Caribbean Central Bankers meet in Belize

While it was former Finance Minister Ralph Fonseca who drew us to the Central Bank this morning, he was there for reasons other than a media encounter, namely to speak at the opening of the seventh annual conference of Human Resource Managers of the Caribbean Central Banks. Representatives from eight central banks in the region, including Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Curacao, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago and Belize will hear various presentations on topics including efficiency and effectiveness, HIV/AIDS policies and sexual harassment in the workplace. Governor of Belize’s Central Bank, Sydney Campbell, told the gathering that addressing such issues is essential to protecting any country?s most precious resource: its people.

Sydney Campbell, Governor, Central Bank Belize

“Although we are from different countries, we all share the special experience of being members of the premier financial institutions in our respective countries. I know that the functions of our institutions are similar and we mirror each other’s activities in many ways. Our existence is very vital to the economic stability of the country and this is expressed clearly in the Central Bank of Belize’s mission statement: “The mission of the Central Bank of Belize is to foster the development and economic development in Belize that will facilitate economic growth”. The reality of our institutions, giving life to our mission statement depends heavily on the performance of our most valuable asset: our human resources. This asset must therefore be managed in the most efficient and effective manner.”

The theme of this year’s conference is “Human Resource Management: Linking Efficiency and Effectiveness”.