The 2nd Biennial National Development Conference opened at the Teachers’ Resource Centre in Anguilla on Wednesday, November 9, under the theme Empowerment of a People. A large number of persons, representing various sections of the public and private sectors, many of them being special invitees and commentators, turned up for the opening ceremony and first session of the conference.

Government Officials and others at Opening Ceremony

In delivering the feature address, Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Victor Banks, outlined six critical economic roles which the Government and citizens of Anguilla must play in the new dispensation as agents of sustainable economic development.
The first was fiscal stability in terms of both governance and their responsibilities as taxpayers. Secondly, in order to build a solid platform for development, the investment programme must be relevant to the needs of the business community as well as those of the citizens employed in the businesses. He saw the expansion of the airport as a critical decision that had to be made for the survival of the tourism industry. Thirdly, Anguillians must, if they wish to participate financially in business opportunities, learn the basic principles of prudent financial management.
The fourth critical role was support for indigenous financial institutions – not only in the form of savings, deposits, credit card and other services, but also in the purchase of available shares. The fifth was investment in a social and health insurance system. Mr. Bank said Government’s decision to proceed with the national health insurance further signalled an awareness that sustainable development demanded such a system. The sixth consideration was proper regulation. He stated that Anguilla must be aware of the importance of an appropriate regulatory framework as without this it would be useless to facilitate good governance.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Economic Development, Marcel Fahie, outlined some of the objectives of the conference. They include the following: to improve an awareness and understanding of the current status of the main issues as well as policy and strategy options in Anguillians achieving and maintaining a critical role in the determination of a development vision for Anguilla.
The conference is also to assist to identify, discuss and debate some of the major issues and concerns in achieving a shared long term vision for Anguilla and in the development path that would take the island to that vision.
The conference was declared open by Chief Executive Officer of the National Bank, E. Valentine Banks, who spoke largely on the role played, over the years, by the bank in the development of Anguilla and its people.

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