On Tuesday June 22nd, 2021, CARICHAM held its Annual General Meeting. It was the occasion for the outgoing Chairperson, Dr. Thackway Dax Driver, CEO and President of the Energy Chamber of Trinidad and Tobago, to highlight the key achievements of 2020-2021.

Members of the Network have designed the CARICHAM Regional Growth Series, a webinar series and platform for addressing key issues and exchanging best practices. The webinar series, which is accessible through the CARICHAM website at www.caribbeanchambers.net/resources, explored key themes such the Importance of Regional Air Transportation for the Economic Recovery of the Caribbean; Business Continuity Planning to Enhance Business Resilience for the Hurricane Season; and Alternatives Dispute Resolution Methods.

During the AGM, members of the Network of Chambers unanimously elected Brian Louisy, Executive Director of the Saint Lucia Chamber of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture as the new Chairperson and Misha Lobban-Clarke, Executive Director of Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry as the newly elected Vice-Chair. Dr. Thackway Dax Driver remains on the Executive Committee as the Immediate Past Chairperson.

Brian Louisy has over thirty years of experience in development work in both the public and private sector. As a trained Economist in the area of development economics and project planning, he has been active in the fields of private sector development, business advocacy, business support services, trade negotiations, export development, sustainable development, development planning, and competitiveness throughout his professional career.  Brian also represents the Private Sector on a number of national boards and committees, providing him with insight and appreciation for the various economic and social issues affecting the country.

Misha Lobban-Clarke is a Management, Public Relations and Communications Specialist, with twenty-five years’ experience in management, corporate communications, public relations, stakeholder engagement; events planning, media relations, and journalism. Her professional experience includes providing PR consultancy to government policymakers, corporate entities as well as membership organizations. Misha is currently ex-officio member of the Council of the Barbados Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Board of Directors of the BCCI-BEC Holdings Inc. She is also a non-executive independent member of the Board of Directors of Stratus Alternative Funds SCC (“Stratus”) and currently serves as Chair of the Corporate Governance, Remuneration, and Nomination Committee.  

For this new term, CARICHAM will focus on enhancing service-offerings within the Chambers, creating collaboration opportunities with other regional bodies to ensure better advocacy for the Private Sector, and creating more business opportunities between members to foster exchanges in the region.