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Terrance “TJ” Drew Jr.-led initiative brings young people together for four days of leadership, entrepreneurship, governance and nation-building, with major support from the Citizenship Unit and National Housing Corporation

BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS — Hundreds of young people from across St. Kitts and Nevis are being challenged to stop seeing themselves simply as the “leaders of tomorrow” and begin recognising the influence they can have today, as the St. Kitts and Nevis Youth Summit 2026 gets underway.

The summit officially opened on Monday, August 10, with an opening ceremony at the Park Hyatt St. Kitts, launching several days of engagement designed to connect young people with leaders, professionals, institutions and one another. Public promotion for the event confirms that the 2026 summit is being held from August 10–14.

At the centre of the initiative is young Kittitian Terrance “TJ” Drew Jr., who serves as programme/project director and has been among the young organisers driving the summit.

And his message at the opening was clear: young people should not have to wait until some undefined point in adulthood before their ideas, opinions and ambitions are taken seriously.

“The most dangerous thing anybody — and a country especially — can do is convince young people that they must wait until they’re older to do anything,” Drew told participants.

He later declared: “The waiting is over.”

Drew challenged participants to use the summit not simply as another event to attend, but as an opportunity to build genuine relationships, ask serious questions and engage directly with people helping to shape national institutions.

Over the course of the summit, participants are expected to explore subjects including culture and identity, governance, education, health and wellness, leadership, entrepreneurship, economic development and personal development.

But Drew placed particular emphasis on what could happen between the young people themselves.

“Do not be so focused on the stage that you forget the room,” he told participants, encouraging them to introduce themselves to people they admire, meet people they do not know and recognise that the person sitting beside them could one day become a business partner, collaborator or lifelong professional connection.

The summit has attracted significant institutional and corporate support.

Among those recognised during the opening ceremony was H.E. Calvin St. Juste, Executive Chairman of the Citizenship Unit, which was identified among the major supporters of the event. The Unit has increasingly highlighted youth education, development and community investment among areas of its social impact.

The National Housing Corporation (NHC) was also recognised among the summit’s sponsors, with Chairman Shawn White and General Manager Jonelle Rawlins acknowledged during the ceremony. NHC’s official website currently identifies White as Chairman and Rawlins as General Manager.

Other sponsors, supporters and partners were also recognised for helping make the youth-focused initiative possible.

Opening remarks delivered during the ceremony reinforced the central message that young people are already capable of contributing meaningfully to national life.

Participants were reminded that they are not simply future leaders, but current contributors, innovators and change-makers, whose ideas today could eventually develop into businesses, policies, organisations and solutions benefiting St. Kitts and Nevis.

Young people were encouraged to ask difficult questions, respectfully challenge ideas, listen to different perspectives and leave their comfort zones.

The opening ceremony also welcomed Senator the Honourable Isalean Phillip, Minister with responsibility for Youth Empowerment, along with representatives of the diplomatic community, educators, sponsors, partners and other invited guests. The Government of St. Kitts and Nevis currently lists Phillip with responsibility for Social Development and Gender Affairs, Youth Empowerment, Ageing and Disabilities.

Drew also shared a personal story from his teenage years, recalling how businessman Ernest Amory gave him an opportunity to pursue a business venture at just 16 years old.

For Drew, the experience illustrated what can happen when established adults and institutions choose to open doors for young people rather than dismiss their ambitions because of age.

“This summit is our choice,” he said, framing the gathering as an intentional investment in giving younger citizens access to knowledge, opportunity, confidence and connections.

His broader challenge went beyond the summit itself.

Drew urged participants not to allow the Federation’s physical size to define their ambitions, arguing that a nation’s true strength should also be measured by the quality, creativity and commitment of the citizens it develops.

That message appears to sit at the heart of the St. Kitts and Nevis Youth Summit 2026.

It is about access. Voice. Confidence. Connection.

And most importantly, giving young Kittitians and Nevisians a meaningful space to recognise that their contribution to nation-building does not have to begin someday in the distant future.

It can begin now.

— TIMES CARIBBEAN