London/Trinidad & Tobago, 12 February 2014
ICSA relaunches branch in Trinidad and Tobago to support corporate secretaries in the Caribbean
On 3 February 2014, the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA) held a cocktail reception at the Marriot Hotel in Port of Spain to celebrate the relaunch of its Trinidad and Tobago branch. ICSA, the chartered membership and qualifying body for professionals working in governance, risk and compliance, including corporate secretaries, seeks to encourage the adoption globally of good governance practices. The relaunch of its Trinidad and Tobago branch highlights the importance of the work that its members and students are doing in this area in the Caribbean region.
Chartered secretaries undertake increasingly vital work in ensuring that organisations act responsibly and with integrity. Governance is being recognised more and more for the key role that it can play, not just in the corporate world where it can ensure that businesses deliver and ultimately help grow economies, but also in the not-for-profit and private sectors. SMEs, schools, hospitals, charities, state-owned businesses and organisations, family-run businesses, large or small, need good governance. This means that there are significant opportunities for governance professionals and ICSA is committed to supporting the profession and its members in Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean region as a whole.
“The expanding responsibilities of the corporate secretary mean that the role is now more vital than ever,” said David Venus FCIS, President of ICSA for the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and Associated Territories (UKRIAT). “Good governance is not simply a question of complying with a set of rules. It is about how you develop a framework to enable your business or organisation to do things better, create value and be sustainable in the long term. Our members are highly qualified professionals able to advise on how such a framework might be best implemented.”
The Caribbean is an area of increasing focus for ICSA and meetings about development opportunities were held with the Minister of Health, the Honourable Dr Fuad Khan, and the British High Commission. Talks with the Caribbean Corporate Governance Institute about possible areas of collaboration also took place, and there was a meeting with the Accreditation Council for Trinidad and Tobago to discuss steps to secure official recognition for ICSA as an overseas qualifying body.
On the day following the branch relaunch, David Venus and Simon Osborne FCIS, Chief Executive of ICSA’s UKRIAT division presented a CPD programme for members and non-members.. The event, which was run in conjunction with the Association of Caribbean Corporate Counsel (ACCC), was well attended by chartered secretaries and lawyers practising in the region. There are many lawyers working as corporate secretaries and there is scope for ICSA to help develop the skills that are needed to enable corporate secretaries in Trinidad and Tobago to uphold the high standards of governance in their organisations that ICSA advocates.
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Media contact:
Maria Brookes
mbrookes@icsa.org.uk
+44 (0)20 7612 7062
+44 (0)7890 649 143
Notes to Editors:
1. The Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA) is the membership and qualifying body for professionals working in governance, risk and compliance, including company secretaries. Our members work in all sectors and at every level of seniority. With over 100 years of experience and a presence in 72 countries, we champion high governance standards by providing qualifications, training, high-quality guidance and support (including technical resources, publications and software), and through our work with regulators and policy makers. Website: www.icsa.org.uk
2. The Interim Executive of ICSA Trinidad and Tobago Chartered Secretaries is:
Kathleen Gittens - Chairperson
Wayne Wood - Immediate Past Chairman
Joanne Webb - Deputy Chairman
Peter Machikan - Treasurer
Lisa Creese - Secretary
Annette Borel
Wayne Jones
Janice Pogson
