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NEW YORK, NY - Invest Caribbean Now 2015 entered its fifth year last night with a splashy opening ceremony at the prestigious Villa Mes Aimes in Terres Basses area of Saint Martin, West Indies.

Top government and local VIPS joined 41 Chinese delegates and several other overseas delegates for the opening reception and dinner which also included the presentation of the ICN 2015 Leadership Award.

A St. Martin tourism pioneer who was attracted to the sector at age 12 and went on to serve the island as a deputy mayor and creator of the Syndicat d’Initiatives, the precursor to the current Saint Martin Office of Tourism, was the ICN 2015 Leadership Award winner.
Romeo Fleming, head of the Romeo Fleming Group of Companies, which includes the current Hertz Rent a Car on St. Maarten/St. Martin, Xaro Tours and Equisite Tours, was last night presented with the award by ICN founder Felicia J. Persaud and President of the Office of Tourism of Saint Martin, Hon. Jeanne Rogers Vanterpool.

Fleming was recommended for the award by the Office of Tourism of Saint Martin. He joins other top ICN honourees including Sir Richard Branson, Royal Caribbean Cruises International and Gordon “Butch’ Stewart.

Fleming received the award before a number of local VIPS from the Government of the Collectivité of French Saint-Martin including Senator Guillaume Arnell and vice-president Wendel Cocks as well as top ICN overseas delegates including representatives from China Harbour, Panorama Group, Showland Investment Group Corp.Ltd, Beijing, Bestone Investment Ltd , Henan Yue Xin Co Nationwide Financial Services Inc., Beijing Century Tang Tourism Development Co., Ltd, China’s Low Carbon Tourism Promotion Committee, Beijing Four Seasons Travel Advisory Co., Ltd., China Women Tourism Committee, China Women Development Foundation, One Caribbean Television and China News Agency.

In accepting the award, Fleming said he was thrilled and humbled to receive the honor and looked forward to seeing a thriving tourism sector in Saint Martin.

ICN Founder, Felicia Persaud said that Fleming is a true visionary and embodies the spirit of the award which was created to honour leadership and foresight.

“Mr. Fleming showed courage and vision when he obtained his very first bank loan to purchase cars while establishing the given license to operate Hertz Rent a Car St. Maarten/St. Martin in 1980. Then in 1983, Mr. Fleming was elected deputy mayor and president of the Saint Martin Tourism Office and became recognized as someone who generously worked develop and propel the island’s tourism sector for 24 years. That is real leadership,” Persaud said. “This makes him a true leader in the island of Saint Martin and the Caribbean and worthy of our 2015 Leadership Award.”

Also awarded Thursday night with the Office of Tourism Service Excellence Award were Bernadette Davis, one the architects of the SMART (St. Martin/St. Maarten Annual Regional Trade Show) and Nicaise Wachter.

The 2015 Invest Caribbean Now conference was held on September 25th at the Saint Martin Chamber of Commerce building and spotlighted on the investment opportunities in the tourism sector of Saint Martin and is presented by The Government of the Collectivité of French Saint-Martin, The Office of Tourism of Saint-Martin and executives at Invest Caribbean Now (ICN), in collaboration with the Sino-American Friendship Association and the Chinese American Business Development Center of New York, Hard Beat Communications, One Caribbean Television, the St. Maarten Chinese Association, CaribPRWire and News Americas Now.

In Photo above; Minister Rogers-Vanterpool, ICN Founder Felicia J. Persaud and the Chinese delegation upon arrival at the Princess Julianna Airport on Sept. 24, 2015.