Outreach programmes like the ‘Barbados Comes to Atlanta’ (BCTA), have been labelled as a great opportunity for Barbados to engage and build lasting relationships with the diaspora.
Minister of State in Foreign Trade and Business, Sandra Husbands, shared this view, while delivering virtual remarks at the BCTA’s Blue and Gold Gala, held on Saturday evening at the Clayton County International Park VIP Complex, in Atlanta, Georgia.
Minister Husbands said she was pleased to see the restart of the ‘Barbados Comes To’ outreach programme, which is aimed at showcasing Barbadian history, culture and products to the visitors and residents in the state where it is held.
She said it enabled an atmosphere that would establish and nurture relationships between business and heritage agencies in Barbados and, in this instance, Atlanta.
“This event provides a welcome space for Barbadian business persons, agencies and organisations to network [and] to share information and build lasting relationships on both personal and professional levels. There is value to us in making these connections as individuals, as a community and, of course, as a country,” Minister Husbands stated.
She also encouraged persons living in the diaspora to consider the role they could play in helping with Barbados’ national development projects, such as poverty reduction, economic growth, humanitarian response, and stimulating post-COVID-19 crisis recovery.
The Minister of State mentioned two initiatives with which she believes the diaspora could assist; the Bridgetown Initiative and the Reclaiming Our Atlantic Destiny (ROAD) Project.
She explained, in summary, that the Bridgetown Initiative was a financial architectural plan aimed at helping provide financing for issues impacting developing states as a result of the climate crisis.
“This initiative, once embraced by all, would create more sources from which developing countries can borrow to mitigate and recover from the climate crisis; and with that support, the most vulnerable nations will also have more resources that they can invest in quality education, better health care, cleaner energy, and stronger infrastructure, all of which are key to ending extreme poverty. This holds benefits for rich nations as well as for the poor.”
Concerning the ROAD Project, Ms. Husbands shared that the island has embarked on this major heritage initiative, which will see the creation of the Barbados heritage district, and serve as a cornerstone and catalyst for the ongoing development of Barbados’ independent identity and culture, “as we continue to tell our story to the world”.
The heritage district will be located at the Newton Plantation in Christ Church and will comprise a memorial, a major global research institute, and a museum.
Minister Husbands thanked the Carrie-Lynn Grazette Cancer Foundation of Atlanta, the Barbados Consulate in Miami and the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc., as well as Barbados’ Honorary Consul in Atlanta, David Cutting, for collaborating to organise the BCTA 2023 events.
She encouraged the diaspora “to keep living the motto as you discharge your duties and acts of service with pride and industry”.
During the Gala, attendees heard first-hand the story of Carrie-Lynn Grazette, who was diagnosed at age 11 with Acute Myeloid Leukemia, deemed one of the more aggressive types of leukemia. It was through her need for medical and financial assistance that the Foundation was started 10 years ago.
Also during the event, the family of former Barbados Miami Consul General, Colin Mayers, who died in April 2018, was presented with a posthumous award in recognition of Mr. Mayers’ efforts in creating the ‘Barbados Comes To’ outreach programme.
Performing at the Gala were Anderson “Blood” Armstrong, Trinity Clarke and Archie ‘Killa’ Miller.