The Invest Dominica Authority recently hosted a webinar to showcase the Dominica Advantage, a strategy to maximize business potential in the Caribbean. Ian Hunter, the US Director for OCO Global, led the webinar and has been working with Invest Dominica to capitalize on its natural resources, geographic location, and potential talents.
The webinar aimed to highlight the benefits of establishing operations in Dominica and how the island’s highly educated talent pool gives it an advantage regarding new opportunities in the Caribbean. The speakers included Rhoda Joseph, executive director of the Invest Dominica Authority; Alice Simon, a highly experienced BPO consultant based in Dominica; and Craig Nesty, the Executive Director of the National Telecoms Regulatory Commission.
The speakers discussed the trends in foreign direct investment into the Caribbean and why such investments can be so attractive. They highlighted the benefits of establishing operations in Dominica, such as the island’s highly educated talent pool, its digital advantage, and the exciting developments already occurring in Dominica, such as renewable energy, new infrastructure projects, and digital connectivity. Additionally, Craig Nesty discussed the Uni Universal Service Fund, NTRC Dominica, mobile hub, DCY and increased internet traffic.
The speakers also discussed the impact of Covid 19 on foreign direct investment in the Caribbean, the lion’s share of foreign direct investment coming from North America, and the key trends, such as real-time collaboration and favourable time zones, that investors are looking for. They stressed the importance of teamwork, digital collaboration, and Dominica’s competitive costs.
The webinar concluded by introducing Dominica’s Digital Advantage. Craig Nesty explained that Dominica is uniquely positioned in the Caribbean to connect to two fibre optic cables, one middle Caribbean network and one Eastern Caribbean fibre system. He further highlighted that greater internet penetration, the recent pandemics and other social events had accelerated the outlay of the internet throughout the island.
He also discussed the Caribbean Digital Transformation Project, a project by the World Bank to create a framework for digital transactions and digital opportunities in telecommunications, financial services, and cybersecurity.
The webinar was very successful in highlighting the advantages of investing in Dominica. The Invest Dominica Authority hopes the webinar will encourage more people to support Dominica and help the country become an attractive destination for tourism and investment. As the Caribbean continues to be an attractive destination for foreign direct investment, the Dominica Advantage is a great opportunity for investors to take advantage of the country’s natural resources, geographic location, and potential talents.
