MANILA, Philippines — Manila has established diplomatic relations with Barbados, the Caribbean island-state that came under media glare this week in connection with the first computerized presidential election in the Philippines.

But where in the world exactly is Barbados?

The Barbados-based Smartmatic, in partnership with Total Information Management, is due to sign on Tuesday a P7.4-billion deal with the Philippine Commission on Elections for the automation of next year’s national and local balloting.

During a Senate hearing on Tuesday, senators were told that the authentication of Smartmatic’s documents was done by the Philippine Embassy in Washington D.C., instead of the Philippine mission in Caracas, Venezuela, which has jurisdiction over Barbados.

It was also learned during the Senate hearing that the company was formed by Venezuelans in the Netherlands but based in Barbados.

This, plus revelations that Smartmatic-Barbados was undercapitalized, raised concerns during the Senate hearing.

In a report to Foreign Secretary Alberto G. Romulo, Ambassador Hilario Davide Jr., permanent representative to the United Nations, said the Philippine Mission signed a joint communique establishing diplomatic relations with Barbados on Monday.

Davide and Ambassador Christopher Fitzherbert Hackett of Barbados signed the document.

Barbados proposed the setting up of ties last year in an initiative coursed through the Philippine Embassy in Caracas, Davide said.

The former British colony which has a total land area of 430 square kilometers and a population of 282,000 has a reputation for being a tax shelter for the moneyed class from the world over.

In the human development index, Barbados is consistently among the top 75 countries in the world. In 2006, it ranked 31st in the world, and third in the Americas, behind Canada and the United States.

Barbados will be under the jurisdiction of the Philippine Ambassador to Caracas Jocelyn Batoon Garcia.