As the Chief Executive Officer of Invest Saint Lucia, Mr. Charles has the responsibility of leading the organization charged for promoting Saint Lucia as an ideal investment hub and effect change in the country’s economic development.

Prior to his appointment, Mr. Charles was a banker for a total of thirty-four years. Of these thirty-four years, he was a development banker for fourteen years and later a commercial/ retail banker for approximately twenty years. He also served as a Corporate Banking Manager where he evaluated development projects financed by the institution in addition to monitoring local, regional, and international economic environments for trends and events relevant to Saint Lucia’s socio-economic progress. In his previous roles, as Branch Manager of three branches at Bank of Saint Lucia, he identified and recommended customer and revenue growth opportunities aligned with the company’s strategy. Overall he spent thirty-four years in the banking industry.

Charles brings to the role a wealth of senior leadership experience, as well as insight into the operations of two critical sectors—agriculture and finance. He serves at the helm of several development focused organizations. These include Chairman of BELFUND and Director of St. Lucia Marketing Board, as well as his previous stint as Director of the National Research and Development Foundation. He is currently serving as a director on the St. Lucia National Economic Fund and the Freezone Management Authority.

A graduate of the University of Reading, he holds multiple qualifications in the field of Agriculture, including an MSc. in Agricultural Extension Systems and Management. He also holds undergraduate qualifications in general agriculture and agricultural extension from the Guyana School of Agriculture and the University of the West Indies. When he is not overseeing corporate initiatives, you can surely find him cultivating plants on his island farm. He has been farming for over thirty years and has been an exporter of fresh produce to other Caribbean for the past decade.