CAF Seminar “Envisioning long-term sustainability in Trinidad and Tobago: productivity, innovation and resilience”

Registered Engineer with two degrees in Civil Engineering and two postgraduate degrees in Law. He has over 40 years’ experience in the construction industry. To date, he has served as an elected PNM Member of Parliament for 29 continuous years and as a Cabinet Minister in six PNM Governments for an aggregate Cabinet experience of over 18 years.  He has served as Minister of Works and Transport; Minister of Local Government; Minister of Science, Technology and Tertiary Education; Minister of Health; and Minister of Finance. After the PNM’s victory at the General Election in 2020, he was reappointed as Minister of Finance.  

He holds a Doctorate in Economics from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. He was Deputy Chief of the Economic Advisory section of the Ministry of Planning, Secretary of Economic Monitoring of the Ministry of Finance and Minister of the Secretariat of Ports of the Government of Brazil. He participated in the Board of Directors of public and private companies, in which Caixa Económica Federal, Vale S.A. (Fiscal Council) and Banco do Nordeste merit particular mention. He was Executive Director for Brazil at the World Bank and the IDB.

She holds a B.A in History and Communication Studies. She worked in the area of communications and media, as a radio and television presenter for the Caribbean New Media Group, better known as CNMG.  She has several musical achievements like the National Gospel Song Festival, Junior Calypso Monarch, Political Monarch, Unattached Monarch, Regional Calypso Monarch and Winner of several Regional Monarchs -Arima, Arouca, Tunapuna, Couva.

He is Doctor of Philosophy in Economics from Columbia University. He has a career of twenty years in the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago holding positions of Senior Economist, Director of Research and Deputy Governor. In addition, he has made significant contributions to developing the economies of small vulnerable CARICOM countries through his work as Chairman of the CARICOM Development Fund. He worked as Senior Economist at the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

He was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of a large and dynamic holdings company involved in diverse areas such as finance, insurance, real estate and the food industry. His successful career in business did not limit his passion for helping people, and this led him into a life of politics where he became a long-standing member of the People’s National Movement. He first entered Parliament as a Temporary Senator. He was appointed a Government Senator, and later he was appointed as the Minister of Works and Transport. He is also a member of the Joint Select Committee of Parliament for Social Services and Public Administration.

Holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the Andrés Bello Catholic University (UCAB) in Caracas and a Ph.D in Economics from Brown University. Currently, she is the director of macroeconomic studies at CAF, where she coordinates the team of economists in the shareholders countries and contributes to the research publications of the organization, including joint work with other regional and international institutions. She is also an Assistant Professor at UCAB’s School of Economics. She previously worked in the Research Department of the Central Bank of Venezuela. She has published research articles in national and international journals and books.

He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California, Berkeley. He has been President of Fundación Chile, President of  the Presidential Advisory Board on Jobs and Equity, Member of the Scientific Board of the MILENIO Program, Director of CODELCO, Researcher and Designer of the website FuturoLaboral (Ministry of Education), Member of the Board of the Science & Technology Program CONICYT, Member of the Presidential Advisory Board on Technological Innovation. He has been Director of the Department of Industrial Engineering, and Director of the Master in Management and Public Policy at the University of Chile. Additionally, he has been a Visiting Professor at UC San Diego, University of Oviedo, Boston University and Notre Dame University. He has been a Visiting Researcher at the National Bureau of Economic Research. He is the author and editor of 17 books in Spanish, English and French and 72 chapters in journals and books specialized in economics. He is a Full Professor at the University of Chile; Senior Researcher at CIEPLAN and Academic Director of the Global MBA at the U. of Chile.

He is a civil engineer from the Institute of Technology and Higher Education of Monterrey, Mexico, he also has a M.Sc. in irrigation and agricultural engineering from Utah State University and a Ph.D in civil and environmental engineering in the specialty of hydrology, from the University of California at Davis. He works with a team oriented to evaluate the natural capital of Latin America through 21st century solutions with an approach to effective resource conservation, economic growth and social inclusion. Throughout his career he participated in the most emblematic investment projects in Latin America. He has also written books and technical articles and teaches at university level.    

He has a BSc. Degree in Sociology and Management and an Executive MBA specializing in Finance and Entrepreneurship from the Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business. A political activist since a young age, he has held various positions in his party group, namely: elections officer, public relations officer and vice chairman of the Tobago West Youth League. In the Tobago West Constituency, he has functioned as, elections officer and education officer and later on assumed the roles of research officer and education officer of the Executive of the Tobago Council of the People’s National Movement. Later, at the end of the PNM internal elections, he rose to the position of Political Leader of the Tobago PNM.

She was the Vice President of Business Development at the Trinidad & Tobago International Financial Centre, where she played a central role in the establishment of the financial services outsourcing industry in Trinidad and Tobago. Previously, she served as Chief Operating Officer of Development Finance Limited after gaining substantial experience in credit operations, private equity, grant management and microfinance at the executive and board levels.

He is a marine biologist and also a Professor of Tropical Island Ecology. His current research interest is in the field of Sustainability Science including development of a Blue and Circular Economy development model for islands aimed at mainstreaming environmental considerations such as biodiversity conservation and sustainable use, as well as climate change adaptation into the core of policy and decision making. He is the Small Islands Chapter Review Editor of the current 6th assessment of the UN Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). He is also a Coordinating Lead Author for the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) Global Assessment. He has also served on the Scientific Advisory Panel of the 2019 United Nations Environment, Global Environment Outlook (GEO6). He has also served as Chairman of the Environmental Management Authority of Trinidad and Tobago. Currently, he is the Director of the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Partner in the Strategy and Transactions practice based in the Trinidad office. She has led several high-profile engagements and has provided clients with advice on raising both debt and equity capital as well as strategic options analysis towards maximizing shareholder value. She specializes in business valuations, transaction support services on both the buy-side and sell-side of the transaction, mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, independent business review, receiverships, restructuring, strategic advisory services, and turnaround advisory. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst Charter holder, holds an FCCA designation and a BSc. in Economics and Management (Upper Second Class Honors) from the University of the West Indies.  Maria is also a licensed Trustee under The Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act of Trinidad and Tobago.

Doctor in Economics (University of Buenos Aires). Director, Instituto Interdisciplinario de Economía Política (IIEP), UBA-CONICET. Full Professor of of Economic Development at FCE-UBA. Executive Director of the South American Network of Applied Economics (RED SUR). Visiting professor at the University of San Andrés and professor at the Master's in Economics (UBA). He was Director of the Centro de Investigaciones para la Transformación (CENIT) and Head of the Department of Economics at the University of Buenos Aires. He is the author of several books and articles published in specialized academic journals. He specializes in productive development, innovation and international integration.