Jamaica hosts Caribbean Shipping Association's 40th AGM

The regions decision makers in the maritime industry will converge in Montego Bay from October 11-13, at the 40th annual general meeting of the Caribbean Shipping Association (CSA) to discuss important issues affecting the industry.

The conference, which will be held at the Rose Hall Resort and Spa, a Hilton hotel, is themed 'RIMS Now: Dawn of a New Beginning'. 'RIMS' refers to a regionally integrated maritime strategy being promoted by the CSA.

Over 250 delegates have already registered for the conference, which is the largest event on the regional shipping industry's calendar. Delegates will represent English, Spanish, French and Dutch Caribbean territories, as well as several countries in Europe and South, Central and North America.

Scheduled activities

Activities for the conference will begin on Saturday, October 9 with a golf tournament at the Cinnamon Hill Golf Course, and will include delegates as well as local golfers. Sunday will see meetings of standing committees of the CSA, including the training trust, the port awards committee, the silver club and the general council, followed by the opening of the CSA's business exposition, 'Shipping Insight 2011'.

The official opening of the conference will take place on Monday, October 11 at the conference hotel, at 9 a.m. This will be followed by three days of plenaries, group meetings, technical presentations and panel discussions.

The conference will end with the 40th Anniversary Gala Banquet on Wednesday, October 13, when the winning regional terminals in the annual CSA Caribbean Ports Awards will be announced.

Presenters for the conference include Mike Henry, minister of transport and works; Edmund Bartlett, minister of tourism; Alberto Aleman Zubieta, chief executive officer, Panama Canal Authority; Walter Kemmsies, chief economist, Moffatt & Nichol; Steven Zipkoff, president and CEO, Zipkoff Solutions; Jean-Paul Rodrigue, associate professor, Hofstra University, Department of Global Study and Geography; Robert West, principal, Worley Parsons; John Tercek, vice-president, commercial development, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line; William Bruin, principal marine engineer, Halcrow Incorporated; Ricardo Sanchez, head, Infrastructure Services Unit, Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean; Edouard Baussan, president, Maritime Association of Haiti; Loretta Gamble, division director, technical assistance division, United States Customs and Border Protection; Paul Hilaire, permanent secretary, Caribbean Customs Law Enforcement Council; Josef Forstmayr, president, Caribbean Hotel and Tourist Association; George Hutson, minister of international business and transportation, Barbados; Stephen Cadiz, minister of trade, Trinidad and Tobago; Pascal Ollivier, advisor to the chief executive officer, government and international affairs, SOGET; and Roger Kamgaing, vice-president, government and institution services, SGS.

The CSA secretariat is based in Kingston, at the Shipping Association of Jamaica's office complex, 4 Fourth Avenue, Newport West. Further information can be obtained from the CSA's conference website www.regonline.com/40agm2010.