Recently at The College of the Bahamas, The Alumni Relations and Development Office collaborated with the CFA Society of The Bahamas to present a panel discussion under the theme “Survival of The Bahamian Economy.” The event proved to be very exciting as students, finance professionals and consultants all contributed to the discussion of the current state of the Bahamian economy and how The Bahamas can move forward together to sustainability. Serving on the panel were Larry R. Gibson, CFA and Dr. Iyandra P. Bryan, who both serve as Vice Presidents at Colonial Pensions Services (Bahamas) Limited and Dr. Nicola Virgill-Rolle, Government Lead and Director of National Development and Planning at the Office of The Prime Minister.
The event was held in the auditorium of the Harry C. Moore Library and Information Centre and attendees enjoyed a reception after the panel discussion.
The discussion was opened by a brief overview of the State of The Nation Report (SNR) by Dr. Nicola Virgill-Rolle with special attention paid to the growing national debt and the effectiveness of foreign direct investment as it relates to the GDP. To that end she mentioned, “We’ve been very good as a nation at attracting foreign direct investments which primarily fund us as opposed to domestic investment, but somehow we haven’t been as good in terms of its contribution to the economy.”
Throughout the evening, thought-provoking topics and questions arose, with special attention to the recent “Panama Papers” leak of 11.5 million files from the database of the world’s fourth largest offshore law firm, Mossack Fonseca. The records were obtained from an anonymous source by the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung. The documents show the myriad ways in which the rich can exploit offshore tax regimes. Twelve national leaders are among 143 politicians, their families and close associates from around the world known to have been using offshore tax havens.
According to Dr. Iyandra Bain, offshore banks now have to strategize to stay afloat by strengthening their product offering in light of the Panama Papers leak. She added, “this has a profound impact on the way we do business but we need to shift the current culture an increase our productivity.”
The Alumni Relations and Development Office at The College of The Bahamas strives to nurture lifelong relationships with those who attended COB, friends of COB and others interested in promoting The College’s mission of developing and educating The Bahamas.
“Through events like this panel discussion in conjunction with the CFA Society of The Bahamas, we are able to bridge the gap between our responsibilities at The College and our obligations to the economy at large. With that said, alumni are very integral to The College’s advancement,” Vice President of Advancement Davinia Blair affirmed.
AR&D desires maximum engagement with alumni, friends and faculty and staff across various media platforms and seeks feedback on services. Additionally the office seeks financial support through the Annual Fund to support strategic initiatives including student aid and infrastructure provide stronger community services and advance the development of The College. For more information on supporting the Alumni Relations and Development Office at The College send an email toalumni@cob.edu.bs.
