Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Hubert A. Ingraham has indicated that the Government is committed to its training initiatives so as to ensure a qualified and competent labour pool, from which can be drawn persons to meet the needs of the financial services sector as it expands and matures. *”You will appreciate that this was my Government’s objective in introducing computer and information technology and foreign language instruction throughout the government operated school system, beginning with primary schools.”{I*} The Prime Minister continued, *”In due course, it should not be necessary for employers, such as banks, trust companies and investment firms, to seek to employ international persons due to a foreign language deficiency in The Bahamas”*

These remarks came as part of the Prime Minister’s keynote address at the opening of BSI’s new offices at the Bayside Executive Park last weekend.

The College of the Bahamas is strengthening its finance and business disciplines. In September, 2000 legal studies were added to the College’s curriculum, following the 1999 establishment of the Eugene Dupuch Law School by the Caribbean Council on Legal Education in conjunction with the Government of The Bahamas.

*”It is our expectation that such training, together with the experience and skills learned ‘on the job’ will stand Bahamians in good stead with regard to employment in commerce and industry, and that employers will benefit and their businesses will succeed because of these initiatives”,* said Prime Minister Ingraham.