Minister of Industry, International Business, Commerce and Small Business Development, Donville Inniss (right) speaking with President of Barbados International Business Association (BIBA) Gregory McConnie (left) and BIBA Executive Director, Henderson Holmes, at the opening of the International Business Week Conference 2016 at Hilton yesterday.
Part of the spin-off impacts of the sector, the Minister maintained, is the economic and social development of the country. “As the second largest contributor to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), second only to Tourism, and apart from contributing almost ten per cent to the country’s GDP, the sector has also generated thousands of local jobs across the nearly 4 000 active international business entities. Each year these entities pay corporation and other taxes, licence fees as well as salaries, rents, utilities, entertainment and other local expenses – this revenue helps to drive our economy,” the Minister pointed out.
He also gave tremendous credit to the Barbados International Business Association (BIBA) for its efforts within the sector. “I wish to again thank BIBA for their outstanding leadership in developing this sector and to reassure you that the Government considers BIBA to be our most critical partner in this industry. I urge those of you who are not members of BIBA, to do so as a matter of urgency and help us to better shape this sector in a more collaborative and cohesive manner.” (NB)