FORMER head of the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest), Sandra Ann Baptiste, has produced Caribbean Business & Travel, a new publication that promotes investment opportunities in all sectors of the economy in the region and showcases several tourism destinations.

“We are delighted to note that Caribbean Business & Travel, the region’s newest, full-colour publication, provides an excellent overview of business developments and investment opportunities, including in the Caribbean’s vibrant tourism industry,” said Secretary-General of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Hugh Riley, who officially launched the new magazine at the organization’s annual press conference in Toronto. It was distributed at the CTO’s Caribbean tourism industry awards luncheon.

“Caribbean Business & Travel is an attractive and well-written outlet for our member countries and hotels to present themselves to a discerning readership in the major markets where we prospect for business. We anticipate that this premiere issue will evolve into a highly sought-after, annual publication,” Riley said.
Baptiste, a communications, investment promotion and Caribbean Affairs Specialist for over 30 years, said the publication has identified investment opportunities across the region in several sectors including tourism, agriculture, energy, manufacturing, technology, port development, airport management and the creative industry.

Caribbean Business & Travel is a publication of Florida-based Carigold Signature, a marketing, communications and training group headed by Baptiste, who is also editor of the Caribbean Tourism and Hospitality Investment Guide, a publication of the CTO and the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA).
“Our target markets are business executives and companies, travel agents and diaspora leaders in Toronto, New York and Florida. Since tourism is the lifeblood of many of our tourism destinations, we believe that potential investors should also be informed about the fabulous and unique tourism offerings throughout the region,” Baptiste said in the magazine’s editorial.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, is the main Signature Interview in the inaugural edition. Jamaica’s Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett and former Guyana Tourism Minister Cathy Hughes, provide in-depth information on plans to develop the tourism industry in their respective countries. Hughes is among the Caribbean personalities featured on the cover of the magazine.
The inaugural edition also features the President of the Caribbean Association of Industry and Commerce (CAIC) Ramesh Dookhoo, the President of CHTA Karolin Troubetzkoy, WestJet Vice President Tim Croyle, Sandals CEO Adam Stewart and the President of the St. Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association (SLHTA) Savonik Destang.

A copy of Caribbean Business & Travel was presented at the CTO event to WestJet’s Vice-President, Sales and Business Development, Lyell Farquharson. Vice President of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, Network and Membership Relations, Tracy Hanson, received copies of the new publication, which will be distributed to Canadian companies interested in business opportunities in the Caribbean.
Among the special events promoted in the publication are the Caribbean Central America Action (CCAA) 2016 Miami Conference on the Caribbean and Central America, the 2017 CTO Caribbean Sustainable Tourism Conference in the Turks & Caicos, Caribbean Travel Marketplace 2017 in the Bahamas and the Barbados Food and Rum Festival. There is also a Destination Weddings and Honeymoon section.

Baptiste, who established and was the first head of GO-Invest, also served as a Consultant on Investment and Private Sector Development in the Guyana Ministry of Finance in the 1990’s. She has an MA in International Journalism and Diplomas in International Trade, Business Management and International Relations.
Baptiste, who also specializes in Business Skills Training in Management and Leadership, has provided training to companies in Guyana for over 15 years, including through the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association (GMSA).