Italian Developer Antonio Saladino passes

One of the major foreign developers on the Grenadine island of Canouan has died. And condolences have been flooding social media platforms over the death of Antonio Saladino.

The former Italian banker died on Saturday April 13, 2024, in Switzerland. In 1990, Saladino and former Prime Minister, the late Sir James Mitchell signed a deal which gave the foreign developer a 99 year lease of two-thirds of the island.

That northern portion the island was later developed by Saladino’s company, Canouan Resorts Development (CRD), which transformed the appearance of the 13 sq km island.

Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves expressed condolences on the death of Saladino while he spoke on WEFM’s Issue at Hand programme on Sunday, April 14, 2024.

Gonsalves said he had also called Saladino’s son, Giovani and expressed his condolences on the passing of his father.

“He is the man with whom Sir James had done the negotiations for the Canouan project,” the Prime Minister pointed out. He also indicated that Saladino had “made an important contribution to the development of Canouan”.

In a Facebook post this week, a group called Canouan Islanders described Saladino as “a great visionary and leader”.

The group said he was “a humble and kind man who was loved by everyone in Canouan”.

“His legacy will live on, and he will always be remembered as the man who made Canouan happen.”