Programmes

Bridgetown Revitalization Initiative

The Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry has taken on the challenge of revitalizing Bridgetown; the capital city of Barbados with input of all concerned. It is a project that has become one of the crucial initiatives of BCCI with cooperation between both private and public sector entities. This initiative is all about breathing new life into the City of Bridgetown which is the heart of Barbados.

Mr. Lalu Vaswani the current Senior Vice president of the Chamber is charged with bringing this opportunity to a reality. He is the Chairman of the Chamber’s Bridgetown Steering Committee.

On Friday May 14, 2010 the Chamber hosted a Stakeholder’s Retreat on the Revitalization of Bridgetown at the Hilton Barbados, which embraced contributions and presentations from representatives of both the public and private sectors in attendance. This was a critical step in the programme.

With this initiative the Chamber is looking to transform Bridgetown into a 24/7 city of diversity – commerce, culture, cuisine, sports, entertainment and history. The focus of the Steering Committee is therefore now a strategic one – emphasizing building bridges with key stakeholders, to learn what each entity is doing so as to avoid duplication and to identify and prioritize projects for joint collaboration.

A number of entities are now involved in the process all offering a wide ranging dialogue, set to bring the initiative to a fruitful completion. These institutions include the Tourism Development Corporation, the Barbados Tourism Investment Inc., National Cultural Foundation, Ministry of Culture to name a few. The result is crafting a One Year Action Plan to target concerns that reflected the concerns of all Barbadians, which are considered as prerequisites for any long term plan should be implemented, items such as:

  • Improved Security
  • Enhanced lighting, both of which are essential to promote longer hours of activity in the City.
  • Beautification and Greening of the City to make it more aesthetically pleasing and provision of benches for citizens to enjoy the greener city life.
  • Improving cleanliness.
  • Provision of fixed and portable washroom facilities.
  • Enhancing Cultural activities

Call to Action

At the end of May 2010, BCCI is at the stage where corporate and individual citizens as well as statutory and Non Governmental Organizations can indicate to the Chamber’s Steering Committee, where their interest and passion lie, and benefit from this unique opportunity to revitalize its Capital City, the heart of the body, which is lovingly called Barbados.

Now is the time for action to commit to a future that will be better for Barbados and by extension all its citizens, individual and corporate.

Come and Get involved now. Contact the Chamber and give your suggestions today.

Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Braemar Court
Deighton Road
St. Michael
Barbados, W.I.
Tel: (246) 434-4750
Fax: (246) 228-2907
Email: bcci@bdscham.com