BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC—The Barbados-based Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) announced Wednesday that its Board of governors will meet in Canada next month for its annual meeting.
The embattled financial institution, whose president Dr. Hyginus “Gene “ Leon tendered his resignation earlier this month after being sent on administrative leave in January, said that the 54th Board of Governors (BOG) meeting will be held from June 17 to 20 in Ottawa.
The CDB has made no public statement since Leon tendered his resignation. Still, the Prime Ministers of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and St. Lucia have recently openly criticized how the St. Lucian-born economist was forced to tender his resignation.
Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves said “unsuccessful attempts” had been made to impugn the character of Leon, whom he described as “ a distinguished son of our Caribbean civilization from St. Lucia.”
For his part, St. Lucia’s Prime Minister Phillip J Pierre said a “conspiracy” was behind Leon’s removal.
“I want to put on record St. Lucia’s full support for the work that Gene Leon did at the Caribbean Development Bank and to regret that a conspiracy—and I make no bones about it, and this is not personal to anybody, to any function to the bank—a conspiracy is what caused Gene Leon to resign,” Pierre, who is also a CDB Governor, said in a six-minute statement to the St. Lucia Parliament during a debate on a financial issue.
The CDB said that the meeting in Canada would be held under the theme “Partnerships for Resilient Prosperity” and that the hybrid event reflects its drive to catalyze cooperative approaches to bolster growth and resilience across its Borrowing Member Countries (BMC). “The meeting will provide a platform for consultation and interaction between the Bank’s highest levels of leadership and critical stakeholder groups, including donor entities, sector experts, public sector leaders, and development partners,” the CDB said.
It added that the agenda will facilitate collaborative exchanges and knowledge sharing to address the Region’s most pressing development challenges.
“The dialogue will explore avenues for reshaping the international financing paradigm to prioritize resilient, inclusive prosperity. Priority issues will include practical approaches to stimulating economic activity, mitigating the Region’s vulnerabilities, enhancing implementation capacity in BMCs, and confronting common threats such as climate change impacts.”
CDB’s Acting President, Isaac Solomon, said, “This annual meeting provides a vital opportunity to strengthen partnerships that can unlock transformative solutions for sustainable development across CDB’s Borrowing Member Countries.
“By promoting collaborative approaches and exchange of expertise, we can identify practical strategies to catalyze economic growth, build resilience to overcome our vulnerabilities, and prioritize inclusive prosperity for all Caribbean people and communities,” he added.
Canada’s Minister of International Development, Ahmed Hussen, the current CDB chairman, said Canada and the Caribbean Region share a close relationship.
“Together, we’ve worked to reduce poverty, take action on climate change, and invest in renewable energy. Canada is a founding member of the Caribbean Development Bank and the most significant contributor to the Bank’s Special Development Fund for tackling the most critical challenges.
“As the 2024 Chair of the Board of Governors of the Caribbean Development Bank, I look forward to strengthening our ties and welcoming members of the Caribbean Region to Ottawa. The Annual Meeting will allow our two regions to come together, discuss current issues, and chart a course for future action,” he added.
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