Barbados has placed in the top three of the regional component of the Caribbean Organisation of Tax Administrators (COTA) Essay Competition once again.
Alyssa Blades of Queen’s College placed second in the tax-focused competition. For this sixth edition of the competition, essays explored the theme: Digitalization – Moving Beyond the 21st Century.
Ms. Blades received her prize during morning assembly at the St. James school last Thursday. During the presentation ceremony, Revenue Commissioner, Wayne Forde, expressed his pleasure with the results.
“I want to emphasize to all present that part of responsible citizenship is your contribution to the tax system, but, today I have come here to congratulate one of your own and I do so in my capacity as a member of the Management Committee of the Caribbean Organisation of Tax Administrators.
“It is my pleasure to see that Barbados has once again placed among the top three essays from across the region. She has done Queen’s College, the Barbados Revenue Authority and Barbados proud in bringing home the silver. Alyssa, congratulations to you,” he said.
The Barbadian student edged out Ariel Albert of St. Joseph’s Convent School in St. Lucia, who placed third, while first place went to Jaidah-Leigh Wyatt, a student of Immaculate Conception High School for Girls in Jamaica.
The competition is aimed at encouraging students to become familiar with the work of their country’s tax administration, as well as to engender an interest in this field as a career choice.