Leading figures from the accounting industry met in Nassau last week to attend presentations and seminars hosted by the Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA).

The four-day event took place at the Sheraton Resort Nassau and speakers tackled issues relevant to the sector such as taxation, trade and national economic strategies for recovery.

Presenters included high-profile government figures, such as Minister of State for Finance Michael Halkitis, who kicked off the conference with an opening address that examined fiscal policy and reform(1), and Minister of Financial Services Ryan Pinder, who praised the role of accountants in an increasingly regulated global environment(2).

Speaking on the last day of the BICA conference, Minister of State for Investment Khaalis Rolle said the government was committed to helping small and medium-sized enterprises(3) receive financial and technical support and also spoke about how investment was transforming Grand Bahama(4). The Minister went on to outline the government’s plans for encouraging greater foreign direct investment(5).

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The Caribbean/Mexico hotel development pipeline totaled 124 hotels and 19,318 rooms in October, according to the STR Construction Pipeline Report released this week.

The active pipeline includes projects in the in-construction, final planning stages, but does not include projects in the pre-planning stage.

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This is an excerpt from Caribbean Journal as it appeared on November 14, 2012. For updates or to read the current version of this post in its entirety, please click here.

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Minister of Transport and Aviation Glenys Hanna-Martin paid a courtesy call on the Secretary General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) November 12, 2012.

She was accompanied by Anthony Kikivarakis, chairman of The Bahamas Maritime Authority (BMA); Peter Goulandris, deputy chairman of BMA; Commodore Davy Rolle, director and chief executive officer of BMA; and Frank Davis, Acting High Commissioner & Alternate Permanent Representative to the IMO.

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The following is a press statement made by Prime Minister Perry Christie November 13, 2012:

I am a Prime Minister who listens. And in listening to the still evolving public discourse on the forthcoming referendum it has become clear to me that more time is needed before the Bahamian people are called upon to vote.

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Nov. 12/12 (Regina McGee) – Participating planners explored Nassau and Grand Bahama Island and many venues, hotels, and unique spaces capable of hosting their events. Programming consisted of a Bahamas culture overview, educational sessions, an RCMA advisory session, and interactions with various hotel managers, service providers, and the newly elected Bahamas Minister of Tourism.

Future opportunities are being planned for site visits to various areas for qualified RCMA planner members, notes Dean Jones, CMP, RCMA’s director of conferences and events. “There’s nothing like an in-person experience of a destination, and by partnering with different destinations to explore meeting opportunities, RCMA is helping both planners and suppliers to meet their business goals,” Jones says.

This is an excerpt from Meetings Net as it appeared on November 14, 2012. For updates or to read the current version of this post in its entirety, please click here.

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Guilden Gilbert, VP of Alternative Power Sources, speaking at the annual Accountants’ Week, sponsored by BICA, at The Sheraton, Cable Beach. (Photo ©Dupuch/Harry Cutting)

Energy experts are calling for better access to finance to support the renewable energy industry, which can help businesses throughout The Bahamas significantly reduce their costs, they say.

Speaking at Accountants’ Week last week, Guilden Gilbert, vice president of Alternative Power Sources (Bahamas) Ltd, said local banks and lending institutions should support renewable energy projects and follow a model similar to the Canadian branch of the Royal Bank of Canada, which helps finance solar panel products in Canada.
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Celebrating its 25th anniversary, Yacht Rendezvous came to Atlantis Paradise Island recently, with mega-yachts from all over the world pulling into the marina. The event has raised more than $30 million for children’s charities over the years. Watch a video about the event here.

The government is “moving very aggressively in its trade agenda” according to Philip Galanis, managing partner at HLB Galanis & Co, who says efforts to become a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) will see The Bahamas undergo an overhaul of its current tax regime.

The government is seeking to become a member of the WTO by the end of 2014, but must first change its system of customs duties, which are seen as a barrier to trade.

Galanis, a former partner at Ernst & Young, spoke at Accountants’ Week last week and told members of the industry that they were “going to hear a lot about trade over the next two years.”

“It is virtually impossible to succeed to the WTO under our current tax structure,” he said. “Taxes will be changed; there is no question. The only question is what kind of taxation system are we going to go to?”

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Pictured: Robert “Sandy” Sands of Baha Mar during a panel session at the Caribbean Hotel Investment Conference and Operations Summit November 9. (BIS Photo/Gena Gibbs)

Minister of State for Investments Khaalis Rolle joined a panel of hospitality leaders November 9, to address prospective investors about current trends in The Bahamas to create jobs and expand the industry.

The Caribbean Hotel Investment Conference and Operations Summit was held November 8- 9 at Atlantis Paradise Island, where hotel executives gathered to learn about careers in the hospitality and service-orientation industry.

“I looked at other jurisdictions and what they are doing, in investment promotion and the structure of investment promotion activities,” said Minister Rolle. “I started to develop this plan [where] at a keystroke, I know every single investor in The Bahamas; I know how long they have been here; I know what they have invested in; I know their background; I know what their capability is; I know what particular issues they need help with.”

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Grand Bahama Island offers a grand old time in true Bahamian style.

It’s impossible not to relax on Grand Bahama Island.

Neither as populous as Nassau nor as isolated as the smaller islands of the Bahamas, Grand Bahama, just a 35-minute flight from Miami, is easygoing and unpretentious.

This is an excerpt from NY Daily News as it appeared on November 13, 2012. For updates or to read the current version of this post in its entirety, please click here.

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