PM Modi Chosen for Dominican Republic’s Highest Award

The government of the Caribbean country of the Dominican Republic has announced that it will confer its highest national award, the Dominica Award of Honour, on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his role in providing the COVID-19 vaccine to the country and in strengthening the two countries' bilateral relationships.

The Modi government launched the Vaccine Maitri initiative in February 2021 as a humanitarian gesture to provide Indian-manufactured COVID-19 vaccines to the developing countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was recently conferred the ‘Order of St. Andrew the Apostle, the highest Russian award, by the Russian President Vladimir Putin in July 2024.

Why has Narendra Modi been chosen for the award?

• According to the Dominican Prime Minister's Office, Narendra Modi has been chosen for his contribution to supplying COVID-19 vaccines to the country during the pandemic.
• During the COVID-19 pandemic, the government of India, under its Vaccine Maitri initiative, supplied 70 thousand doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to the Dominican Republic in February 2021.  
• The award also recognises the contribution of India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership in supporting Dominican healthcare, education and information technology.
• The award also recognises Narendra Modi's vital role in promoting climate resilience-building initiatives and sustainable development globally.

When will the Prize be conferred on Modi? 

Sylvanie Burton, President of the Dominican Republic’s President,, will confer the award to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The award will be conferred at the  second CARICOM-India Summit meeting to be held in November 2024 in Georgetown, Guyana.

Prime Minister Modi’s Visit to Nigeria, Brazil and Guyana   

The Prime Minister will be on an official visit to Nigeria, Brazil, and Guyana from November 16 to 21, 2024.

This will be the first visit of Prime Minister Modi to the African country of Nigeria. 

He will visit Brazil to participate in the 19th G20 Summit meeting. India, along with Brazil and South Africa, is part of the G20 Troika and has been actively contributing to the ongoing G20 Summit discussions. 

During his Guyana visit, he will participate in the second CARICOM-India Summit meeting.

Foreign Honours conferred on Narendra Modi 

Narendra Modi, who became the Prime Minister of India in 2014, has been honoured by several foreign countries with their highest award. Here is a comprehensive list of the highest foreign awards received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Order of Excellence(Guyana)

Guyanese President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Al conferred the country’s highest award, “The Order of Excellence,” on Prime Minister Modi on 19 November 2024 during his visit to Guyana. He is the fourth foreign leader to receive the award.

Dominica Award of Honour’(Dominica Republic)

President Sylvania Burton of Dominica conferred the country’s highest award, “the Dominica Award of Honour”, on Prime Minister Modi on the sidelines of the 2nd India-CARICOM Summit meeting on 19 November 2024. He is the second foreign leader after Queen Elizabeth of the United Kingdom (1969) to receive the award. 

Grand Commander of the Order of Niger (Nigeria)

Narendra Modi was honoured with Nigeria’s second-highest award Grand Commander of the Order of Niger, by the  Nigerian President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on 18 November 2024, in a ceremony in the capital, Abuja.

Order of St. Andrew the Apostle (Russia)

Russian President Vladimir Putin conferred the award in July 2024 to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Order of the Druk Gyalpo (Bhutan)

Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck conferred the award to PM Modi in March 2024. PM Modi is the first foreign leader to receive the award. 

Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour(France)

French President Emmanuel Macron conferred the award to Narendra Modi in July 2023. Narendra is the only Indian Prime Minister to receive the award.

Order of Nile (Egypt)

President Abdel-Fattah-Al-Sissi of Egypt conferred the award to Narendra Modi in June 2023.

Grand Companion of the Order of the Logohu (Papua New Guinea )

Governor-General of Papua New Guinea, Bob Dadea, conferred the award on Prime Minister Modi in May 2023.

Companion of the Order of Fiji (Fiji)

Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka conferred the award to Narendra Modi in May 2023.

Rule of Nishan Izzuddeen (Maldives) 

President Ibrahim Solih conferred the award to Narendra Modi in June 2019.

Order of Zayed Award (United Arab Emirates)

The Abu Dhabi crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, conferred the award to Narendra Modi in August 2019.

King Hamad Order of the Renaissance (Bahrain)

Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Salman Al Khalifa conferred the award to Prime Minister Modi in August 2019

Grand Collar of the State of Palestine Award (Palestine)

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas conferred the award to Prime Minister Modi in February 2018. Narendra Modi is the only Indian prime minister who has visited Palestine.

State Order of the Ghazi Amir Amanullah Khan Award (Afghanistan)

It was conferred by Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani on Prime Minister Modi in June 2016.

King Abdulaziz Shah(Saudi Arabia)

Saudi Arabia King Salman bin Abdulaziz conferred on Prime Minister Modi in April 2016.