Economist Basu to Open Business Appreciation Week at May 8 Breakfast

Popular Speaker Combines Statistics With Wit to Deliver an Economic Forecast for the Layperson

PRINCE FREDERICK, Md., -- April 24, 2006 - Calvert County’s first annual Business Appreciation Week kicks off with a noteworthy presentation on Monday, May 8, 8:00 a.m., at the Huntingtown Banquet Hall. Anirban Basu, noted economist and principal with Sage Policy Group, will keynote the free breakfast event, bringing to Calvert County for the first time his unique ability to make sense of statistics, trends and economic forecasts.

Basu is expected to provide an unbiased report on the economic pulse of Calvert County including business growth, employment numbers, trends, economic forecasts and Calvert County’s potential for economic growth and expansion. “I am excited to be a part of the Business Appreciation Week activities in Calvert County,” Basu said. “My presentation – in essence, an economic scorecard – should help to explain the economic outlook for the local community. There is a lot of potential in Southern Maryland, particularly in Calvert County, and I think the business community will be pleased to hear that there is good news in my economic forecast.”

Basu is Chairman & CEO of Sage Policy Group, Inc., an economic and policy consulting firm in Baltimore, Maryland. He is one of the Mid-Atlantic region’s most recognizable economists, in part because of his consulting work on behalf of numerous clients, including prominent developers, bankers, brokerage houses, energy suppliers and law firms. On behalf of government agencies and non-profit organizations, he has written several high-profile economic development strategies, including co-authoring Baltimore’s City’s economic growth strategy.

In recent years, Basu has focused upon health economics, the economics of education and economic development. He currently lectures at Johns Hopkins University in micro-, macro- and international economics.

Basu is involved with numerous organizations in a voluntary capacity, including serving as a Baltimore City Public School System board member. He also serves on the boards of Union Memorial Hospital, the MedStar strategic planning committee, Chesapeake Habitat for Humanity, the Maryland Business Council and he is Chairman of the Baltimore County Economic Advisory Committee.

Basu earned his B.S. in Foreign Service at Georgetown University in 1990. He earned his Master’s in Public Policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, and his Master’s in Economics from the University of Maryland, College Park. His Juris Doctor was earned at the University of Maryland School of Law in 2003.

Following Basu’s presentation, there will be a question and answer session with the Calvert County Board of County Commissioners, moderated by the Calvert County Chamber of Commerce.

The May 8th Kick-Off Breakfast is a free event, open to members of Calvert County’s business and professional community; however, advance registration is required. To register, or for more information on Calvert County’s Business Appreciation Week or the many services the County offers to the business community, contact the Calvert County, Maryland, Department of Economic Development at 410-535-4583, 800.331.9771 or 301.855.1880, or via e-mail at info@ecalvert.com

For more information on the Calvert County, Maryland Department of Economic Development, our visitor sites and attractions and the services available to assist County businesses, call 410.535.4583, 800.331.9771 or 301.855.1880; or send an e-mail to info@ecalvert.com