Financial empowerment as well as ways in which businesspersons can better protect and secure their assets and prevent crime in their work environment will also be a key focus at the upcoming 2010 Visionary Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs Awards which is less than two weeks away.

The Conference scheduled for Monday October 18 at the British Colonial Hilton will be attended by hundreds of businesspersons, managers, entrepreneurs and persons wishing to start a business from throughout the country. Of major note will be a special ‘Express Yourself Open Forum,’ in which the business community will have an opportunity to hear from the Minister of National Security The Hon. Tommy Turnquest on the topic of Crime in the Business Community. Minister Turnquest will discuss what the Government is doing to help prevent crime in the business community and also offer suggestions and helpful tips to local businesspersons on what they can do to partner with law enforcement officials to prevent crime in their work environment. Persons in attendance will also have an opportunity to ask questions of the Minister in a controlled environment.

Organizers of the Visionary Conference, which is designed to assist businesspersons in repositioning their businesses and planning for the recovery following the global economic crisis say that this topic is most timely particularly as the approaching holiday season nears and with the economy being the way that it is even though it is showing remarkable signs of progress compared to last year.

The Minister of State for Finance The Hon. Zhivargo Laing will also address the audience on plans the Government has to further stimulate the economy.

The Visionary Conference has received tremendous support from the corporate community with a number of major businesses signing on as sponsors this year including Majestic Tours, The Bahamas Development Bank, BTC, Bahamasair, Bahamas Local begin_of_the_skype_highlighting end_of_the_skype_highlighting.com, Echo Water, Custom Computers, Sanctuary Investments, Lyford Hills, Phil’s Food Services, Audio Plus, Humphrey’s Autos, Lil Giant, Spirit Gospel FM and More 94 FM along with others.

The power-packed conference will feature a number of leading businesspersons and entrepreneurs including including Certified Corporate Image Consultant, Stacia Williams, President of Total Image Management; veteran businessman Gus Cartwright, President of Checkers Café; Tennyson Wells, President of Sanctuary Investments and Echo Water; Former Bahamas Chamber of Commerce President Dionisio D’Aguilar who is the Chairman of AML (formerly known as Abaco Markets, The Owners of Solomon’s, Cost Rite and Dominoes Pizza) and President of Super Wash; marketing and advertising expert Burton Wallace, President of Movi Productions Ltd.; Dr. Chinyere Carey-Bullard, Proprietor of Advanced Family Medical Center & Medispa; Sonia Brown, Principal of Graphite Engineering; Andrew Wilson, President of John S. George and QBC and Denelee E. Penn, President of Evergreen Mortuary.

Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Hon. Brent Symonette, will officially open the conference. Also in attendance will be the Minister of Youth Sports and Culture, The Hon Charles Maynard. Also representatives from leading financial and lending institutions including Justin Sturrup of The Bahamas Development Bank as well as Jerome Gomez, Fund Administrator of The Bahamas Entrepreneurial Venture Fund and others will be in attendance.

Also Visionary Awards will be presented to Joan Albury, President of The Counsellors Ltd; Pastor Silbert Mills, C.E.O. of The Bahamas Christian Network and Bahamas Ferries for their outstanding role in nation building over the years.