PROMOTING GRAND BAHAMA: Sr. Manager of Business Development for GBPA and Invest Grand Bahama, Derek Newbold, travelled as part of the Bahamas’ contingent to Washington, D.C. for an investment trade mission, March 4th – 8th, 2018. Mr. Newbold is pictured making his presentation on investment opportunities in the city of Freeport.
A recent trade mission to Washington D.C, unveiled several opportunities that can benefit both Bahamian and US businesses. The initiative, which was a collaborative effort between the Government of The Bahamas, The Bahamas Embassy in Washington D.C. and The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC), focused on opportunities to facilitate cross border trade between the United States and The Bahamas.
“GBPA welcomed the invitation to participate as extended by the BCCEC. It was truly a timely and collaborative effort to explore cross border trade and seek out new foreign investment opportunities for The Bahamas,” explained Ian Rolle, President of the GBPA Group. “By effectively leveraging the networks and contacts made, this initiative could prove to be highly beneficial, as it relates to bilateral trade and investments moving forward,” added Rolle.
Key opportunities featured during the trade mission included, the InterAmerican Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), which focuses on investing in private sector projects within the region. Additionally, EXIM Bank’s financing program known as ‘Buyer Financing’, would assist in facilitating financing to overseas companies looking to purchase equipment or supplies from US companies. Another program highlighted during meetings was ‘Select USA’, which lends support to companies seeking to penetrate the US market, by setting up a presence within the US.
The Bahamas was represented by several government officials, led by Minister Kwasi Thompson. The team participated in three days of meetings with various entities including the US Department Commerce, US Chamber of Commerce, the DC Chamber of Commerce, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Baltimore Chamber of Commerce.
Sr. Manager of Business Development for GBPA and Invest Grand Bahama, Derek Newbold travelled as part of the Bahamas’ contingent, and represented Freeport as a speaker at several meetings.
“The Trade Mission to DC was extremely productive and encouraging,” shared Newbold. “It was a privilege to be a part of the delegation and help bring greater awareness to The Bahamas, and more specifically, Grand Bahama. A number of notable linkages were made during our meetings, which we believe can be beneficial to Bahamian businesses both large and small. The organizing teams did an excellent job coordinating the meetings across the various Chambers to ensure that timely and valuable information was shared. GBPA always welcomes any opportunity to make Freeport a part of the regional conversation,” expressed Newbold.
Topics discussed during the mission included key sectors like Information & Communications Technology (ICT), Shipping & Logistics, Real Estate Development, Medical Tourism, Manufacturing, and numerous others.
