The prime minister of the island nation of Barbados is set to visit Atlanta in May for a major business and cultural festival that aims to recruit investors while solidifying ties with its diaspora.
Freundel Stuart, along with top officials from various government agencies, will speak at the May 29-31 Barbados Comes to Atlanta celebration, the latest in a string of yearly festivals rotating among various cities. Maxine McClean, minister of foreign affairs and foreign trade, is also set to visit.
But this year is different from previous ones: Barbados in November will celebrate its 50th anniversary of independence from British rule. The island was an English colony for more than 300 years, padding the treasury of the monarchy with profits from the sugar trade.
Now, Barbados is looking to showcase its assets as an offshore business destination that can help companies enter other markets around the Caribbean and Latin America, and even in Africa. Barbados is the easternmost island in the Caribbean, and boosters say it’s kissed by the winds of West Africa across the Atlantic. Its population of nearly 300,000 is mostly descended from the continent.
While its business environment can be complex, largely due to multinational clientele it seeks, the country is high on good governance and low on corruption indices, and officials say it balances a low-tax environment with a record of compliance that places it squarely outside the definition of a tax haven.
Invest Barbados will be among the organizations attending the event, and companies interested in exploring opportunities in Barbados will be able to set up individual meetings.
Editor’s note: Global Atlanta is sponsored by the Consulate General of Barbados in Miami and is working to promote the upcoming event.
A preview reception focused on investment opportunities is to be held April 21 at the law offices of Thompson Hine LLP in Buckhead. For more information or to register, click here.
