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| Prime Minister Freundel Stuart (right) in conversation with President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Luis Alberto Moreno during the courtesy call. (A. Miller/BGIS) |
President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Luis Alberto Moreno, has praised the marketing efforts of Barbados that resulted in the successful hosting of the just concluded Foromic 2012 conference.
He expressed these sentiments during a courtesy call on Prime Minister Freundel Stuart at Ilaro Court recently.
Mr. Moreno, accompanied by a team from the IDB, said the conference and its expected outcomes would redound to the benefit of Barbados and the region. "This conference is important to the development of the small, micro and medium-sized enterprises [as the engine] for economic growth."
In turn, the Prime Minister disclosed that the Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, Christopher Sinckler and his staff, worked "untiringly to ensure that the conference was a success and the best was yet to come".
Mr. Stuart also expressed a similar sentiment that the spin-offs from the conference, described as the biggest conference in Latin America and the region,?????? would be positive for the island.??
"I have made the point…that in Europe and the United States of America, small business is what drives the economy and the creation of employment. We [government] have been making our own spirited efforts here to give the emphasis where it is really needed.?? So, the IDB decision to have the conference here gives a fillip
to that kind of thinking and we look forward to participating and learning as much as we can," he underlined.
The two officials discussed a range of issues such as the economy, tourism, oil and commodity prices and the progress of IDB projects.
The three-day forum, which attracted more than 1,000 delegates, began on Monday, October 1, and ended on Wednesday, October 3.