Yet another downgrade of the country’s sovereign debt to default status has come to no one’s surprise, the Government joined an independent expert in saying today. Given Government’s decision to embark on a debt exchange programme, Standard & Poor’s downgrade on Wednesday was expected, according to Prime Minister Mia Mottley and BES president Shane Lowe, […]
Category: Business
Minister of Tourism and International Transport Kerrie Symmonds has pleaded with international media to help Barbados and other Caribbean states spread the message of the threat these climate change frontline nations face. Symmonds was speaking as British, Canadian, American journalists joined their Barbadian colleagues to be presented awards for feature writing on the destination at […]
An outspoken social activist is calling on the Financial Services Commission (FSC) to keep a close eye on the credit union of which she is a member. Speaking to Barbados TODAY this afternoon following Monday’s special general meeting of the Barbados Public Workers Cooperative Credit Union Limited on Monday (BPWCCUL), Marsha Hinds expressed concern about […]
Barbados as a pioneer leader in Caribbean renewable energy may be a dream deferred as the economy struggles to recover, the leader of the country’s renewable energy industry has suggested. “Many individual service providers who entered the sector with great hope and excitement have now moved away from the local industry. Those too afraid to […]
One of the leaders in the renewable energy industry is calling for a much bigger payoff for investors if Barbados is to meet the goal of total renewable energy in just over a decade. The current returns on investments were untenable, industrialist Ralph Bizzy Williams told a Barbados Association of Professional Engineers’ (BAPE) Seminar on […]
Minister of International Business and Industry Ronald Toppin today insisted that Barbados has not been blacklisted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) over its residence-by-investment programme, in the face of its inclusion among the region’s so-called “golden passport” schemes. In a report released yesterday, the global forum of the world’s richest nations […]
Despite a recent announcement by the state tourism promotion agency that the US$100 million Hyatt Centric Resort slated for Bay Street will open in 2020, social activist David Comissiong has said he is not withdrawing the lawsuit, likely putting him at odds with the new administration. Since winning the first round of his legal fight, […]
As many as 2,500 public workers will be jobless when the dust settles on the Government’s restructuring exercise, the Barbados-born International Monetary Fund economist embedded as the Government’s senior economic advisor has announced. The figure of 1,500 announced by the Prime Minister on Monday is only the start, Dr Kevin Greenidge told journalists at the […]
After lingering in ‘junk’ territory for years, Barbados’s investment grade is projected to begin rising again by the end of this year, the Government’s senior technical adviser Dr Kevin Greenidge said today. Before the end of the year, Barbados’ sovereign credit rating will start to go back up again in face of 22 credit downgrades […]
A recommendation has been put forward for a Seniors Business Trust to be established in Barbados. Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs, Cynthia Forde, issued the challenge to the National Assistance Board (NAB) Friday morning, after viewing the quality of exhibits on display by seniors at the Grand Salle, Tom Adams Financial Centre. She […]
St Lucia’s former prime minister Dr Kenny Anthony has described Barbados’ economic restructuring as necessary and unavoidable. But Dr Anthony told Barbados TODAY he was confident the country would return to its glory days, while calling on the Government to continue communicating with citizens during the adjustment process. “I think the policy measures of the […]
Startup loans will once again be made to rural residents to help them get involved in farming, the Rural Development Commission (RDC) has announced. The loans programme, which was in place for some two decades, was reintroduced on Friday at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre during the Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA). A renewed focus […]
A leader in the renewable energy industry here has described as a strategic move oil executive Sir Kyffin Simpson’s decision to sell three-quarters of the operations of his SOL Group. With Barbados and the rest of the region ramping up efforts to move away from the use of fossil fuel to more renewable energy dependency, […]
The offshore business and financial community is banking on Government’s planned reform of the public sector and an ease in doing business here if the economy is to grow. Member of the Barbados International Business Association (BIBA), have expressed optimism at Government’s plan to improve efficiency and cut costs under the Barbados Economic Recovery and […]
The Caribbean has been challenged to slash its annual US$4 billion food import bill by at least a quarter over the next five years by Prime Minister Mottley. Stating that the region was at war against both natural disasters and lifestyle diseases, the recently elected premier painted a sobering picture of despair should the region […]
The path to economic recovery will be difficult, requiring a lot of help from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to shield the most vulnerable if Barbados is to avoid rising poverty levels, noted regional economist Marla Dukharan has suggested. The uphill task of lowering the island’s massive debt of more than 157 per cent of gross domestic […]
The Minister responsible for cooperatives supports the establishment of a Credit Union Bank – only if it means easier access to funding than through commercial banks. Minister of Small Business, Entrepreneurship and Commerce, Dwight Sutherland made the comments to journalists during a courtesy call to the St George Farmer’s Market Co-operative Society Limited and the […]
