Dominica takes chairmanship of ECCB Monetary Council

The Commonwealth of Dominica has assumed the rotating chairmanship of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank Monetary Council, with Dr. Irving McIntyre taking over on 9 July 2026. The handover in Dominica also unveiled the new EC currency family and signaled continued support for renewable energy and climate resilience across the region.

Why it matters: - The Monetary Council is the ECCB’s highest decision-making body, so the chairmanship can shape regional monetary priorities. - The handover comes as small island states continue to face climate risk and pressure to invest in resilience, energy security and long-term development. - The new EC currency family marks a symbolic shift for a shared regional currency used across eight member governments.

What happened: - The Honourable Dr. Irving McIntyre, Council Member for the Commonwealth of Dominica, assumed the chairmanship of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank Monetary Council on 9 July 2026. - He took over from the Honourable Gaston Browne, Council Member for Antigua and Barbuda and outgoing chairman. - The official handing over ceremony took place at the Trafalgar Ballroom, InterContinental Dominica Cabrits Resort, in the Commonwealth of Dominica. - The ceremony was streamed live on the ECCB Connects Facebook page and YouTube channel.

The details: - The Monetary Council includes the finance ministers of the ECCB’s eight member governments. - The chairmanship rotates annually in alphabetical order among Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Christopher (St Kitts) and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. - Dr. McIntyre said climate change remains the defining existential challenge for small island developing states, warning that one hurricane can erase decades of development in hours. - The incoming chairman said the Monetary Council will continue supporting accelerated renewable energy projects under the Resilient Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment Facility. - The facility is led by the ECCB and financed by the World Bank, Canada and the Green Climate Fund. - The ceremony included the unveiling of the new family of EC currency. - The new currency commemorates the 50th anniversary of the EC dollar’s fixed exchange rate peg to the U.S. dollar. - At its 105th meeting on 21 July 2023, the Monetary Council approved replacing the image of Queen Elizabeth II on EC currency and directed the ECCB to hold public consultations. - Public consultations ran from July to December 2023 and found strong support for featuring national heroes and nation builders on the redesigned currency.

Between the lines: - The rotating chairmanship keeps leadership distributed across the monetary union rather than concentrated in one country. - The currency redesign signals an effort to align regional money with national identity while preserving the EC dollar’s shared monetary framework. - The emphasis on renewable energy and climate resilience reflects the economic vulnerability of the Eastern Caribbean to extreme weather.

What’s next: - The ECCB Monetary Council is expected to keep advancing renewable energy and resilience financing across member states. - The redesigned EC currency will move forward following the public consultation process and the ceremonial unveiling. - Dr. McIntyre will serve as chairman for the next annual rotation period under the Council’s alphabetical schedule.

The bottom line: - Dominica now holds the top rotating seat in the ECCB’s monetary decision-making body, at a moment when climate resilience and regional identity are both in focus.