NASSAU, The Bahamas -- Minister of State for Finance the Hon Zhivargo Laing concluded that the 40th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Caribbean Development Bank was very productive.
Mr Laing served as Chairman of the Board and presided over the sessions held the Sheraton Nassau Beach Resort on Cable Beach, from May 19 - 20, 2010.
After the closing ceremony, Mr Laing and President of the CDB, Dr Compton Bourne, held a press conference on Thursday.
Mr Laing said, “We had a very productive meeting; all of the objectives we sought to achieve at this meeting have been essentially met. In particular, we agreed on the general capital increase of the bank which has available an additional one billion dollars which represents a 150 per cent increase in capitalization.
These resources will be available to the Borrowing Member Countries, including The Bahamas. To that extent, the Bank has achieved an extraordinary goal in respect to this meeting.
Mr Laing acknowledged another achievement, that being the “excellent stewardship and accountability” by the President of the Bank and staff in respect to outlining a clear path for the institution.
“I am sure that we as Caribbean personalities can be proud that we have a strong institution capable of supporting the development and aspirations of the countries,” he said.
Dr Bourne noted that although the region is emerging out of the recession, the work must continue in assisting Borrowing Member Countries with their respective developments.
“We must nevertheless urge that we will need to continue to work with our BMC’s to ensure that the gains achieved so far are preserved and consolidated through the pursuit of sound policies and adequate financial support.
“Our staff has also been engaged in major work in completing our Strategic Plan 2010-2014, and the related proposals for a General Capital Increase. These exercises have provided us with an invaluable opportunity to engage our stakeholders in an in-depth process of dialogue on how the Bank can improve its role and relevance to the Region,” he said.
The highlight of the meeting was the decision to approve the General Capital Increase for the bank.
Dr Bourne said the Board felt encouraged by this tangible expression of shareholder support, which represents the platform on which CDB can execute its development assistance program as outlined in its strategic plan.
“We recognize the enormous responsibility which this level of financing carries, being conscious of the fact that coming at this time, many of our countries have had to make significant sacrifices and so we offer you the assurance that we will strive at all times to be judicious in the way in which we use these resources,” he said.
Discussions also focused on reducing poverty in the region, the need to assist BMC’s to develop policies and strategies to address climate change and renewable energy issues, the importance of the CDB developing policies in the areas of Public Information Disclosure, social protection and conducting a review of the policy in relation to private sector lending, and for the bank to improve the efficiency of its operations.
During the closing, Mr Laing passed the chairmanship (elect) on to Ewart Williams, Governor of the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago, where the next Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Caribbean Development Bank will be held in 2012.
