Bahamas Minister Speaks Of WTO Ambitions

Amanda Banks, Tax-news.com, London

02 April 2001

Speaking at a business meeting organised by the World Trade Centre in Florida last week to discuss issues of trade between the Sunshine State and the Bahamas, Bahamian Minister of Economic Development, Zhivargo Laing, said that he hoped his country could negotiate a positive position 'in what would be the largest free trade area in the world comprising of more than 780 million people with an estimated output of US$12 trillion.'

The Bahamas is not yet a member of the World Trade Organisation but Mr Laing confirmed that his country has gained 'observer status' and will soon be requesting full membership, saying 'we are one of 34 democratic countries in the Western Hemisphere actively participating in discussions to create the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) by 2005.'

According to a report by the Nassau Guardian, Mr Laing said the Bahamas is also en route to becoming a 'major electronic commerce hub' and is currently preparing for the many challenges it will meet on the way. He claimed that the Bahamas, in its attempts to establish e-commerce as the 'third pillar' of the island's economy, has concentrated its efforts towards the transition of the society into an information-based one. This has involved implementing projects such as developing the island's IT infrastructure and the introduction of a new telecommunications policy to evolve BaTelCo - the Bahamas' leading telecommunications company - into a state-of-the-art operation. He added that the government is looking to strengthen 'intellectual property rights legislation' and install more computers into schools as further areas intended for developing e-commerce on the island.

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