Extracts from Speech by Prime Minister Freundel Stuart on the occasion of the ninth annual Barbados Charity Ball, Toronto, Canada, on June 9.
“When we reflect on the extent to which tourism and international business have replaced sugar as the main source of foreign exchange in our economy, and when we reflect on the complex management skills and resource requirements of those two sectors, we are able to appreciate how far our country Barbados has come in the well nigh 46 years since Independence.
This year, I hope, will be no exception and I look forward to welcoming you to Barbados and also seeing you at the Barbados Network Consultation in the month of August. We have planned the conference at this time in order to ensure that it follows immediately on the climax of the Crop Over activities.
The Government believes that it is important that the children and grandchildren of Barbadians born outside of Barbados, who rightfully hold an allegiance to the countries of their birth, be also given the opportunity to connect with their Barbadian heritage. This year’s Network Consultation will therefore pay special attention to how we can achieve that objective.
We have been holding our own in this challenging economic environment mainly thanks to a unique Social Partnership formed by representatives of labour, the private sector and the Government, who all recognize that no effort is too great to protect our national interests.
We have been working, therefore, to keep our nation afloat. In addition to the traditional support to our health, housing, education, manufacturing and agriculture, inter alia, several new initiatives are underway at the national and international levels.
In relation to the latter, at the upcoming Rio+20 international conference to be held in Brazil, Barbados will be championing the exciting Barbados Declaration On Sustainable Energy For All, agreed in May 2012, in the interest of small island developing states and within the context of the development of a green economy.
Recently, Canadian companies have been taking advantage of the updated economic treaties between Canada and Barbados, accounting for the largest percentage of international business companies domiciled in Barbados.
The celebration by the Royal Bank of Canada in 2011 of 100 years of existence in Barbados is testimony to the continued confidence of the Canadian banking sector in Barbados and in Barbadians. Scotia Bank and CIBC have also expanded their involvement in the Barbadian economy. The presence of these Canadian banks has undoubtedly helped to transfer the benefits of the Canadian banking stability to our economy.
Canada has also been a significant market for our tourism sector. This again has proven effective in these tough economic times. As other markets continue to suffer significant declines, the Canadian market has held steady and has even experienced modest growth in the face of competition. For this we thank our Canadian friends of Barbados and we thank too our Barbadian families for the role they play in promoting their homeland Barbados.
One of the things that binds us together is our warm Caribbean culture, which is reflected not only within the Caribbean itself, but also wherever we are gathered together in the world at large. Long may that continue.”
Douglas Leopold Phillips is a pseudonym for the Democratic Labour Party.