Georgetown:

Dominica has conferred its top award on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his contributions to the Caribbean nation during the COVID-19 pandemic and his dedication to enhancing the bilateral partnership between India and Dominica.

The prime minister, who is in Guyana on the last leg of his three-nation visit, was conferred the “Dominica Award of Honour” by President Sylvanie Burton of Dominica during the India-CARICOM Summit here on Wednesday.

“Honoured to be conferred with highest national award by Dominica. I dedicate it to the 140 crore people of India,” Modi said in a post on X.

“The award is a recognition of PM’s statesmanship and contribution to Dominica during the COVID-19 pandemic and his commitment to strengthening India-Dominica ties,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a post on X.

Guyana and Barbados will also confer their top awards on Prime Minister Modi, bringing his tally of international honours to 19.

Dominica announced its top award to Modi a few days ago.

“In February 2021, Prime Minister Modi supplied Dominica with 70,000 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine – a generous gift which enabled Dominica to extend support to its Caribbean neighbours,” read a statement by the office of the Dominican Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit.

The award also recognises India’s support for Dominica in healthcare, education and information technology under Modi’s leadership and his role in promoting climate resilience-building initiatives and sustainable development on a global level, it read.

The statement quoted Prime Minister Skerrit as saying that the award is an expression of Dominica’s gratitude for Modi’s solidarity with Dominica and the wider region.

In accepting the offer of the award, Prime Minister Modi emphasised the importance of collaboration in tackling global challenges such as climate change and geopolitical conflicts and affirmed India’s commitment to working alongside Dominica and the Caribbean in addressing these issues, the statement underlined.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)