Barbados Travel Information Sources of barbados travel information resources from the Web

In 2004 it was announced that Barbados' Kensington Oval will be one of the final venues hosting the 2007 Cricket World Cup

Business links and investment flows have become substantial, as of 2003 the island saw from Canada CAN$25 Billion in investment holdings, placing it as one of Canada's top five destinations of Canadian Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Canadian Outward Foreign Direct Investment to the World (http://www.asiapacificbusiness.ca/data/trade/general_dataset5_toworld.cfm). Businessman Eugene Melnyk of Toronto in Ontario, Canada is said to be Barbados' richest permanent resident.

Under its constitution, Barbados is a parliamentary democracy modeled on the British system. The Governor-General represents the Monarch. Control of the government rests with the cabinet, headed by the Prime Minister and responsible to the Parliament.

Traditional trading partners include: Canada, the Caribbean Community (especially Trinidad and Tobago), the United Kingdom, and the United States.

The start of the Port Charles Marina project in Speightstown helped the tourism industry continue to expand in 1996-99. Offshore finance and informatics are important foreign exchange earners, and there is also a light manufacturing sector. The government continues its efforts to reduce the unacceptably high unemployment rate, encourage direct foreign investment, and privatize remaining state-owned enterprises.

The island of Barbados has a single major airport, the Sir Grantley Adams International Airport (GAIA) (IATA identifier BGI). The Grantley Adams Airport receives daily flights by several major airlines, from points around the globe, as well as several smaller regional commercial airlines and charters. The airport serves as the main air-transportation hub for the Eastern Caribbean. The airport is currently under-going a US$100 Million upgrade and expansion.

In the 1950s, R&B and rock and roll became popular on the island, and many jazz bands found themselves pushed aside. A wave of Guyanese musicians also appeared on the island, including Colin Dyall, a saxophonist who later joined the Police Band, and the Ebe Gilkes.

Local politics were dominated by plantation owners and merchants of British descent. It was not until the 1930s that a movement for political rights was begun by the descendants of emancipated slaves. One of the leaders of this movement, Sir Grantley Adams, founded the Barbados Labour Party in 1938.