Prime minister Rob Jetten began his first official visit to the kingdom’s Caribbean territories on Friday, with stops planned on all six islands over a week.

The trip comes amid controversy around climate change and social inequity in the region, which is vastly more deprived than the European Netherlands.

Despite the speed of the visit (Jetten’s predecessor Dick Schoof took almost a year to make the trip and Mark Rutte nearly three), scepticism around the government’s sincerity to make changes is rife.

NOS Caribbean correspondent Dick Drayer described the local reaction as cautious – “first we see, then we believe,” he said.

After opening the tour on Sint Maarten and Saba over the weekend, Jetten will be in Sint Eustatius on Monday for a walking tour focused on the island’s history of slavery. Bonaire, Aruba and Curaçao will follow over the subsequent three days.

Demands and changes

In April, a report from the national coordinator against discrimination and racism found that residents of Bonaire, Saba and Sint Eustatius face structural disadvantages in poverty, healthcare, education and infrastructure. One in three islanders live in poverty – about ten times the European Dutch rate.

The trip also comes weeks after the cabinet decided to appeal against The Hague district court’s January ruling that the government had discriminated against Bonaire residents under article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights by failing to draw up a climate plan. Greenpeace called the appeal “scandalous.”

The coalition has earmarked €30 million a year for raising the standard income throughout the islands. NOS notes the figure is not a new pledge, but the existing budget now tied to concrete goals.

Bonaire, Saba and Sint Eustatius have been special Dutch municipalities since 2010, with residents holding the same constitutional rights as European Dutch. Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten are autonomous nations within the kingdom, with their own governments and parliaments.

Jetten’s D66 has historically been seen as relatively well regarded in the region, partly through the prime minister’s own energy-transition work as climate minister in 2023. The appeal against the Bonaire climate ruling, however, has fueled incredulity and anger toward The Hague.

The tour will end in Curaçao on Thursday, where Jetten is due to attend a briefing at the Parera naval base, tour the Tula Museum and visit utility Aqualectra’s new battery storage park.