Investor and hotelier Warren Newfield resigns as Grenada’s Ambassador at Large and Consul General in Miami

Warren Newfield resigns as Grenada’s Ambassador at Large and Consul General in Miami, citing government’s increasingly destructive anti-business policies.

• Newfield has called out the country’s government for fomenting anti-business policies
• Grenada, a nation of about 110,000, is located at the southern end of the Caribbean island chain
• Mr. Newfield has been the primary driver behind Kimpton Kawana Bay

The tiny island nation of Grenada has just lost the diplomatic services of one of its leading boosters, who has called out the country’s government for fomenting anti-business policies.

Warren Newfield, a prominent investor, mining executive and hotel developer, who has served since 2015 as ambassador-at-large for Grenada and one of the Caribbean nation’s three consuls general in the United States, announced his resignation today from both posts, citing the Grenadian government’s increasingly volatile and costly obstruction of foreign investment and business in the country.

In a letter to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Oliver Joseph, Mr. Newfield writes that “the country’s leadership, previously having the nation’s best interests at heart and welcoming foreign investment and economic development, has been transformed into an anti-business regime.” 

Mr. Newfield says in his resignation, “I hope you and others will take this action as it is intended – as an appeal to restore reason and the rule of law to the government and bring us back to a place where progress is possible in Grenada.”

Grenada, a nation of about 110,000, is located at the southern end of the Caribbean island chain, about 100 miles north of Venezuela.

A native of South Africa who enjoyed a successful career in the country’s mining sector, Mr. Newfield obtained Grenadian citizenship himself and has worked tirelessly in his role as a business and diplomatic representative to bring foreign investment to the island, notably in the hospitality and service sectors. Tourism is a vital component of the country’s economy.

Mr. Newfield has been the primary driver behind Kimpton Kawana Bay, a five-star resort under development for investors in Grenada who then become eligible to obtain Grenadian citizenship through the government’s advantageous Citizenship by Investment program.

Serving without salary or other compensation, Mr. Newfield has raised tens of millions of dollars for the Grenadian economy, resulting in the creation of hundreds of jobs for island residents.