In Caribbean business news. Belize City, Belize November 22, 2013. The inaugural Regional Investor of the Year Award was held at the Radisson Fort George Hotel & Marina before a host of invited guests, including members of the private sector from Belize. The event, part of the 4th Annual General Assembly of the Caribbean Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (CAIPA), was held in recognition of the contribution of foreign and local investors to the Caribbean.
Receiving the award for Foreign Investor of the Year was Qualfon Guyana Inc., a business process outsourcing and call center service provider based in Georgetown, Guyana. Vice President of Marketing and Product Management Brian Kearney accepted the award on behalf of Qualfon. The values-driven company, he said, is not just about business but also about a passion for improving the lives of people in the communities they serve.
RIYA Award winners. From left to right: Brian Kearney, Qualfon Guyana Inc – winner of the Foreign Investor of the Year Award; Ms. Diomares Musa, VP, ARS Humano, winner of the local investor of the year awrad and overall RIYA 2013 winner; Mr. Charles Kirkconnell, CEO, Cayman Enterprise City, winner of the Special award.
ARS Humano, a privately held health insurance company in the Dominican Republic, was awarded for both the Local and overall winner of the Regional Investor of the Year. Marketing and Corporate Development Vice President Diomares Musa, in accepting the awards, said she is honored that the work of ARS Humano over the past fourteen years is being acknowledged by the Caribbean Export Development Agency and CAIPA.
Cayman Enterprise City, led by Chief Executive Officer Charles Kirkconnell, was the recipient of the Special Award. CEC is a Special Economic Zone compliant with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and the World Bank. Located in the Cayman Islands, the company offers jurisdictional and tax benefits, as well as access to global markets.
The first Regional Investor of the Year Award was an overwhelming success, with 34 applications from 10 Caribbean territories. The initiative was a collaborative effort between CAIPA and Caribbean Export Development Agency. Many of the investment projects submitted for the Award will be used as success stories by Caribbean Export and CAIPA to promote the region for investment in the upcoming year.
