ANTIGUA & BARBUDA TOURISM AUTHORITY

Antigua & Barbuda attend the Avalon Invest Caribbean Now Forum 

Over a dozen Caribbean governments have gathered in New York City over the past week in celebration of this year’s Annual Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) – Caribbean Week in New York City. 

On Wednesday, June 5th there was a meeting of the third annual Invest Caribbean Now Forum. Two premiers, a chief minister, a governor; seven ministers of governments and two commissioners joined the more than one hundred delegates, which included participants from China; the U.S. government; and the Private Sector, for the Avalon Invest Caribbean Now Forum at the Radisson Hotel in mid-town, Manhattan.

Those governments in attendance included - Dr. Orlando Smith, Premier of the British Virgin Islands; Chief Minister of Anguilla, Hubert Hughes; Governor John De Jong, Jr. of the United States Virgin Islands; Finance Minister, Washington Misick of the Turks & Caicos Islands; Minister of Tourism of Trinidad, Stephen Cadiz; Minister of Tourism & Civil Aviation of Antigua & Barbuda, John Maginley; Minister of Tourism, Nevis, Mark Brantley; Minister of Tourism, Sports & Culture, St. Vincent & The Grenadines, Cecil McKie; Minister of Tourism & International Transport, International Trade, Industry, Commerce & Consumer Affairs of St. Kitts, Ricky Skerritt and Minister for Tourism, Heritage and Creative Industries, St. Lucia, Lorne Theophilus; Commissioner of Tourism for the US Virgin Islands and Chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organization, Beverly Nicholson Doty; Commissioner, St. Eustacius, Nicholas Sneek and Assemblyman Tracy Davidson-Celestine, Deputy Chief Secretary and Secretary, Division of Tourism and Transportation of Tobago were among governmental dignitaries. 

Anthony Eterno of the Caribbean Affairs Office of the US State Department, spoke to a sold out forum, on the US' View on Investing in the Caribbean, in addition to Xiaoguang Liu, Consul in Charge of Economic & Commercial Affairs at the Consulate General of China in New York, who also discussed China-Caribbean opportunities that exist; as part of a panel on China and the Caribbean. 
 
Minister of Tourism & Civil Aviation, Hon. John Maginley noted, “Attending these types of investment forums which are focused on the region, provides a valuable opportunity for Caribbean tourism leaders to network and discuss strategic ways to encourage positive investment into the region and build the Caribbean’s reputation as a place to do business.”  
 
CEO of the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, Colin C. James, who was also in attendance said, “The event presented an ideal opportunity for the destination to re-engage marketing media partners such as One Caribbean Television who previously visited the destination for the production of several One Caribbean Weather segments. These features provided the destination with widespread exposure throughout the Caribbean, the US Tri-state area, and the Erie Pennsylvania area where the station is headquartered.

The forum was focused on two panel sessions one on Development, Tourism & Beyond with the other on, China and the Caribbean, that featured presentations from the American Chinese Commerce Development Association and the Chinese American Business Development Center. 

The Avalon Invest Caribbean Now Forum comes on the heels of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden's Caribbean trip on May 28th for the signing of the United States - Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) and the first visit to Trinidad & Tobago by the Chinese President Xi Jinping, which took place from May 31 to June 2. 
 
(Left to right: CEO, Antigua & Barbuda Tourism Authority, Colin C. James; Minister of Tourism & Civil Aviation, Hon. John Maginley, and Director of Tourism Policy & Planning, Ministry of Tourism, Mr. Cortwright Marshall)