiatives that support the transformation of OECS economies through innovation, creativity, technology, and human capital development.
The signing of this MoU signals a forward-looking commitment by both organizations to deepen collaboration in support of a stronger culture of innovation in the Eastern Caribbean and to help shape a region that is more connected, competitive, inclusive, and prepared for the opportunities of the future.
