(BIBA) commits support to Government’s boosting its foreign exchange reserves
Monday September 21 2009 | 08:58 PM

The Barbados International Business Association (BIBA) will support Government in its attempts to turn the tide on the island’s declining foreign reserves, as recently highlighted as cause for concern by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

This assurance was given by President of BIBA John Howard as he commented on the 2009 Article IV Consultation with Barbados Report issued by the IMF last week. The report pointed out that foreign reserves declined by US$100 million in 2008 and, although Government had floated a US$120 million bond, and was eligible to receive another US$90 million from the IMF through its special drawing rights, there was a risk that the Barbados dollar could face pressures if private capital inflows were to remain weak, while public debt continued to rise.

Howard said the IMF’s suggestions that this region, and by implication Barbados, could face future difficulties in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) and private capital inflows at pre-financial crisis levels, was particularly worrisome.

He added that BIBA recognized the role it played in taking the message of Barbados’ attractiveness to international investors and it was working on new strategies alongside Invest Barbados to focus on new markets and products. This was important, he noted, given the report’s emphasis on international business as a “magnet for tourism, foreign exchange and technical know-how”, making it a major contributor to the Barbados economy.
The BIBA president pointed out that the staging of next month’s inaugural International Business Week in conjunction with Invest Barbados, the Ministry of International Business, and various other strategic partners, was being used as a tangible way of sending the message regionally and internationally that the international business community in Barbados was still thriving. He added that the week’s theme: “International Business in Barbados: Embrace the Opportunities” was meant to send the message far and wide that Barbados still held a wealth of opportunities for those investing and working in the sector.

Howard acknowledged the IMF’s assessment that the global financial crisis may have significantly depressed revenues and profits in Barbados’s international business sector, and the sector could face further challenges if significant changes were introduced in the Canadian and US tax regulations that affected international business entities from those countries. However, he also pointed out that the IMF highlighted Barbados’s reputation as a well-managed and developed jurisdiction with a highly educated workforce which, along with its ranking on the so-called “white list” of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, places the island in a strong position vis-à-vis its competitors.

The international business leader said these factors could only bode well for Barbados as the sector evolved and the organisation. He said BIBA looked forward to working with Government as it sought to further capitalize on Barbados’ strengths by implement strategies devised in the Ministry of International Business’ medium-term plan, such as improving business facilitation for new and existing businesses keen to invest in Barbados.