Digital upgrade to bring BLISS-ful ease of doing business

by Marlon Madden

The International Business Unit (IBU) is set to launch a major digital upgrade at the end of this week that will result in a dramatic improvement in the time and ease of doing business with that government unit.

The new portal, known as the Business Licensing Integrated Secure System (BLISS) and forms part of the wider digitisation of government processes, will eventually be connected to the digital corporate
registry of the Corporate Affairs and Intellectual Property Office (CAIPO).

Kevin Hunte, Director of International Business of the IBU in the Ministry of Business Development, made the disclosure recently as he addressed a global business update forum, which was hosted by the Barbados International Business Association (BIBA).

He said the BLISS will result in service providers and entities being able to conduct business “with blissful ease”. The first phase will allow for the submission and processing of all applications. Phase two is scheduled to be introduced by the end of November this year, and is expected to feature a number of enhancements and capabilities.

“One of the things we are excited about in the ministry is the fact that by 2023, the digital corporate registry and the BLISS system will be speaking with each other,” said Hunte.

“The full details will be revealed in due course but this capability and functionality will enhance interdepartmental dependencies and add to the overall customer experience. We expect to, and we will deliver on, quality, time and ease of processing applications with CAIPO and the IBU,” he said.

Acting Deputy Director of the IBU Sangene Watkins said the BLISS was designed to efficiently capture and process application for the licensing and renewal of all the entities that fall under the purview of the IBU, and it will provide a complete electronic interaction for all applicants.

“So [it is] submission, processing, payment and issue, with the ultimate goal of leveraging the digitisation of these processes to create a more modern and efficient licensing system,” she explained.

“BLISS will also be the source of meaningful data collection and that will redound to Barbados’ increase in global competitiveness, enhanced security and cost efficiencies not only for the government but also for the users of the system,” said Watkins.

She informed that staff members across the IBU, including officers in licensing and supervision and compliance, have already been trained. Earlier this month, two batches of service providers were also trained in the use of the system and now have access to the portal as they continue to familiarise themselves.

Watkins said the entities that have to do business with the IBU will be able to use the system in batches, starting June 30, 2022, and by September 30, 2022, all service providers should be live on the portal.

“That is something we are really looking forward to getting implemented and we urge you to test the portal once you have been given access,” she told the global business sector operators.

“The second phase of the BLISS project will involve integration with Corporate Affairs and then we will look more closely at the mining of stats from the system. We are also actively looking at other changes to workflow that will also help to speed up the process,” said Watkins.

Without giving details, Hunte also disclosed that the IBU will soon be laying the ground work for “a new stream of business that will generate income and provide an increase in clientele for service providers while positioning the island as a hub of choice in the western hemisphere”. “More on this to come in the upcoming months,” said Hunte.

marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb