CONTACT Magazine (Vol.18 No.1 – April 2018)

Vol.18 No.1 – April 2018

The Voice of Business in Trinidad & Tobago

Transforming Trinidad & Tobago Settling disputes | Letting go of fossil fuels Digital revolution | The art of rejuvenation

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Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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Vol.18 No.1 – April 2018

Contents

ON THE COVER

Joseph, Robert and John Hadad, joint CEOs of the HADCO Group, which is moving beyond imports and distribution to manufacturing and exports

THE CHAMBER IN ACTION

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The President’s pages

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The Chamber in action

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Lange Trinidad to supply the Caribbean’s battery needs

Chamber President Ronald Hinds on transformation

Digital revolution, business insights and coming events

Innovator profile by Natalie Dookie

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HADCO invests $35m in a new ice cream plant

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Making things new

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Why is it taking so long?

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Do we really like it so?

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Desperate for change

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Can we let go of fossil fuels?

Innovator profile by Natalie Dookie

TRANSFORMING T&T

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It starts right here, with you

Jonathan Charles asks who should lead the urgent transformation ahead

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Pat Ganase on the art of rejuvenation Kevin Baldeosingh wonders how T&T has dodged the transformation challenge for so long

Sunity Maharaj on Dr Terrence Farrell’s 2017 study: are we too fond of things as they are?

Hillary Young wonders whether current plans can bring Tobago the transformation it sorely needs

David Renwick on the transformations needed in the energy sector

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Vol.18 No.1 – April 2018

The Voice of Business in Trinidad & ToBago

Published by

The Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

Transforming Trinidad & Tobago Settling disputes | Letting go of fossil fuels Digital revolution | The art of rejuvenation

Columbus Circle, Westmoorings, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago PO Box 499, Port of Spain • Tel.: (868) 637-6966 • Fax: (868) 622-4475 Email: chamber@chamber.org.tt • Website: www.chamber.org.tt THE STATE OF THE NATION

Tobago Division:

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A return to growth in 2018?

ANSA McAL Building, Milford Road, Scarborough, Tobago Tel.: (868) 639-2669 • Fax: (868) 639-2669 Email: tobagochamber@chamber.org.tt

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Oil, gas and petrochemicals

Economic outlook: with luck, back in the black this year Produced for the Chamber by

MEP Publishers (Media & Editorial Projects Ltd)

Statistical profile: how is the energy sector faring?

THE CHAMBER AND ITS MEMBERS

6 Prospect Avenue, Maraval, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago Tel.: 622-3821 • Fax: 628-0639 Email: info@meppublishers.com • Website: www.meppublishers.com

Chamber liaison Halima Khan Editor Jeremy Taylor Page layout & design Bridget van Dongen Design template Christophe Pierre Advertising Halcyon Salazar Production Jacqueline Smith Editorial assistant Shelly-Ann Inniss

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How to settle a dispute

Niall Lawless on the work being done at the Dispute Resolution Centre

Welcome to new members

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DISCLAIMER Opinions expressed in Contact are those of the authors, and not necessarily of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce or its partners or associates.

CONTACT is published quarterly by the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce (TTCIC). It is available online at www.chamber.org.tt/contact-magazine. © 2018 TTCIC. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the publisher.

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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the chamber in action

The President’s pages

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elcome to the new-look Contact!

As you can see, we have made some substantial changes to the Chamber’s magazine. We have given it a new look and feel, a new design. We have re-thought and re-angled the editorial. The result, we hope, is something more like a general-interest business magazine than a corporate statement.

In fact, we’re thinking of Contact as a forum, a meeting place where members, and business readers generally, can discuss and debate business issues and ideas.

So please treat the arguments and ideas in these pages as the views and opinions of the respective writers, not necessarily of the Chamber itself. Just as a debates commission can host and preside over an election debate without necessarily agreeing with anything the candidates say, so the Chamber can host and preside over a lively business discussion in Contact.

Please make use of the magazine as a forum. We welcome your feedback on this new-look version. We welcome your ideas and suggestions for future coverage.

We welcome your letters, whether about material in Contact or about general business issues (just mark letters “Contact – for publication”).

We also welcome your advertising support, whether for informing members and readers about your goods and services, or as a corporate presence in the Chamber’s own magazine.

he main theme of this issue of Contact is national transformation, appropriately enough, and we make no apology for returning to that vexed question.

As it happens, the Chamber is very much in agreement with the broad argument running through the articles about how to implement change in Trinidad and Tobago.

We all know that our economic situation is dire; virtually every social and economic sector is crying out for change and rejuvenation. But the problems are so complex that many people feel overwhelmed, open to change but not knowing where to start.

We want to intensify the national debate about that: where are we, where do we need to go, what can each of us do about it? Large-scale change requires large-scale buy-in, and that can’t develop until the nation has a clear idea of what it needs to do.

Each one of us, therefore, has a patriotic duty to embody the change we want to see. Every one of us is either a problem or a solution. But if, together, we can develop clear goals, and all pull in the same direction, is there anything that Trinidad and Tobago could not do?

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ontact magazine is just one of the services and connections the Chamber provides for its members and for readers further afield. In these pages, for example, you will find a first-hand story written by a veteran mediator about the experience of mediating an industrial dispute at the Dispute Resolution Centre.

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The DRC is a fully autonomous organisation. Opened in 1996, it was first developed by the Chamber, and we continue to enjoy a very close relationship with it. I hope the story will remind readers of the services offered by the DRC in preventing and settling conflicts and disputes in the workplace.

Among other services is our MVA (Membership Value Added) programme, under which our partners offer attractive discounts on services ranging from insurance and couriers to hotels and restaurants. There’s good value here waiting to be taken up, and I urge all our members to get with the programme!

I would also like to remind members of our Business Insight facility, which offers “training for business by business�. It provides remote access to live events and to video recordings on business issues, as well as hooking up entrepreneurs with consultants and mentors.

There are video sessions, for example, on economic transformation, surviving the recession, and financing innovation, not to mention an export toolkit, all subjects very relevant to our current theme. Make the most of them.

Ronald Hinds

President, Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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the chamber in action

Be a part of the digital transformation WORDS By: Derrick Villeneuve

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e stand at a fork in the road, and the direction we take will determine Trinidad and Tobago’s future. We can be idle spectators and watch the downward spiral, feeling helpless about crime, jobs and the government; or we can choose to make a difference.

The road to a better future must include a plan to diversify the economy and make us competitive on the world stage. The Economic Development Advisory Board (edab.org.tt) has identified seven industries that will lead us from our current state – where non-energy exports are a mere 15 per cent of the total – to 40% by 2030. A key enabler in exporting these goods and services is information and communication technology (ICT). This demands a digital transformation in our businesses and government.

customers and trading partners more easily. It allows us to get things done without having to spent three hours in traffic or waiting in a line at the bank. It helps prevent crime and catch criminals. We have been exceptionally successful at digitally transforming our personal lives with the use of Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms. Now we need to bring that level of digital expertise to business and government. In our focal areas we need to be the best!

This transformation begins with

The committee is a group of volunteers from leading local companies who are passionate about ICT and are working towards a vision of Trinidad and Tobago as a digital society. Committee members have already organised seminars, network events and webinars; now this signature event can bring together the ICT community and business leaders to advance our digital transformation.

The Canadian government has assisted us with a keynote speaker, Peter van der Gracht, a serial entrepreneur with global experience who has participated

We will offer a choice of 50 different breakout sessions

Keeping up The world is moving ahead of us, while we remain constrained by institutions and habits that undermine this future.

Our government agencies are still fundamentally manual and burdened with bureaucracy. We lag behind our Caribbean peers in passing legislation to enable digital business. We are still mostly a cheque-based society, and our vendors are still expected to collect their cheques in person. Many of our institutions straggle significantly behind the firms we will be competing with in North America, Europe, China, India and, significantly, even in the Caribbean.

Digital transformation is about enabling a better and more efficient way of doing things. It allows us to share information with our associates,

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education and information exchange.

Your managers and ICT departments need exposure to what is available for them to move your business from where it is today to where it needs to be in the digital age. This is a journey we will all have to undertake on a continuous basis as the world and its business evolves in disruptive ways all around us.

The ICT conference We all know it is tough right now, and it will probably get harder before it gets better.

This is why ICT Pro TT, a committee of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce, will host the conference, “Ignite Your Digital Transformation”, at the Hyatt Regency on May 15-16, 2018.

in diversification strategies in other countries. Other presenters will include Dr Wayne A.I. Frederick, President of Howard University; Marla Dukharan, Caribbean economist with the financial technology company Bitt; and other notable business leaders.

To top it off, we will offer participants a choice of 50 different breakout sessions to expand your digital knowledge, in topics including analytics, business applications, IT-enabled services and social media.

So please join us, and join Trinidad and Tobago’s digital transformation!

The author is chairman of ICT Pro TT, a committee of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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the chamber in action

Business Insights sessions at the Chamber January 16

Restructuring Options in the Current Economic Climate Given today’s tough economic environment, the T&T Chamber hosted a Business Insights session to address issues of corporate restructuring. As CEO Gabriel Faria noted: “It is important to understand and identify the early warning signs of financial troubles ... Should businesses fall into difficulty, it is important that you have an efficient debt-restructuring plan.”

Feature speaker Maria Daniel pointed to the danger of ignoring the signals of difficulty ahead – worsening cash flow, rising costs and declining revenue – and failing to change current practices. She proposed solutions for business owners who may run into difficulty.

A group panel discussion followed, featuring Jeremy Bridglalsingh (Chief Financial Officer/Executive Director, Trinity Exploration and Production), Karen Yip Chuck (General Manager, Corporate and Investment Banking, Republic Bank), Richard Beckles (Principal Consultant, The Legal Consultancy), and Maria Daniel (Partner, Transaction Advisory Services, Ernst & Young).

This session is available from our Business Insights ondemand library at https://chamber.org.tt/paid/restructuringoptions-current-economic-environment/.

Left to right: feature speaker Maria Daniel, panellists Richard Beckles, Karen Yip Chuck and Jeremy Bridglalsingh

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Left to right: Dr Ronald Ramkissoon, Allana Steuart, Joe Pires, Sheivan Ramnath, Arun Seenath January 29

Insights into the Agricultural and Agro-Processing Industry Agriculture is a sector with enormous potential for diversification. This Business Insights session aimed to increase awareness about the incentives, opportunities and impediments for anyone operating in the agricultural sector.

The feature presentation was by Senator Avinash Singh, Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries. He focused in detail on government incentives and programmes.

An interactive panel discussion followed, which allowed the audience to pose questions and make comments to the panellists: Senator Singh, Sheivan Ramnath (CEO, Agricultural Development Bank), Joe Pires (Managing Director, Caribbean Chemicals), Allana Steuart (Managing Director, Bertie’s Pepper Sauce), Arun Seenath (Tax Partner, Deloitte), and Ronald Ramkissoon (Economic Development Advisory Board).

This session is available on demand from our BI library at https://chamber.org.tt/paid/insights-agricultural-agroprocessing-industry/.

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Firing Up the Food Industry The food industry attracts plenty of attention in Trinidad and Tobago, and attracts tourists as well as locals. This session aimed to assist existing operators and anyone interested in starting up a business in this sector.

The feature speaker, consultant Kami Jerome, shared her international and local experience in the industry, and explored areas that must be considered in order to create and sustain a successful business in the food and hospitality sector.

In the subsequent discussion, panellists Richard Ramjohn (Big Rolph Food Truck), Aka Ali Kerr (Hyatt Regency Trinidad), Suzanne Daniel (Beautiful Buffets), and Christian Stone (More Vino) shared their industry experience.

Left to right: Richard Ramjohn, Kami Jerome, Suzanne Daniel, Christian Stone, Aka Ali-Kerr

This session is available on demand from our BI library at https://chamber.org.tt/webinars/foodin/

For partnering with us on the BI series we thank our platinum sponsors The JMMB Group and The Guardian Group; diamond sponsor C&W Business; and key sponsors One Caribbean Media and Lonsdale Saatchi & Saatchi.

Coming events ICT Pro TT Conference • When: • Where: • Who for: • Rationale:

May 15-16, 2018 Hyatt Regency, Port of Spain Regional ICT and business professionals Deepening ICT knowledge; understanding ICT technologies, trends and services in business and government; networking with ICT professionals and business partners • Register: http://ictprott.com

Taste of the Caribbean

• When: June 22-26, 2018 • Where: Hyatt Regency, Miami • Who for: Food and beverage professionals, aspiring and established chefs; lovers of Caribbean cuisine • Rationale: Celebrating and showcasing Caribbean culinary arts; developing professional skills; gathering practical information; sampling, purchasing, strengthening established supplier relationships, meeting new vendors; innovative and exciting educational sessions • Tel.: 786-476-8623 • Email: events@caribbeanhotelandtourism.com • URL: www.chtataste.com

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Global Business Travel Association Convention

• When: August 11-15, 2018 • Where: San Diego Convention Center, California • Exhibition: 400+ companies • Conference: 100+ education & professional development sessions • Attendees: 7,000+, representing over 50 countries. Nearly 1,300 business travel buyers making purchasing decisions • Email: conventionreg@gbta.org • Phone: 888-574-6447 • URL: convention.gbta.org/new

China’s International Import Exposition

• When: November 5-10, 2018 • Where: National Exhibition and Convention Centre, Shanghai • Who for: Government officials, business communities, exhibitors and professional purchasers • Exhibits: GOODS: high-end intelligent equipment; consumer electronics & appliances; automobiles; apparel, & consumer goods; food & agricultural products; medical equipment & medical care products SERVICES: tourism; emerging technologies; culture & education; creative design; service outsourcing • Info: China International Import Expo Bureau, National Exhibition and Convention Center, 333 Songze Avenue, Shanghai, China • Tel.: +86-21-67008870/67008988 • Email: info@sinoexpo.cc • URL: www.shanghaiexpo.org.cn/zbh/en/

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INNOVATORS

Lange Trinidad to supply the Caribbean’s battery needs WORDS By: natalie dookie PHOTOGRAPHY courtesy: LANGE TRINIDAD

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stalwart in the automotive industry since 1957, Lange is one of the leading battery distributors in Trinidad and Tobago. With 80 employees and four departments – automotive, batteries, industrial and insurance – the firm was one of the first companies in Trinidad and Tobago to earn an official “SME 2000 certification for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Quality and Environmental Management System”.

Today, Lange is building on that track record of success by establishing its first manufacturing venture, through its subsidiary LTL Manufacturing Limited.

Lange carries a wide range of battery products, including Premium, E-Series, Heavy Duty, 6-Volt, Traction and Gel Batteries for light and heavy duty automotive application. It also supplies the construction and marine sectors’ needs.

Steven Blanc, Chief Operating Officer, Lange Trinidad Limited, notes that the locally produced TRACK battery brand, established in 1987, is a household name with consumers. “In 2014, we began looking at new export markets and decided to source an international supply that would be able to compete on quality globally.

“Eventually, we found a manufacturer in Turkey, which met our needs of being strong on quality, and research and development. We began importing from them with the goal of setting up a plant in Trinidad and Tobago.”

From importer to manufacturer Blanc believed that, as Trinidad and Tobago was heavily reliant on revenues from the oil and gas industry, there was a shortage of export-oriented manufacturing businesses generating foreign exchange. “We saw this opportunity as a member of the private sector, to help improve the economy, through diversifying our business into manufacturing. As a distribution firm, we had been experiencing foreign exchange challenges, and wanted to reduce our import bill. Now, as an export driven manufacturer, we will become a net positive US dollar earner.”

The Ministry of Trade and Industry came in for high praise from Blanc, who credits their team with providing excellent support to first-time manufacturers, especially one like Lange, whose product is sophisticated and requires significant engineering and research and development services. The Ministry also assisted with obtaining the necessary certifications, and with the preparations for export. The Environmental Management Authority (EMA), the Customs and Excise Division and exporTT were also helpful in getting Lange to this point.

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Stephen Blanc, COO, Lange Trinidad: “As an export driven manufacturer, we will become a net positive US dollar earner�

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INNOVATORS

batteries with Calcium Shield Technology, which basically means that you never have to worry about maintaining your battery as the structure and composition of the materials and chemicals minimise water loss, extending the overall life of your battery.”

Technology modernises battery production The new TRACK plant is located at e TecK’s Industrial Park, Arima, on 44,000 square feet of land, and will have the capacity to supply the Caricom market.

The new factory has cutting-edge technology with a modular design, allowing for ease of expansion in the

local and regional export markets.

The plant will provide employment for 20 to 50 people at its maximum capacity by year-end, creating highly technical jobs for a different class of manufacturing.

The TRACK brand has three differentiating points of value, according to Ibrahim Abdool, Marketing Manager, Lange Trinidad.

The new factory has cuttingedge technology with a modular design, allowing for ease of expansion in the future future. The equipment is state-of-theart, and the manufacturing process will be fully automated, with quality control stations at every stage.

The first phase of configuration will allow for the production of automotive and heavy-duty batteries, which will supply Lange’s current

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“VR Guard Technology protects your battery against the rigours of driving in harsh conditions. Secondly, Power Plus Technology ensures that the battery is able to start all modern vehicles which carry more components and features than in the past.

“We are also developing the

Targeting one million units Blanc is keenly looking to the future.

“Once the plant is up and running, we will be ready to export. We have already commenced negotiations with partners in the Greater and Lesser Antilles, as well as South and Central America. From our early interactions, they are very impressed with where we are going, and with the product and operations of the company. Our goal is to manufacture one million units within the next five years. We want TRACK to be seen as an international brand with the ability to compete on quality in the international market.”

In the medium to long term, Lange plans to add renewable energy, and industrial traction batteries for fully electric equipment, to its product line.

Blanc explains: “As vehicles become more automated, with increasingly complex electronic systems and equipment, we will monitor changes in the market, and we have set up the plant so it will be easily adaptable to manufacture batteries of any specification.

“Our mission has always been to provide high quality products at competitive prices, so this move into manufacturing will allow us to focus on quality control and competitiveness, while adapting as the industry evolves.”

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INNOVATORS

Hadco invests $35 million in new ice cream plant WORDS By: natalie dookie PHOTOGRAPHY courtesy: hadco ltd

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he HADCO Group is the largest importer and distributor of ice cream products in Trinidad and Tobago, representing premium brands such as Häagen-Dazs, Breyers, Nestlé, and Ben and Jerry’s. So it comes as no surprise that the Group is adding ice cream manufacturing to its list of achievements, with the development of a $35 million ice cream production plant.

Started in 1992 by three brothers, Robert, Joseph and John Hadad, the Group Co-Chief Executive Officers, the HADCO Group now consists of five divisions and 12 subsidiaries, representing 154 different brands. Employing more than 800 people, the Group has a wide reach, exporting across 12 Caribbean markets from its base in Trinidad.

No stranger to manufacturing and innovation, HADCO recently bought and expanded a local recycling plant which converts used cooking oil into a feeder for biofuel; and its subsidiary, Imanex Limited, is already the largest manufacturer of ice cream cones in the Caribbean. Having successfully produced the Happy Time wafer cone for the past 20 years, HADCO is adding new machines to produce sugar and waffle cones. It hopes to secure 50 per cent of the regional ice cream cone market with the introduction of these new products.

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Above HADCO Group co-CEOs: Joseph Hadad, Robert Hadad, John Hadad Right Creamery Novelties partner, Paul Gabriel

Foreign exchange needed for survival “About five years ago we did a gap analysis,” John Hadad explains, “as we had built our business around distribution, and it was heavily reliant on foreign exchange. As a result of this, we decided to get involved in manufacturing, because we needed foreign exchange earnings within the Group for the survival of the structure of the business. We needed to generate our own foreign exchange as well as take the foreign exchange we have and create a valueadded multiplier effect.”

So the Group began looking for manufacturing opportunities in any part of the business where it was strong, “around our core competencies and what we already know, which is distribution.”

Hadad also notes that getting involved in the manufacturing of ice cream was a huge benefit to the Group, as it already sells 80 per cent of all imported ice

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Employing more than 800 people, the HADCO Group exports across 12 Caribbean markets from its base in Trinidad Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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INNOVATORS

cream in Trinidad and Tobago. “Having an understanding of the distribution side means that we can go to market with ice cream products a lot faster, because we have the infrastructure of cold storage, trucks, and a knowledge base of frozen products.”

Creamery Novelties is established A few years ago, businessman Paul Gabriel approached the HADCO Group about distributing a local ice cream he wanted to produce. He had already completed a lot of research and development on the manufacturing process for a new brand. After much discussion, a 50 per cent partnership was born, Creamery Novelties.

Located on the e TecK Diamond Vale Industrial Estate, the new plant consists of two buildings, of 10,000 square feet each. One will house the ice cream, and the other the ice cream cones. Production starts in May, creating 25 new jobs at startup.

The plant machinery was sourced from China, while the manufacturing process is uniquely designed to have very few touch points, from mixing

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to freezing, in keeping with a wellcontrolled sanitary environment. “A lot of work has gone into researching the equipment, and we have started creating recipes for the various flavours,” Hadad says.

Taste testing and research and development were done locally, working with the Caribbean Industrial Research Institute, CARIRI. Product development, including packaging and design, was also sourced locally.

“In addition, we will be collaborating with Caribbean CGA with respect to ingredient sourcing,” Hadad explains.

The ice cream is initially in the basic flavours of chocolate, vanilla and coconut, with more endemic local flavours to be added as the product is rolled out. The firm will focus on bringing novelty products to the market such as an ice cream lolly called Creamee, as well as an old favourite, Choc Ice. Another innovative item will be a “Dairy Dainty”, which is five cubes of chocolate-coated ice cream in a box.

This distinctive product was originally manufactured in Trinidad and Tobago

by Paul Gabriel’s family more than 30 years ago.

The future of HADCO In the short term, HADCO is keen to see how the product performs in the Trinidad and Tobago market, and to understand consumer behaviour.

“We want to start exporting as soon as possible, and will engage our distributor network across our 12 export markets,” John Hadad says.

“We feel positive that the product will sell very well throughout Caricom, and also in a few Central American markets.

“Creamery Novelties targets the general consumer and affordability – we want to produce a good quality product at the right price. With our focus around novelties and flavours, the Group can become a dominant ice cream manufacturing force in the region within five years.

“HADCO is owned by a Trinbagonian family, with Trinbagonian employees, and we want to continue to exist here, to grow our employee base and to grow our business. And we believe that the only way to do this would be to further diversify into manufacturing, in order to become self-sufficient with respect to foreign exchange earnings.”

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transforming t&T

It starts right here, with you Enough talk, enough evasion. It’s time to get serious about change WORDS By: jonathan charles PHOTOGRAPHY courtesy: trinidad express newspaper

“C

hange is something we always say, / but every time we change things remain the same way,” sang the 2018 Calypso Monarch to the Savannah crowds back in February. “It won’t change despite all we do / if change doesn’t start with you.”

It wasn’t a new message that Helon Francis was delivering. But the idea that each listener must become an agent of change was something of a novelty. Usually it’s the government which is supposed to change, or the opposition, or the business community. Someone else, anyway.

But no matter who is urged to change, things have so far stayed the same.

On the website of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) there is a scholarly paper which makes this point. Entitled “Diversification in T&T: Waiting for Godot?”

(Khadan & Ruprah 2016). It refers mischievously to the 1953 Samuel Beckett play Waiting for Godot, in which two loquacious Irish vagrants wait for a mysterious saviour called Godot who never arrives. “Let’s go,” says one. “We can’t,” says the other. “Why not?” “We’re waiting for Godot.”

So maybe Godot will come. Maybe the price of oil will get back to US$100.

Perhaps the deepwater blocks will be teeming with recoverable resources. Perhaps Venezuelan gas will help us out. Perhaps everyone will start living within their means. But Godot never seems to turn up.

In the world of economics, this seems to be quite a common view of Trinidad and Tobago’s progress in diversifying its economy. Another post on the same IDB site (Khadan 2016) says bluntly that “diversification away from the energy sector has largely failed”. It puts much of the blame, controversially, on “Dutch disease”: “the Trinidad and Tobago dollar has been consistently and substantially overvalued”. It might as well have blamed national complacency.

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Helon Francis, 2018 Calypso Monarch: “It won’t change despite all we do / if change doesn’t start with you”

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transforming t&T

The idea that each listener must become an agent of change was something of a novelty

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Once the severity of the situation became really clear, it was too late to avoid this crisis. Even if the recent cautious optimism about energy price gains and improved oil and gas output turns out to be justified, the risks of dependence have been demonstrated 168 175 for all to see.

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The problem

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We don’t really need to be told that the Trinidad 160 and Tobago economy is over-dependent on the energy sector.

Diversification is one of the buzzwords that have been in the air for decades. Plans and visions, speeches and policy briefs, have come and gone over the years. But somehow the latest energy pricing crisis, combined with falling oil and gas production, still managed to catch us by surprise and unprepared, still dependent on the wells and the rigs to pump out the national patrimony and monetise it, so as to keep us in the style to which we have become accustomed.

The horror story that has unfolded in the last couple of years does not need detailing again here: the disastrous fall in energy revenue, the decline in output, the foreign exchange shortage, the gas shortfall, the budget deficits, the slashing of government spending, the erosion of savings, the piling up of debt.

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151 We’ve had the final warning. To continue with business as usual is too great a gamble. The nation has to adapt itself to sadly straitened circumstances, and quickly. It has to learn again to live within its reduced means. In the process, it will finally have to face up to the challenge of diversification; and to the larger issue of transforming itself – its economy, its society, its culture – into something more efficient, more rational, more productive and more sustainable, than it is now.

Obstacles One hurdle is that these heavy abstract nouns have been around so long and have become so familiar that they no longer mean very much. They fly in one ear and out the other. They fall

to the ground like hunks of dead wood.

Diversification. Thud. Innovation. Thud.

Transformation. Clunk. Lip service is paid, brows are duly furrowed, and then we return to business as usual.

Another hurdle is that there is no clear definition of what these key words mean in our national context. Diversify what into what? Transform ourselves into who? What would a diversified economy and a transformed Trinidad and Tobago actually look like? There is as yet no common understanding, no shared vision, about what these words and ideas would involve if they

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131 were taken seriously: and no sense of what anyone should start doing about them.

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Plans and visions It is not that explanations are lacking.

The planosphere is swimming in plans, policies, briefs, visions and speeches. There is Vision 2030 above all, aka the Draft National Development Strategy 20162030, which is available online, though few people seem to know what is in it.

There is an array of documents ranging from a National Innovation Strategy and

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1999

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81

72 72

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

What is economically sane and sensible is sure to be politically toxic

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

2017

125

2016

4

2015

122

2011

123

In the face of these challenges, the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce has an unavoidable role to 143 play in providing inspirational leadership.

Which is to

2014

0

Private sector leadership

say, it has to entice the business community to go the whole length of the road. It cannot leave leadership to the government alone.

The private sector will have to divest itself of business models and processes which no longer work to the national good. It will have to prioritise products and services which save or earn foreign exchange. It must innovate and diversify. It must develop a greater sense of global markets, and the external demand which Trinidad and Tobago can supply.

Even so, without partnership and mutual support from the government and labour, the road leads straight into the desert. Somehow, the visions of the three partners in transformation must find a way to mesh. To have them pulling in different directions in pursuit of separate goals is a recipe for national deadlock and stagnation.

All this is going to hurt. People are going to bawl. At every level of society, people will have to climb out of their comfort zones. We’ll need mutual support and encouragement to keep cheerful and optimistic. But we don’t really have a choice. There is too much work to do. We have been hanging around too long waiting for Godot to appear. We’ll be better off remembering the Calypso Monarch’s warning about what will happen “if change doesn’t start with you.”

2013

134

things actually work in Trinidad and Tobago. Real change would threaten and trample on a vast web of entrenched interactions, systems, and processes.

So much is invested in the status quo, both political and commercial, that it is hard to believe there is any scope for genuine change.

Still, it must be done. The world is changing around us and is not waiting for Trinidad and Tobago to get its house in order. Even with a return to growth in 2018, even with a pickup in the energy sector, the end is in sight for fossil fuels; their terminal decline may well be only a couple of decades away.

Dodging the issue now simply means kicking the can down the road for a new generation to pick up.

2012

Policy to a National Environment Policy.

There is even a Green Government Policy.

The Economic Development Advisory Board (EDAB) that was set up after the 2015 election has produced a lot of material on these very issues. If the electorate is less than familiar with the intricacies of national transformation, it is not for lack of reading material.

But that painful fact points to another difficult hurdle. It is very hard to imagine a Trinidad and Tobago transformed in the way the official literature urges, with its people enthusiastically adopting a new mindset and a new culture. What is economically sane and sensible is sure to be politically toxic. One commentator (wisely claiming anonymity) told Contact: “What we all want is high living with low productivity.”

So there is the vision of transformation on 145 one hand, while on the other is the way

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Making things new What can individuals and communities do to help transform Trinidad and Tobago? Perhaps we should all find out about rejuvenation WORDS By: pat ganase

F

or everything under the sun, there are seasons of decline and seasons of renewal. Every Jouvay, every Panorama, every Carnival, every year, masqueraders and musicians play and renew themselves and their art. Every successful business knows cycles of downturn and rejuvenation. Now the pace of change in the world is quickening: can Trinidad and Tobago rejuvenate itself out of its present decline?

As the downturn in our economy threatens our wealth and stability, it is wise to count blessings and achievements. Against the odds, we have had a national airline for over 75 years. We have a regional university and a national university. We have products known the world over: La Brea pitch, Trinitario cocoa, the sound of steel.

Trinbagonians become stars wherever they find themselves. We are seen as a place with which to be strategically linked. We have festivals for every tribe that calls these islands home; and the foods and spices to match.

Such things should give us courage. But we need to look again at other industries and enterprises that we have come to consider foundational, but which may now have to be replaced or rejuvenated; or which we may have thought to be beneath our status as an oil-rich nation. We need to consider the global forces shaping our economy, and whether we should not strengthen our sense of ourselves as full global citizens, who must share the responsibility for what is happening to our world.

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olepeshkina/shutterstock.com

Fresh produce is successfully being sold by Green Market Santa Cruz directly to the community

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transforming t&T Left Cocobel Chocolates’ owner Isabel Brash is a chocolate-making pioneer, transforming locally grown cocoa into exceptional confectionery. Below left Adrian Foster is an award-winning designer, whose fashionable Caribbean lines have been exhibited at New York Fashion Week and on Project Runway

Climate change

courtesy cocobel

More severe storms, prolonged wet or dry seasons, the flooding of low-lying areas, and sea-level rise: these are some of the challenges that we should expect to face as the world gets warmer.

As a species, we must join with the other eight billion other people on our planet to keep the temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius. As individuals, we can start community action. As an oil and gas nation, with one of the highest per capita carbon footprints in the world, we can reduce our carbon production, mitigate it, rejuvenate plants and processes, conserve.

Is carbon dioxide from our major industrial plants (LNG, methanol, gas processors) reusable? Some of the practices we need to adopt – reduction of waste, recycling, conservation – may seem futile to the ordinary citizen. But it is up to corporations to lead in the wise disposal of waste, including the byproducts of industrialisation.

Plastics More efficient use of resources is generally seen as one of the keys to profitability and sustainability. At the rate at which we consume goods and services on our two islands, the recovery and re-use of waste should be a viable enterprise. How might we be innovative in producing a continuous cycle? Products from recycled plastics now range from cottage-industry reusable bags and woven rugs to new fabrics for shoes and blankets, industrial faux lumber, construction and road paving materials. Are we up to that challenge? michele jorsling courtesy adrian foster

New energy As the world turns to renewable sources such as wind, wave and solar energy, might it be a natural step for the national electricity company to expand its business into the installation of solar panels, tapping a new, clean and infinitely renewable source of electricity?

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Sustainability We have heard the basic dictates of the UN Sustainable Development Goals charter: zero poverty; zero hunger; health, wellbeing, education and gender equality; clean water and affordable energy. Can we really say we are earning high marks for responsible, sustainable progress?

Communities

At the rate at which we consume goods and services, the recovery and re-use of waste should be a viable enterprise

We need to tap the natural initiative of our small communities: for example, by negotiating partnerships instead of patronage to serve the corporate responsibility needs of large companies and multinationals. Community-based small business and nongovernmental organisations can contribute to the innovation and flexibility of big business. There are examples in many corners of our nation: we need to nurture and emulate them.

Rejuvenative enterprise

Rejuvenative enterprise depends on creativity and innovation that advances and updates sustainable industry and development.

Energy from the sun The cost of installing solar panels, for example, is falling as technology advances. Tobago might be the place where TTEC could introduce and promote alternative energy generation and supply, creating a model for a sustainable business of the future.

The distribution system that has been installed over most of the country will facilitate the next step towards the use of renewable energy.

abigail hadeed courtesy plastikeep

Adam Mohammed courtesy CreativeTT/MusicTT

Below left Making a name for herself: Candice Caton, gospel singer/songwriter and granddaughter of Nelson Caton, one of the nation’s pioneer calypso composers. Below right Founder of the Plastikeep initiative, Rosanna Farmer is determined to build networks and educate communities on the importance of preserving the environment, recycling plastics, and making a lifestyle change towards sustainable living

It will adapt systems and technology, but in the long run will reshape our very lifestyle and self-image, who we are and our place on the earth. Our future will depend on our willingness to relinquish what no longer serves us; and to embrace what serves not only humankind but the earth as a single ecosystem.

Here are some areas of enterprise that are needed or trending today.

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transforming t&T Janet Bloom Fabres created the monthly UpMarket as an outlet for cooks, artisans and vendors unable to rent store space

courtesy janet fabres

Trinidad and Tobago cocoa estates.

But chocolate production does not depend on owning an estate, as many local brands demonstrate: Cocobel, Ortinola, Mariposa, Gina’s, Brasso Seco. This initiative is being led by the Cocoa Research Centre, the rejuvenated descendant of the Imperial College of Agriculture at St Augustine which grew into the University of the West Indies.

Most TTEC meters are bi-directional, so it should be simple to develop a net metering system. There is nothing to stand in the way of TTEC organising, promoting and utilising an alternate supply, like solar. Consider too that electric cars, to be recharged on household energy, are within ten years of mass production. Are we thinking ahead?

Wealth from waste Three policy documents support a new enterprise: The Beverage Container Bill (1999); the National Environmental Policy (2006); and the Integrated Solid Waste/Resource Management Policy (2012). Is the iCare initiative going to industrialise waste recovery and help clean up the waterways?

As an example, Sustainable Barbados is a private-public sector partnership recovering materials for re-use in Barbados. Similar waste recovery centres could be set up at Studley Park in Tobago and landfill sites in Trinidad. Materials recovered could be the basis of new inventions.

From plant to plate It’s probably the most stable industry – agriculture, agro-processing, agribusiness – with the greatest scope for growth at every step from field to fine dining. In addition to pepper sauces, condiments, beverages, baked goods and catering services, here are just a few examples of innovation that are working: • The Green Market Santa Cruz is an experiment in direct marketing of agri-products to specific communities. The example has been picked up by the NAMDEVCO weekend markets which now move produce into communities.

The relationship between producers and consumers helps with appreciation of, and access to, healthy food. It teaches us about the use and value of specific crops, such as the role of local honey, honeybees, and honey farmers in agriculture.

Innovations in food production and marketing, especially in areas with limited land space, can grow into one of the most productive areas of rejuvenative enterprise.

• Our Moving Table – a pop-up feast made from local produce – is successfully demonstrating new ways with food, and finding dining rooms around the country in garden settings like Ajoupa Gardens and San Antonio Nurseries.

Growers are experimenting with hydroponic and vertical systems as well as looking into the composition and health of soil, scientifically increasing yield and managing multiple crop cycles.

• Cocoa. The demand and world price has stirred revitalisation of some of the old

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Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

“Edutainment” tourism Visitors to Tobago and Trinidad in the “active tourism” sector learn something every time they visit, whether they are returning residents or first-timers, whether they are here for festivals or business.

Ask the guides at the Asa Wright Centre who are constantly teaching about the birds, animals and plant life – and learning too. Ask the turtle protectors at Grande Riviere, the Main Ridge Rainforest guides, or Ali Baba’s Sea Breeze and Tours in Castara. Tobago’s more active visitors want to learn to dive and explore the ocean, to bicycle round the island, and to meet Tobagonians where they live.

There is much scope for a visitor market that is curious about TT lifestyle, festivals, food and the natural environment.

The Environmental Research Institute of Charlotteville (ERIC) is tapping in to locals and visitors who are eager to understand and conserve the marine reserves around northeast Tobago.

Buccoo Reef has long been a site of active tourism, a source of revenue for fisherfolk and tour operators, in spite of the failure to update management practices.

The Nariva and Caroni wetlands, turtle nesting beaches, El Tucuche and Aripo, can all bring revenue to small and diverse communities. All that’s needed might be the infrastructure and safeguards that the government provides; and a continued flow of arrivals by air and sea.

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We need to tap the natural initiative of our small communities Conservation business

For further reading

Sustainable Innovation: the Rejuvenative Enterprise by Joss Tantram, available from Amazon.

Below left Shari Cumberbatch is a fashion designer and owner of the Caribbean brand SHOP SHARI. Her business started online and now has a retail outlet. Below right In 2003 Alana Steuart and her husband created the world famous Bertie’s Pepper Sauce

courtesy shopshari.com

Russel Dos Ramos courtesy Bertie’s Pepper Sauce

Enterprises can be built on conservation and the wise use of resources. Erle RahamanNoronha has developed his farm in central Trinidad on permaculture principles. Wa Samaki now houses the El Socorro Wildlife Centre for rescued wildlife. And the Wa Samaki crew has been commissioned to rehabilitate the Walker’s Reserve quarry in Barbados.

Our extractive industries – oil and gas, quarrying and mining – have to begin turning to sustainable practices. By partnering with proactive conservation enterprises, or including a conservation division in their operations, they can prepare for the “end of life” of the resource being exploited in order to evolve a rejuvenative enterprise. The quarries in the Arima valley, Matura forest and Aripo ought to be sites for re-foresting or conversion to parks.

Neglected or actively used as a dump, the ocean itself holds the greatest potential for future food, recreation, education, and research and development. It is a resource waiting to be explored – not exploited – for what it might teach us about life on earth.

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transforming t&T

Why is it taking so long?

So far, the sweet scent of petrodollars has been much more attractive than real economic diversification WORDS By: kevin baldeosingh

I

n his book The Armchair Economist, University of Rochester economist Steven E. Landsburg writes: “Most of economics can be summarised in four words: ‘People respond to incentives.’ The rest is commentary.”

This is the basic reason why Trinidad and Tobago has failed to diversify its economy for the past 40 years: because politicians and business people responded to the powerful incentive of oil and gas money.

As for the commentary, Dr Ronald Ramkissoon, a former senior economist at Republic Bank and present member of the Economic Development Advisory Board, noted in an interview with Contact that “while there was identification of the need for diversification, there was never any sustainable effort towards investment in research, innovation and the promotion of new high-value goods and services for export.”

In the last budget debate, prime minister Dr Keith Rowley listed the sectors that the government has identified as the foundations of diversification (see next page). They have all been on the table of different administrations for the past 15 years, but state funding has seen no returns, particularly in the creative industries. As Table 1 shows, the state has never made any consistent attempt to facilitate economic diversification, since this must necessarily start with government getting out of commercial activity.

Economists’ view

UWI economist Dr Roger Hosein, in an email response to Contact, argued: “The fundamental reason why the Trinidad and Tobago economy failed to appropriately diversify in the period 1999-2016 was simply because the state did not show enough initiative, and the incentives or the lack of incentives provided to the Trinidad and Tobago economy were of such a nature that it was biased against the non-oil export-oriented sector.”

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Dr Ramkissoon had a somewhat different view. “Diversification will only take root with the private sector, domestic and foreign, in the lead,” he said. “The Dutch Disease has the all-embracing pull effect of all resources, human and capital, towards the booming energy sector and the non-tradable services sector. The focus of politician and people is similarly drawn away from diversification.”

Economic trouble? Seize the moment The apparent paradox, therefore, is that diversification is more likely to happen when an economy is in trouble rather than when it is booming. The economic slump in the mid-1980s resulted in a Divestment Secretariat being set up in the 1990s, with several state enterprise companies being closed or privatised. But this process was quickly reversed once the new energy boom started in 2003.

TABLE 1: State involvement in commercial companies Type

1970

1983

2008

Wholly owned

5

34

44

Majority owned

4

14

7

Partly owned

2

18

29

Total

11

66

80

The French economist Jean Tirole, winner of the 2014 Nobel Prize, in his book Economics for the Common Good, notes that broad reforms of the state have happened in countries like Great Britain, Finland, Germany, Sweden, Canada and Chile. He adds that while “it is often objected that ... a struggling economy makes it hard to compensate the losers of reforms ... the great majority of the reforms mentioned here were made precisely under difficult conditions.”

Difficult conditions are exactly what T&T is now in, so the real question is whether the political incentives have changed sufficiently to trigger genuine economic reforms.

Sources: Williams, E. 1970; Mottley, W., 2008; Farrell, T., 2012

Diversification in the 2017 budget speech Tourism “The Government is taking some bold steps to rectify the sector’s shortcomings by first addressing the governance arrangements in the sector. We have dissolved the Tourism Development Company Limited (TDC) which has been replaced by two new companies, one with oversight for Trinidad and the other with oversight for Tobago, bearing in mind that the two destinations have unique characteristics.”

Creative industries “In the Music Sector, we will implement an Artiste Portfolio Development Programme which will support artistes who are on the verge of becoming export ready by leveraging their creative talents on the worldwide market. We will also launch a Production Assistance and Script Development Programme which will provide funding to film makers to produce high quality films.”

Yachting “We are rolling out a new yachting policy which will establish a foundation to improve the competitiveness of the industry, with a view to establishing Trinidad and Tobago as the premier destination for yacht repair services.”

Business process outsourcing “In this area we are pursuing a two-pronged approach: taking the necessary steps to make Trinidad and Tobago a preferred location for ‘Business Process Outsourcing’ (BPO); and making Trinidad and Tobago an International Financial Centre, offering a broader range of services and serving as a financial gateway to Latin America and the Caribbean.”

Agriculture “We shall establish an agricultural financial support programme, with grants for new and existing farmers of up to $100,000.

Appropriate training or certification in farming will be a prerequisite for applicants for this financial assistance since the objective is to encourage rational, efficient and methodical participation in agriculture.”

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transforming t&T

Do we really like it so?

Our resistance to change is rooted deep in the national culture Sunity Maharaj discusses We Like It So?: The Cultural Roots of Economic Underachievement in Trinidad and Tobago by Terrence W. Farrell

A

lifetime’s worth of experience as an economist at the highest levels of the public and private sectors of Trinidad and Tobago has left Dr Terrence Farrell with the question posed in the title of his 2017 book, We Like It So? This follow-up from the author of The Underachieving Society: Development Strategy and Policy in Trinidad and Tobago, 1958-2008 is both a quest to understand the source of West Indian economic underachievement and a clarion call for change.

For a while, Farrell is detained by such theorists as the Dutch cultural researcher Geert Hofstede and the American psychologist David McClelland, whose work in culture, attitudes and behaviour enjoys international currency in the corporate world. However, he quickly comes up against the limitations of cultural extrapolation in the findings of a McClelland-inspired survey conducted in Trinidad and Tobago.

According to the World Values Survey (WVS) 6th Wave (2010-2014), Trinbagonians value work more highly and leisure slightly less than global averages.

They are also far less tolerant of corruption than the average person in other countries, with over 87 per cent of the Trinbagonian respondents saying bribery is never justifiable, compared to the global sample of 69 percent.

Farrell knows quite enough about his country to recognise that such findings do not square with reality. “These anomalous or counter-intuitive results probably arise because people respond the way they think they are expected to respond,” he remarks. He ascribes the tendency to “ambivalence”, a cornerstone of his developing theory about the cultural roots of the phenomenon of economic underachievement in energy-rich Trinidad and Tobago.

The intellectual context In fleshing out his analysis and argument, Farrell picks his way through the work of a broad spectrum of thinkers, social scientists, novelists and poets who have plumbed the Caribbean condition and provide theoretical ballast for his argument.

For graduates of an education system that remains disconnected from its Caribbean moorings, We Like It So? is a useful introduction to the substantial body of Caribbean thought developed over the 19th and 20th centuries, going back to John Jacob Thomas, the revolutionary intellectual born in Cedros in 1841, three years after Emancipation.

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The book draws on the work of the Caribbean’s Nobel laureate economist, Arthur Lewis; anthropologist Daniel Crawley; C.L.R. James; the novels of V.S. Naipaul, George Lamming and Earl Lovelace; the sociology of Eric Williams and M.G. Smith; Lloyd Best’s plantation theory of Caribbean society; the poetry of Derek Walcott; the scholarship of Gordon K. Lewis, Rex Nettleford, Trevor Farrell, Carl Campbell, Gordon Rohlehr, Selwyn Ryan, Bridget Brereton and Selwyn Cudjoe, among others; and the writings of newspaper columnists.

Although his analysis of Caribbean culture is grounded in these references, Farrell’s prescriptive response to T&T’s economic underachievement emerges from a world view very different from that held by many of them.

Where thinkers like James, Best, Lamming and Nettleford see the challenge of change in the Caribbean as one of fundamental transformation of self and society through disruption of the historic power relations embedded in colonial institutions, Farrell argues that cultural change must be driven by “the elite who shape our institutions and procedures and establish and enforce the rules”.

But they must first change themselves. To facilitate the process, Farrell proposes the “re-training of values and attitudes for persons about to assume leadership” through “structured, prepared encounters”.

Role of the elite Persuading the society’s elite to “act like a true elite and take responsibility for the place” will then bring its own rewards, as a new culture, supportive of economic achievement, ripples outwards and transforms the wider society.

Farrell’s own observations about the work attitudes of Trinbagonians abroad and at home in the courts, the energy sector, airlines and certain hotel resorts (namely the Sandals chain) have convinced him that they are capable of the “counter-cultural” behaviour required for economic advancement.

Farrell’s counter-cultural situations are defined by clear lines of authority, mandated cooperation, and behaviour that is uncompromisingly enforced.

“There is no rebellion or subversion, just quiet and respectful conformance to the rules,” he notes.

If this smacks of autocratic leadership, it is not, Farrell says; it is what can happen with an attitude change in the exercise of authority to engender trust.

respectful engagement; code-switching and contextual use of ‘formal’ language; establishing authority and enforcing discipline; making systems work; and connecting with the Folk to promote democracy and foster innovation.

Drawn quickly, this prescription bears little organic connection to his analysis of the problem. Further reflection might lead to an exploration of the role of culture in the systematic selection of elites who pose no threat to the colonial architecture of underachievement. A glimpse into the self-perpetuating nature of culture might encourage him to second-guess his expectation that beneficiaries of the status quo would have an investment in changing the very system that rewards them while punishing agents of change.

In any case, given the all-pervasive nature of culture, who will re-train the leadership elites for the challenge of change?

Five initiatives Farrell observes that movement between the culture of underachievement and the counter-culture of achievement is negotiated through a process of “code switching”, including the transition from Trinidad dialect to Standard English. This leads him to propose Standard English as the language of the workplace, since it is “associated with seriousness and discipline”.

In the end, he distills his prescription for change into five initiatives:

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transforming t&T

Desperate for change Critically dependent on Trinidad, and badly hurt by the prolonged turmoil on the seabridge, Tobago is in urgent need of transformative action WORDS By: hiLlary young

F

or economic transformation to take place in Tobago, the island must identify and develop its own industries, says Tobago-born UWI economics lecturer Anthony Birchwood. And “once the industries are identified, the youths must be part of any development going forward.”

Tourism and manufacturing will benefit from investment flows, both international and local. But development must be driven by the private sector, or by the government/Tobago House of Assembly (THA) – or both.

The THA’s plans The Tobago House of Assembly documented its proposals for Tobago’s economic development in its Comprehensive Economic Development Plan (CEDP) 2.0.

Covering the island’s development from 2013 to 2017, the policy framework showed how the THA wants to “transform and diversify the Tobago economy ... to adjust to rapid changes in the national and international economies”.

The plan concentrated on eight strategic areas: • good governance and institutional reform • business development and entrepreneurship • human capital development • social development and resilience • improved infrastructure and utilities • enhanced safety and security • environmental sustainability • branding Tobago “Clean, Green, Safe and Serene”.

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PHB.cz (Richard Semik)/shutterstock.com

Parlatuvier Bay, Tobago

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transforming t&T

To what extent these policy objectives were achieved is debatable.

For sure, the project was starved of funding as budgetary transfers from Trinidad, the major source of Tobago’s finances, fell from $2.609 billion in fiscal 2015 to $2.19 billion for fiscal 2017, a far cry from the $5 billion requested by the THA annually to run the island’s affairs.

market was expected to grow by 1.9 per cent in 2017.

Though the WTTC figures did not disaggregate travel from Trinidad to Tobago, the government in Port of Spain, in launching the Tobago leg of its “staycation” programme, said 59 per cent of domestic trips originated from Trinidad.

The 2017 growth predicted by the

To accommodate the Sandals project, extensive infrastructural work is planned Tourism Some rebranding of the island to sustain the tourism product did occur, but its effectiveness remains in doubt, as the industry has declined rapidly, helped on by successive failures of the ferry service from Port of Spain.

According to the Tourism Development Company of Trinidad and Tobago (since wound up), international tourist arrivals in 2005 were close to 90,000, and occupancy levels were high. But by 2015 the numbers had fallen for the fourth consecutive year to 22,435, and industry insiders have reported that last year fewer than 20,000 international tourists visited the island.

For a while, the industry was kept afloat by an increase in domestic tourism. The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) reported that domestic travel spending generated 53.7 per cent of the travel and tourism contribution to GDP in 2016, and noted that the

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WTTC never materialised. Domestic travel was seriously damaged by challenges on the air and sea bridges.

But tourism arrival statistics and budgetary allocations from Trinidad tell only part of the island’s economic story.

Its hotels and guest houses were starved for international and local direct investment flows; properties could not be upgraded. The Foreign Investment Act of 1990, requiring foreigners to acquire a licence before purchasing land, and financial institutions’ reluctance to give government-guaranteed loans to local investors, have blocked investment flows needed to build new properties and upgrade existing ones.

Private sector participation The private sector is playing an active role in the island’s plan for economic transformation, but again the focus is on tourism. According to Demi

John Cruickshank, immediate past chairman of the Tobago Division of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce, “the business association will drive the economy with the government as its partner.”

In January, Tobago business owners met with a ministerial team led by prime minister Dr Keith Rowley (himself a Tobagonian), and several decisions were taken involving private-public partnership (PPP).

Revamping the economy in 2018 The government-guaranteed loans programme will return, and the period of repayment will increase from seven to fifteen years. This facility can now be accessed by all tourism and tourism-related industry stakeholders.

Two marinas are planned for the western end of the island, and the proposed Sandals Resort will proceed as planned. The government will build the hotel, sourcing funds from the private sector, and Sandals will provide management services.

To accommodate the Sandals project, extensive infrastructural work is planned. Work will begin on desalination and sewage treatment plants, and Tobago’s electricity capacity will increase with a $132 million expansion of the Cove Power Station. Twenty megawatts will be added to the plant’s present 64-megawatt output.

Three vessels will operate the domestic sea bridge, and a new terminal for Tobago’s airport will be built through a build-own-lease-andtransfer financial arrangement.

These PPP projects are primarily geared towards reviving the tourism sector, but in the process they are intended to kick-start the transformation of Tobago’s economy are intended to kick-start the transformation of Tobago’s economy.

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transforming t&T

Can we let go of fossil fuels?

Does Trinidad and Tobago really believe in renewable energy?

WORDS By: david renwick

E

conomic transformation in the energy sector in Trinidad and Tobago would require two principal initiatives: raising the current level of crude oil production, and adopting renewable energy as an essential element in energy activity.

The first is probably easier and quicker to implement.

Crude production

Current crude oil and condensate output is around 72,000 barrels a day (b/d). Raising that requires more development drilling by the upstream companies.

At the very least, they should attempt to maintain that level in 2018. That means tht state-owned Petrotrin, which, together with contracted services, accounts for about 58% of total production, must up the ante.

Petrotrin needs to be more active in its Trinmar acreage in the Gulf of Paria, and has indicated that it will be sinking five exploration holes Debt there thisto year.GDP On its ratio land acreage, another five exploration wells will be drilled by lease operators and farm-out operators.

EOG Resources will drill four exploration wells in its Modified Ub block, while BHP will be recommencing its deep-water exploration programme with the drilling of three wells, two in Block TTDAA 5 and the third in Block TTDAA 14.

BHP sank the Le Clerc 1 well in May-August 2016 as the first of two exploration holes required during Average daily production of crude (bpd) the first phase of the Block TTDAA 5 production sharing contract.

2016 The result 2017 and natural gas (bn cf) was preliminarily classified as a natural gas discovery.

All this activity has convinced the energy and energy Caribbean industries minister,Susta Franklin Khan, thatStrategy “the outlook (C-SER for the domestic energy sector in 2018 is reassuring.”

20% 2017 2016 71,846 3.3 On the gas side, about by 1.7 trillion cubic feet (tcf) is likely to beby lifted this 28% 2022 2017 71,700 3.8 year.

47% by 2027

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“Renewable sources of energy a

www.chamber.org.tt/contact-magazine Energy revenue (TT$bn) as a percentage

Trinidad and Tobago – Chamber Robert Le Hunte, Public Utilities of Industry and Commerce

transforming t&T

2016

2017

Renewable Energy

1 0 -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

Caribbean Sustainable Energy Roadmap and Strategy (C-SERMS) RE goal: 20% by 2017 28% by 2022 47% by 2027

T&T RE goal:

“Renewable sources of energy are the way forward” – Robert Le Hunte, Public Utilities Minister, January 2018

Return on investment While minister Khan is happy about all this, he is not so pleased about the amount of revenue the government gains from this output. The government, he says, is therefore “reviewing the taxation system and the suite of allowances available to oil and gas companies.”

Khan put it, “between that which the government received, as compared to that received by energy companies and their affiliates from the monetisation of the country’s hydrocarbon resources.”

He gave as a sterling example the revenue impact of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) trains in Point Fortin. The “potential value loss from the four LNG

“There must be an equitable sharing of revenue earned from the exploitation of our hydrocarbon resources” This process began with the royalty rate on production, which was raised to 12.5% in January. Other tax changes will be announced in due course.

The minister has reassured the industry that “the government is receptive to, and welcomes, foreign investment” – but with the caveat that “there must be an equitable sharing of revenue earned from the exploitation of our hydrocarbon resources.”

The UK’s Poten and Partners, in its Gas Master Plan report, highlighted the “great disparity in value”, as minister

36

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

trains averaged around US$6 billion a year between 2011 and 2014, which is a staggering figure,” he explained.

Poten and Partners found that “the beneficiary of the substantial value generated by the trains was not so much the upstream gas suppliers but rather the offshore jurisdictions, which were either low-priced markets or high-priced markets, but with the revenue not flowing back to Trinidad and Tobago.”

In the majority of transactions, it was found that “the offtake

10% by 2021

arrangements for upstream companies involved sales to downstream marketing affiliates, which potentially led to nonarm’s length transactions.”

Renewable energy As far as renewable energy (RE) is concerned, Trinidad and Tobago has been a late convert. Minister Khan acknowledges this. “Trinidad and Tobago recognises the benefits that would accrue from the diversification of its energy mix” – but he points out that it is “the only country in the western hemisphere that generates 100% of its power from natural gas, the cleanest of the fossil fuels.”

A target of 10% of RE in power generation by 2021 has been set.

According to the minister, a “suitably qualified international firm, together with a joint venture local partner, will be required to design, build, operate, maintain and fund RE projects greater than, or equal to, 3MW for grid integration.”

RE comes basically from the sun and the wind, but there is also the more esoteric waste-to-energy approach.

Once there is a landfill, waste-to-energy becomes a possibility. The minister confirms that “expressions of interest have been issued for the development of a waste-to-energy facility at the Beetham Landfill for the conversion of municipal waste for power generation.”

Trinidad and Tobago is a signatory to the Paris climate change agreement,

www.chamber.org.tt/contact-magazine

which mandates it to “reduce cumulative greenhouse gas emissions from power generation, transportation and industry by 15% by 2030, relative to a business-as-usual baseline.”

CNG

www.chamber.org.tt/contact-magazine

Average daily production of crude (bpd) and natural gas (bn cf)

2016 Energy minister Franklin Khan 2017

71,846 71,700

Trinidad express newspaper

“As part of our strategy of reducing greenhouse gases, the government is aggressively promoting the increased utilisation of CNG as a major transportation fuel,” minister Khan states.

“Based on this commitment,” he adds, “the grant of fiscal incentives benefiting a cross-section of participants, ranging from individuals to installers, and a competitive price compared with liquid fuels, have encouraged an upsurge of interest in the adoption of CNG as a transportation fuel of choice.”

Petrotrin has been told “to accelerate its enhanced oil recovery programme, especially the CO2 injection part of it.” The minister believes this initiative will have a “two-fold effect – boosting oil production and reducing our carbon footprint.”

Other upstream companies are falling in line. “Over the coming years, upstream companies have committed to capital investment in excess of US$10 billion, which will serve to maintain the momentum in the industry.”

Minister Khan admits, however, that “there is still a lot of work to do.

We are in the process of finalising negotiations with our Venezuelan counterparts for a tranche of gas from their Dragon field and for the sharing of production from our crossborder fields, Loran-Manatee, ManikinCoquina and Kapok-Dorado.”

The culmination of these developments, he says, “will bring a new and added dimension to the gas business in Trinidad and Tobago, particularly when combined with our proposed Caribbean energy diplomacy interventions.”

3.3 3.8

Energy revenue (TT$bn) as a percentage of total government revenue $20.9 2014

$12.9

$3.0

$3.7

2015

2016

2017

Source: Energy minister Franklin Khan at 2017 Energy Conference

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

37

transforming the state of the t&T nation

Economic Outlook

A return to growth in 2018?

S

Debt to GDP ratio Trinidad & Tobago GDP growth peaking to the nation on 3 television and radio in 2 January, prime minister 1 Keith Rowley promised “a 0 slow return to growth” in 2018. The -1 international agencies back him up. In -2 its latest country report for Trinidad -3 and Tobago (November 2017), the IMF -4 on of crude projected(bpd) real GDP growth at 1.9 per -5 2016 2017 cent this year. The CDB’s forecast was 1 as (bn cf) -6 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 per cent; UN ECLAC was less optimistic, forecasting a more conservative GDP growth rate of 0.5 per cent.

Caribbean Sustainable Energy Roadmap and The IMF predicted 7.7 per cent Strategy (C-SERMS) RE goal: growth in the energy sector, thanks to the contributions of Juniper and the 20% by 2017 T&T RE goal: 3.3 Trinidad Onshore Compression Project 28% by 2022 3.8 (TROC). But it thought the non-energy sector likely to contract by 1.2 per cent 47% by 2027 10% by – cause for concern, as that sector makes up around 65 per in the fiscal policies of commodity exporters such as Trinidad 2021 are the way forward” cent of GDP, and non-energy export growth is“Renewable vital forsources the of energy and Tobago and Suriname, leading to large fiscal deficits and – Robert Le Hunte, Public Utilities Minister, January 2018 country’s future. increases in public debt. as a percentage In estimating energy output for 2018, the IMF put the nt revenue new norm of natural gas production in the range of 3-4 bcf The global outlook per day, while oil production was expected to continue its In its World Economic Outlook Update for January 2018, the decline, hitting record lows of 60,000-70,000 barrels per day.

IMF estimated global economic growth for 2018 at 3.9 per cent, a slight improvement of 0.2 per cent over the previous America and Caribbean October’s forecast. This continues the global economic trend $3.0 Latin$3.7 Overall, Latin America and the Caribbean are expected to see of steady but modest recovery since 2016. about 1.9 per cent growth in 2018. According to the IMF, growth in Central America has been strengthening; but in the US and UK 016 Caribbean, 2017 domestic demand is expected to underperform, The US economy was projected to grow by 2.7 per cent in 2018 in Khan at 2017 Energy Conference with growth of 2.3 per cent for tourism-dependent economies and 2.5 per cent in 2019, following reforms to US corporate and 2.0 per cent for commodity exporters. and personal income taxes approved in December 2017.

The Brexit aftermath has created much uncertainty over Debt issues like trade and cross-border financial activity, which In Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Jamaica, and St Kitts and impacts the growth prospects of the United Kingdom. UK Nevis, government debt-to-GDP ratios have been declining, economic growth remains sluggish, and is projected at 1.5 per reflective of fiscal discipline and debt restructuring. However, cent in 2018.

Barbados, The Bahamas, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago failed to sufficiently address their stubborn fiscal deficits China and Russia and high debt levels, leading to downgrades by international China’s economy is expected to grow by 6.5 per cent, which is credit agencies in 2016-17. an upward revision of 0.2 per cent as a result of a continued According to the IMF, public sector debt remains a major expansionary policy. vulnerability for the region. Barbados and Jamaica still have In an attempt to clear the existing supply glut of oil, both debt levels of over 100 per cent of GDP (102.7 and 109.5 per OPEC and Russian-led non-OPEC producers are expected to cent for 2017, respectively). However, they both reduced their extend production cuts to the end of 2018. The resulting oil debt levels, as did Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, and St Kitts and natural gas production levels are expected to produce a and Nevis. Declines in commodity prices exposed weaknesses higher-priced environment as 2018 progresses.

Non-energy export growth is vital for the country’s future

38

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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ADVERTORIAL

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Security

Would you like to know how long it takes for a customer to be served in your store?

Or how many people actually buy your products, and the average bill?

A Caribbean fast food chain recently tested an UmboCV security camera system that creates automated reports about customer service time, and whether a particular branch is operating above or below average.

The latest CCTV cameras have artificial intelligence. They know the number of people in your building. They recognise your licence plate and open your gate for you. All in addition to normal security functions. And they are surprisingly affordable!

Communications

Smartphones too have changed the way companies do business.

Used correctly, they can put staff in touch with clients at any time, wherever they are in the world. Personal contact information is protected even when people are using their own devices. With key technology, any phone can support location reporting, audio/video calls and group meetings.

A large public company in the Caribbean engaged their technology partner to create a solution using BlueJeans for their internal communications. This will reduce calling costs by over 60%, and phone hardware to almost zero. Video conferencing will reduce travel expenses by at least half.

Energy costs

The cost of automating buildings has dropped drastically. As energy costs rise, technology costs fall, and ROI is faster than ever before. Automating building access, lighting and air conditioning is not just affordable, but a really smart investment which dramatically reduces energy bills.

Recently a large theatre space in Trinidad installed AMX technology that reduced costs for house lighting by 90%, while retaining the look of classic lighting and dimming which was vital to the client.

Delivery

Four out of five technology investments made by companies fail to deliver. So choose a technology partner to guide you and focus on your needs. That’s what we do at CET. We find total solutions to let you be the guy on the beach.

CET Limited has been an applied technological solutions provider for over 25 years, serving retail, security, entertainment, worship, hospitality, transportation, residential and educational markets throughout the Caribbean. Find out more at www.caribbeanaV.com.

39

(868) 638 6385 | info@caribbeanav.com | www.caribbeanaV.com

statistics

the state of the nation

Oil, gas and petrochemicals

Crude oil and condensate production (bbls/d) Crude oil and condensate production (bbls/d) 74,000 76,000 Crude oil and condensate production (bbls/d) 72,000 74,000 76,000 70,000 Crude oil and condensate production (bbls/d) 72,000 76,000

76,000 70,000 74,000 68,000 72,000 66,000 70,000 64,000 68,000 62,000 66,000 2016 64,000 2017 62,000 2016 2017

4,500 4,000 3,500 3,000 4,500 2,500 4,000 2,000

October 68,979 66,471 October

74,000 68,000 72,000 66,000 70,000 64,000 68,000 62,000 66,000 2016 November 64,000 2017 72,042 62,000 71,554 2016 November 2017

2,000 3,500 1,500 3,000 1,000 2,500 500 2,000 0 1,500

October 3,322

3,183

2017 500

3,102

3,654

October

November

November

2016

3,322

3,183

2017

3,102

3,654

430,000

430,000 400,000 420,000 390,000

380,000

October 400,829 429,721 October

2016

400,829

2017

429,721

2016 2017

430,000 450,000 420,000 440,000 410,000 430,000 400,000 420,000 390,000 410,000 380,000 400,000 2016 November 390,000 2017 413,225 380,000 , 438129 2016 November 2017

300,000 450,000 250,000 400,000 200,000 350,000 150,000 300,000 100,000 250,000 50,000 200,000 0 150,000 2016 100,000 2017 50,000 0

40 2016 2017

600,000

3,322 December 3,102

3,428 October , 3816 3,322 December 3,102

75,024

71,554

73,909

November

December

72,042

75,024

71,554

73,909

November

December

3,183

3,428

3,654

, 3816

November

December

3,183

3,428

3,654

, 3816

3,428 Ammonia production (tonnes)

, 3816

Ammonia production (tonnes)

October 400,829 December 429,721 439,148 October 417,525 400,829 December 429,721

,

417,525

438129 450,000 Ammonia exports (tonnes) 350,000

November

December

413,225

439,148

, 438129

417,525

November

December

413,225

439,148

, 438129

417,525

Ammonia exports (tonnes)

439,148

400,000

350,000

October

413,225

450,000 400,000

December

72,042

Ammonia production (tonnes)

440,000 410,000

400,000 2016 390,000 2017

500 2017 0

440,000

450,000 420,000

410,000 380,000

2016 1,000

Ammonia production450,000 (tonnes)

450,000 440,000

75,024 October 73,909 68,979 December 66,471

November

72,042

1,500 2016 1,000 0

68,979 December 66,471

75,024 Natural gas production (mmscf/d) 66,471 71,554 73,909 Natural gas production 4,500 (mmscf/d) 4,000 3,500 Natural gas production (mmscf/d) 3,000 4,500 Natural gas production 2,500 (mmscf/d) 4,000 68,979

3,500 1,500 3,000 1,000 2,500 500 2,000 0

October

Ammonia exports (tonnes)

Ammonia exports (tonnes) 300,000 450,000 250,000 400,000 200,000 350,000 150,000 300,000 100,000 250,000 50,000 200,000 0 150,000

October 402,089

100,000 2016 November 50,000 2017 329,198

0

361,474

407,844

October

November

402,089

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber 361,474 of Industry and Commerce

2016 2017

329,198 407,844

600,000 Methanol production (tonnes) 500,000

October 402,089 December 361,474 371,737 October 401,647 402,089 December 361,474

November

371,737

407,844

401,647

November

December

329,198

371,737

407,844

401,647

371,737 Methanol production (tonnes) 401,647

December

329,198

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Methanol production (tonnes)

300,000 400,000 250,000 350,000

350,000 250,000 300,000 200,000

200,000 300,000 150,000 250,000

250,000 150,000 200,000 100,000

100,000 200,000 50,000 150,000

150,000 50,000 100,0000

• Oil and gas output was edging up at the end of 2017 – but at a lower level than late 2016 • Methanol output was ahead of 2016, but ammonia and urea showed sharp declines Methanol production (tonnes) Methanol production (tonnes) 0 100,000

50,000 2016 0 2017

October

November

402,089

329,198

50,000 2016 0

October 361,474

November 407,844

2017 2016

2016

402,089

329,198

2017

2017

361,474

407,844

600,000 500,000 600,000 400,000 500,000 300,000 400,000 200,000 300,000 100,000 200,000 0 100,000 2016 0 2017

600,000

Methanol production600,000 (tonnes) 500,000

401,647

Methanol production (tonnes)

100,000 200,000 100,0000 October

November

351,394

338,318 November 417,707 338,318

2017

2017

444,011

417,707

Methanol exports (tonnes) 500,000 450,000 400,000 500,000 350,000 450,000 300,000 400,000 250,000 350,000 200,000 300,000 150,000 250,000 100,000 200,000 50,000 150,000 100,0000 November 50,000 2016 0 324,115 2017 November 408,913 2016 324,115 2017

Methanol exports (tonnes)

October 306,111 October 457,607

2016

306,111

2017

457,607

408,913

October December 351,394 406,894 October 444,011 December 477,613 351,394 406,894 444,011 477,613

October December 306,111 367,504 October 457,607 December 393,079 306,111 367,504 457,607 393,079

70

October

November

58.3

48.8

50 60 40 50 30 40 20 30 10 20 0 10

October 61.7

November 53.1

2016 0 2017 2016

2016

58.3

48.8

2017

2017

61.7

53.1

October December 58.3 63.1 October 61.7 December 58.34 63.1 61.7

70 Urea exports (tonnes) 80

70 50 60 40 50 30 40 20

October

November

36.3

41.9

60 70 50 60 40 50 30 40 20 30 10 20 0 10 2016 0

October 57.6

November 68.3

2017 2016

2016

36.3

41.9

2017

2017

57.6

68.3

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417,707

477,613

November

December

324,115 November 408,913 324,115

367,504 December 393,079 367,504

408,913

393,079

November

December

48.8 November 53.1 48.8

63.1 December 4 63.1

53.1

4

Urea exports (tonnes) Urea exports (tonnes)

80

70 80 60

338,318

406,894 December 477,613 406,894

4

Urea exports (tonnes) 80

December

338,318 November 417,707

Urea production (tonnes) Urea production (tonnes)

60 Urea production (tonnes) 70

70

November

Methanol exports (tonnes) Methanol exports (tonnes)

Urea production (tonnes)

10 2016 0 2017

407,844

200,000 300,000

351,394

30 10 20 0

329,198

371,737 December 401,647 371,737

300,000 400,000

October 444,011

60 70 50 60 40 50 30 40 20 30 10 20 0 10 2016 0 2017

December

329,198 November 407,844

400,000 500,000

2016

50,000 2016 0 2017

November

401,647

2016 0 2017 2016

500,000 450,000 400,000 500,000 350,000 450,000 300,000 400,000 250,000 350,000 200,000 300,000 150,000 250,000 100,000 200,000 50,000 150,000 0 100,000

October December 402,089 371,737 October 361,474 December 401,647 402,089 371,737 361,474

October December 36.3 66.3 October 57.6 December 16.5 36.3 66.3 57.6

November

December

41.9 November 68.3 41.9

66.3 December 16.5 66.3

68.3

16.5

16.5

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

41

the state of the nation

statistics

• BPTT continued to be by far the largest producer of natural gas in Trinidad and Tobago in late 2017, while Petrotrin/Trinmar remained the largest crude oil producer • Trinmar alone supplied 27% of total crude production in the last quarter of 2017

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

K

Figures in red italics are preliminary

42

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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43

the chamber and its members

mediation

How to settle a dispute Based on personal experience at the Dispute Resolution Centre, a mediation expert reflects on how to manage the process WORDS By: niall lawless photos courtesy: the dispute resolution centre

I

n November 2017, I worked at the Trinidad and Tobago Dispute Resolution Centre (DRC) for three days as an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)appointed mediator in a multi-million US dollar engineering dispute, which resulted in a settlement.

Mediation is not adversarial. It works best when the participants trust the process, and are willing to cooperate to solve a shared problem. Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed in writing, which allows the parties to take risks when they come to deal with individual items.

Five stages The whole process is confidential, private and structured. It has five stages: introduction, information exchange, option generation, negotiation, and conclusion.

Information exchange and option generation are by far the most important.

Commercial mediation begins with the parties agreeing to mediate, and usually ends with the parties settling their dispute. The parties are the stars; usually they are common-sense business people motivated by revenue and contribution, and a desire to continue future cooperation.

The mediation outcome is affected by whom the parties choose to attend the mediation meetings on their behalf. Each party should bring a lead negotiator with full authority to settle the dispute, and to sign the settlement agreement. The role of lead negotiator is challenging, as it requires the evaluation and development of options, and being able to respond to any new information provided by the other party. The lead negotiator needs the support of respected, trusted and valued colleagues.

The lawyers The parties’ lawyers can make or break the mediation. Good mediation lawyers can move seamlessly from advocate to advisor. In their role as advocate they will succinctly summarise legal principles, but not in an adversarial or combative way, gifting litigation risk to the mediator.

They allow the business principal to take the lead, preparing their clients by offering

44

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

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advice, guidance and information on negotiation and mediation. Good mediation lawyers cope well with being challenged privately by the mediator: they are experienced and wise, and they are committed to finding the best possible solutions for their client.

When the ICC supports the mediation, the mediator and the parties use the ICC Mediation Rules, administered by the ICC International Center for ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution). For example, the selection of the mediator takes into account such considerations as nationality, language skills, training, qualifications and experience, and ability to conduct the mediation in accordance with the ICC Rules.

The Centre is constantly striving to improve the ways in which the needs and expectations of the users of ICC Mediation can best be met, so the mediator and the parties are asked to provide comprehensive feedback when the mediation ends.

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Top Niall Lawless, mediation expert. Below Elizabeth Solomon, director of the Dispute Resolution Centre

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

45

the chamber and its members

The location The importance of the mediation venue is often overlooked, but, simply stated, good mediation venues send a subliminal message supporting the parties’ quest for compromise. The location should provide each party with its own meeting room, with another room large enough for joint meetings with the mediator and both parties present.

The venue will be a place which both parties consider as neutral. The Trinidad and Tobago Dispute Resolution Centre (DRC) was an ideal mediation host venue, as it is “dedicated to promoting an environment in which people are encouraged to work together to find alternative means of resolving conflict”.

Under the guidance of executive director Elizabeth Solomon the DRC staff worked hard to ensure that the physical surroundings supported mediation objectives; they were available, offering support such as printing services, before eight in the morning and after six in the evening.

Another example of support was the choice of excellent food to energise the participants, strategically located to encourage parties to mingle and talk outside the formal meetings.

The mediator The mediator as a neutral third party assists the parties to compromise their dispute, using communication and negotiation skills. The mediator is the guardian of the process, facilitating the exchange of information, helping the parties to reality-check their positions, and leaving no value on the table.

As a mediator, I always commit to following the European Code of Conduct for Mediators, which sets out a number of principles which individual mediators can voluntarily decide to adopt.

Acknowledgements The aforementioned Port of Spain mediation was a success, mainly because there was balance and harmony between people and process. As mediation is confidential, all I can do here is to thank the parties’ lawyers, with their permission: Mrs Savitri Sookraj-Beharry from the law firm Pollonais, Blanc, de la Bastide & Jacelon; Mr Ravi Nanga, Advocate Attorney at Law; Ms Kimberleigh Peterson from the law firm J.D. Sellier & Co.; Mr Ravi Heffes-Doon, Advocate Attorney at Law; the ICC ADR Centre staff – Alina Leoveanu, Andrija Erac, Ana Sylvia Prado and Malgorzata Matowska; and the Trinidad and Tobago Dispute Resolution Centre’s Executive Director Elizabeth Solomon and her welcoming, hard-working staff.

Niall Lawless is a Chartered Arbitrator and Engineer, Adjudicator and Mediator at Adjudication Solutions.

46

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

The Dispute Resolution Centre has two meeting areas to suit the size of your delegation

Dispute Resolution Centre, Ground Floor, Chamber Building, Columbus Circle, Westmoorings, PO Box 499, Port of Spain.

Tel: 632-4051, fax: 632-4046. www.disputeresolutioncentre.com

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the chamber and its members

Welcome, new members!

The Chamber extends a very warm welcome to all those companies and individuals who have become Chamber members in recent months (June 2017 to February 2018).

Action Coach Centre for Leadership & Development Limited (Crestcom)

39 Hubert Rance Street, San Fernando 236-3692, 398-8277 • indiracouch@actioncoach.com

Allied Caterers Limited

Crimson Logic (T&T) Limited

1st Floor, T&T Chamber of Industry & Commerce, Columbus Circle, Westmoorings 223-2588 • fax 223-2746 www.crimsonlogic.com zyenudeanz@crimsonlogic.com

Golden Grove Road, Piarco 285-9155 www.alliedcaterers.com arajkumar@alliedcaterers.com

25 Mary Avenue, Diego Martin 761-9426 • dennisedemming@gmail.com

Bell Insurance Services Limited

Gentle Dentistry & Implant Centre Limited

Jarrod Best-Mitchell

Innovation Factory Limited

15 Henry Pierre Street, Port of Spain 235-2354, fax 667-1658 www.bellistt.com • matthew@bellistt.com

Dennise Demming

6 Rapsey Street, St Clair 628-1456, 672-6725 • fax 672-6725 sarahramcharitar@gmail.com

21 Cawnpore Street, St James 355-7640 • jarrodbestmitchell@hotmail.com

Upper Santa Cruz 787-9100 • eddydevisse@gmail.com

Blu Pelagos Limited

Jeannine Du Coudray-Collier

2c, Tower 3, One Woodbrook Place, St James 729-1472 • dr.andrew.borg@gmail.com

Business Lifeline Limited

6, Rapsey Street, St Clair 235-3487 • jeannine.collier@jdclegal.net

The Grape Vine

Intercontinental Business Park Building, LP 523, Eastern Main Road, D’Abadie 235-4255, 361-6225 www.businesslifelinett.com nichole@businesslifelinett.com

78 Diego Martin Main Road, Diego Martin 234-0059 www.thegrapevinett.com emile@thegrapevinett.com

Cite Up Limited

215 Pinard Court, Palmiste, San Fernando 652-9084, 653-1937 www.citeup.com • roger.nicholas@citeup.com

7 White Street, Woodbrook 622-4509 www.josalconsulting.com djoseph@josalconsulting.com

Coral Cove Marine Hotel Limited

PEAPSL Consultancy Limited

Coral Cove, Western Main Road, Chaguaramas 634-2080 • fax 634-2248 www.coralcovemarina.com • aaleongmkt@albrosco.com

Josal Consulting Limited

50 Richmond Street, Port of Spain 658-6423 • fax 658-3272 www.peapsl.com

Phoenix Protective Services Limited

73 Ramsaran Street, Chaguanas 671-1449, 298-4398 • phoenix.protective@gmail.com

www.chamber.org.tt/contact-magazine

Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

47

the chamber and its members Ramkaran Contracting Services Limited

63 Monkey Town, 3rd Branch Road, New Grant 655-0717, 299-5142 • patries@ramkarancontracting.com

Regency Recruitment & Resources Limited

The University of the West Indies

St Augustine Campus 662-2002, fax 663-2002 www.uwi.edu • brian.copeland@sta.uwi.edu

Valorem Services Limited

48 New Street, Port of Spain 625-6225 • fax 625-8655 www.regencytrinidad.com • lara@regencytrinidad.com

6 La Selva Drive, Golden View, El Dorado 680-2064 • scyrus@valoremtt.com

Solutions Expertz Limited

17 Centenary Street, Tunapuna 663-0500 • joanna.j@vanusinvestments.com

Terra Caribbean Trinidad Limited

Level 2, Invader’s Bay Tower, Invader’s Bay, Port of Spain 235-6000, 235-6001 • stephanie.quesnel@regus.com

2 Coconut Drive, Cross Crossing, San Fernando 374-7751, 374-7919 • fax 657-7721 5-7 Sweet Briar Road, St Clair 628-2391, fax 628-2900 www.terracaribbean.com • jean-paul@terracaribbean.com

Towers Consortium Consultancy Limited

61 Sapphire Avenue, Bacolet Park, Bacolet, Tobago 635-1573, fax 639-5479 www.facebook.com/pages/ Towers-Consortium-Consultancy-Ltd/1622275004737023

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Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

Vanus Investments Limited

Williams Offices (Trinidad) Limited

Yekof’s General Trading Import & Export Ltd. 47 Eighth Street, Barataria 473-2374, 293-8121 • yebk2000@yahoo.co.uk

ASSOCIATE MEMBERS Andy Berahazar Jr. Colleen Cameron Tamia Griffith Shenelle Hills-Fife Nikita Legall

www.chamber.org.tt/contact-magazine

Welcome to the Leon Agostini Conference Hall The perfect venue for corporate and private events!

Conveniently located in a safe and convenient neighbourhood next to The Falls at West Mall.

Fully air-conditioned room with 2204 sq ft of space, and ample on-site parking with security.

We offer full service to our clients at competitive rates.

Ideal for business meetings, training sessions, press conferences, weddings, graduations, birthday parties, and anything in between – we have the ideal package for you.

Call 637 6966 ext. 1285 and let us help you plan your meeting or special gathering.