The northernmost island of the Virgin Islands is still holding its own as a pillar for Tourism. Photo: Team of Reporters

Anegada has zero crime rate, flat lands, beautiful beaches and many famous spots to eat and drink. Photo: Team of Reporters

The issue of land titles continues to be a problem for the residents of Anegada. Photo: Team of Reporters

Anegada has a clinic, a police station, an airport, a government Administrative Building, a district officer, and the paved roads are much better than those on the main Island of Tortola. Photo: Team of Reporters

Some people on Anegada rear cattle, however, the tourism industry is the main income earner. Photo: Team of Reporters

Some people on Anegada rear cattle, however, the tourism industry is the main income earner. Photo: Team of Reporters

Another vexing issue for Angadians is that of their land titles not forthcoming. Photo: Team of Reporters

Land titles have been outstanding for over 60 years on Anegada. Photo: Team of Reporters

Tourism continues to be the main revenue earner for Anegada. Photo: Team of Reporters

Anegada has zero crime rate, flat lands, beautiful beaches and many famous spots to eat and drink, like Anegada Beach Club, Anegada Reef Hotel, Crow Wreck, Loblolly Beach, Tipsy by Ann, The Wonky Dog, The Lobster Trap, Potters by the Sea, and  Big Bamboo, among many others. However, there are two vexing major immediate needs of the residents.

What a beautiful place!  

Most restaurants, villas and bar owners have said this year’s tourist season was great, as many tourists, both for day trips and sailing in on yachts, have littered the island, bringing much-needed revenue to the people who own businesses and work on the island.

The island is so peaceful that many, including locals, just sit at a bar all day, talk politics and drink a beverage. The island has a clinic, a police station, an airport, a government Administrative  Building, a district officer, and the paved roads are much better than those on the main Island of Tortola. The portions that are unpaved can be a challenge for new and old vehicles.

Anegada is a shining city with the pilot solar farm project that has been a success story. There are many Government agencies on the island, including the BVI Electricity Corporation, Water and Sewerage, Public Works, BVI Health Services Authority, Immigration and Customs, among others.

However, despite being a glowing sister island, they lack the basics of even having a cash machine (not even a bank) on the island. With all the persons working (during the season, over 200 residents) on the island, there is no place to obtain cash, change or deposit a cheque or store huge sums of cash on the island in 2026.

The people are calling for a cash machine

Residents and workers must take a ferry down to Tortola (runs three times a week) or sometimes Virgin Gorda for their basic banking needs. Over the past 10 years, all governments have been promising a cash machine; however, banks, including the National Bank of the Virgin Islands, where the Government of the day is its majority shareholder, have been out maneuvering Governments, claiming that banking services of any kind are too expensive and it’s a security risk.  

Junior Minister for Financial Services and Economic Development Hon Lorna G Smith OBE (AL) promised that a cash machine would have happened last year; however, to date, there has been no movement. Hon Vincent O. Wheatley (R9), the district representative for Anegada, has also promised financial facilities after his reelection in 2023, but to date, no action has been taken. He has reported that two Anegadian contractors are to give estimates to build a shelter for a cash machine facility.

The bottom line is that both the National Democratic Party and the Virgin Islands Party Governments have failed Anegadians in providing, at a minimum, a cash machine service.

We need our land titles 

Another vexing issue for Angadians is that of their land titles. This has been outstanding for over 60 years. It all started when the people of Anegada claimed that the late Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom had given the people of Anegada the land, especially those who were living there under her reign, and it must be passed down to their descendants.

In the 1970s,  the Government at the time commissioned a report by retired Judge Renwick, which said he found no document that confirmed the land was given to the residents of Anegada by Queen Victoria. He suggested that people who were living on Anegada at the time and their verified descendants must be given land titles free of cost. The other Anegadians must purchase the land at a reduced cost.

The Government has formed Anegada land committees over the years and has granted land titles to Anegadians, but the process has been slow, controversial, political, bureaucratic and has been marred by claims of one-sidedness by members of the committees.

However, the people have been crying out for the last 4 years for the process to move forward, as many young residents of Anegeda with applications in require their land titles. Last year, Deputy Premier and Minister for Environment, Natural Resources, and Climate Change Hon Julian Fraser RA (R3), who also has the land portfolio, noted that he is doing his best to have the land distributed, and said, “the Land not going anywhere”. Following the Commission of Inquiry imposed by the UK on the people of the Virgin Islands, a new land policy had to be developed that placed Anegadians at a disadvantage in terms of land cost.

Anegada Land Committee outgoing Chair Darrell A. Ruan Jr lamblasted the process and called on the Government to move forward with the land titles for eligible Anegadian residents. Mr Ruan Jr noted that the Anegada land matter is not just an administrative concern, but a matter of justice, dignity, and human rights. The residents are still crying out about their land titles, which span many decades.