Delegates to the Second Annual "Latin American RIMS Conference'' next week in Buenos Aires will learn more about Bermuda and the services it offers through a keynote address from a top Johnson & Higgins (Bermuda) Ltd. executive.

The firm's vice president and senior risk management consultant, Michael Parrish, joins representatives of a dozen local and exempted companies attending the four-day Latin American Risk & Insurance Management Congress (ALARYS) in Argentina, starting Sunday.

Mr. Parrish will discuss the captive and commercial ends of the Bermuda market, representing the Bermuda Insurance Management Association (BIMA).

He will talk about Bermuda captives and why they are relative to South American clients.

His invitation to speak came after significant interest in Bermuda was identified at the first conference, at which just a handful of Bermuda institutions attended.

Bermuda insurance market attendees include a group from XL Insurance and Centre Re. Mutual Risk Management Ltd. will have a substantial presence, the only local company establishing a booth in the exhibit hall.

Also attending are local attorneys and senior executives of the Island's banks and management services companies.

ALARYS president, Jorge Luzzi, noted that the object of the Congress was to allow an increasingly international Latin American market to exchange experiences and study the relationship between risks generated among Latin American countries and the rest of the world. The Congress also has a central function to promote the growth of the discipline of risk management.

Mr. Luzzi said, "Latin American countries are going through a globalisation process, enormous changes and the repositioning of services on an international level. Within this context, risk management is becoming a more central activity.'' AS&K company manager, Eduardo Fox, commented that Latin America is the largest emerging market in the insurance and reinsurance sectors, offering new business opportunities in international business.

He said, "This conference represents an excellent opportunity to market the professional services and financial products that Bermuda, as a world leader in international business, is able to offer to jurisdictions going through significant expansion and privatisation.''