Trinidad and Tobago conferred India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the Carribean nation's highest civilian honor on Friday, in a first for a foreign leader.President Christine Carla Kangaloo gave Modi the Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago at a ceremony at President's House in St Ann's, near the capital Port of Spain.
Modi was on a two-day tour of the dual-island country as he seeks to shore up New Delhi's ties with the Caribbean and Latin America.
The visit marked the Indian leader's first official trip to Trinidad and Tobago — where more than a third of the population is of Indian descent — since he came to power over a decade ago.
"This honor is a symbol of the deep and eternal friendship between our two countries," Modi said.
India seeks to strenghten longstanding ties with Trinidad and Tobago
Relations between India and Trinidad and Tobago find their roots in 1845, when indentured Indian laborers first arrived to work on sugar and cocoa plantations under British colonial rule as slavery ended.
Over 140,000 laborers settled in the Caribbean nation between 1845 and 1917.
"India and Trinidad & Tobago rose from the shadows of colonial rule to write our destiny of progress. Our nations stand tall as proud democracies and pillars of strength in the modern world," Modi said on X.
The Indian prime minister's visit to Trinidad and Tobago focused on boosting investment in energy, health, security and other sectors
Trinidadian Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar announced a number of investments in medical, energy and technological infrastructure promised by her Indian counterpart.
"This visit is more than just diplomacy. It marks a new dawn," she said.
"India, and Trinidad and Tobago, will now work as strategic partners," Persad-Bissessar added.
Modi also declared that the sixth generation of citizens of Indian origin in the dual-island nation would be eligible to receive Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cards, allowing them to freely live and work in India.
The Indian prime minister is currently on a five-nation diplomatic tour, covering Ghana, Trinidad and Tobago, Argentina, Brazil and Namibia.He landed in Argentina late on Friday and is scheduled to hold talks with President Javier Milei.
