Business Trinidad & Tobago 2018

BUSINESS TRINIDAD & TOBAGO

TENTH ANNIVERSARY EDITION - 2018

Jaguar-E-Pace-WhosWho Magazine-8.75x11.25.indd 1

4/3/18 3:03 PM

EDITORIAL BOARD RICHARD LEWIS

RYAN LEWIS

KEITH MILLER

ATIBA PHILLIPS

Chairman Prestige Business Publications Ltd

Chief Executive Officer Caribbean Business Publications Inc, Barbados

CHRISTOPHER ALCAZAR

President Trinidad & Tobago Manufacturers’ Association (TTMA)

MARIA DANIEL

Partner Transaction Advisory Services Ernst & Young Services Ltd

GABRIEL FARIA

CEO Trinidad & Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

SHURLA HENRY-GIBSON

Manager, Marketing & Communications InvesTT

ADRIAN HAVELOCK

Executive Director Label House Group

Managing Director INFOCOMM Technologies Ltd

LISA SIU CHONG

Director, HR, Marketing & E-commerce Excellent Stores Ltd

PATRICIA LEWIS

Director Prestige Business Publications Ltd

MARIE GURLEY

Director Prestige Business Publications Ltd

KAY BALDEOSINGH-ARJUNE Editor Business Trinidad and Tobago

SORAYA GONSALVES

Operations Manager Prestige Business Publications Ltd.

CEO Up Sell Business Solutions

CREDITS JOINT PUBLISHERS

Richard Lewis, Keith Miller

PRODUCTION

Patricia Lewis, Soraya Gonsalves

EDITOR Business Trinidad & Tobago is published and produced by:

Prestige Business Publications Ltd The Film Centre, 9 Humphrey Street, St James, Trinidad and Tobago Tel: (868) 622-0738/9 Fax: (868) 622-0426 Email: info@whoswhotnt.com Website: www.whoswhotnt.com Copyright© 2018 Prestige Business Publications Ltd. All information in this publication has been carefully collected and prepared, but it is still subject to change and correction. Use these contents for general guidance only and seek extra assistance from a professional adviser with regard to any specific matters. Copyright reserved. None of the contents in this publication can be reproduced or copied in any form without permission in writing from the publisher. Printed by: ScripJ, Republic of Trinidad & Tobago.

2 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Kay Baldeosingh-Arjune

DESIGN

809 Design Associates Inc.

LAYOUT

Shayam Karim, Patricia Lewis, Soraya Gonsalves

ARTWORK

Patrice Letren

ADVERTISING SALES

Patricia Lewis, Marie Gurley, Betti Gillezeau, Kathleen Maynard, Christine Mings-François

FROM THE PUBLISHER

From the Publisher H

igh value-added manufacturing; technologydriven agriculture; centres of excellence for services; competitive advantage driven through innovation; productive human capital; globallyrecognised knowledge centres; strong financial institutions in a wellregulated environment.

If we were asked to paint our personal portrait of the Trinidad and Tobago private sector - where it should be and could be by 2025 - the elements above would be the brush strokes and the individual colours that make up that portrait.

Conducting successful business in the Caribbean has never been an easy task for locals or foreigners, but it still remains an investment destination of better than normal returns, especially in Trinidad and Tobago.

With the downturn in the price of global energy resources, there has been a significant drop in the earnings of the T&T government from the energy sector, resulting in the much lower spend in procuring goods and services from the T&T private sector.

This has led the majority of businesses away from government towards investment in regional business opportunities to increase their regional market share, investment in ultra-modern technologies for manufacturing, retooling for global competitiveness, and the leveraging of services knowledge in the Telecom, IT, Finance and Human Resource training sectors.

The reduced cost of construction, as well as all forms of services in professional engineering, financial and back office services, have now changed the value driven equation much more heavily on the

4 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Richard Lewis Chairman Prestige Business Publications Ltd

Keith Miller Chief Executive Officer Caribbean Business Publications Inc

“No matter what the size of the investment or investor, they will reap rewards comparable to any other options they have on the table when choosing a secure investment jurisdiction.” side of the user and, in particular, the investor. And it is the investor who brings hard currency to the table for payment, is able to earn net foreign exchange, is not dependent on subsidised energy inputs, and will commit to a long-term presence in the T&T economy. No matter what the size of the investment or investor, they will reap rewards comparable to any other options they have on the table when choosing a secure investment jurisdiction.

The 2018 Business Trinidad and Tobago edition focuses on that vision. It focuses on the strategies presently being employed by the very companies and industry groups who are seeing evidence of success well-outlined in the content of the publication. I now invite you to read the articles written by our very own local writers that give life to the story.

We are convinced, as publishers, that the business sector and the Government of Trinidad and Tobago are, as they say, “ready to rumble” with the biggest and the best of the investment destinations in order to carve out our market niche for the long-term investor.

May success continue to bless all your endeavours.

Richard Lewis

Keith Miller

2018 CALENDAR

2018 Calendar APRIL 2018 Business 18 – CARIRI – “Innovating with Emerging Technology Conference 2018”, Hyatt Regency Trinidad, www.cariri.com 22-28 – Administrative Professionals Week 25–28 – Rotary Club District 7030 Conference 2018, Courtyard by Mariott, http://districtconference7030.com

24 – Distinguished Leadership & Innovation Conference (DLIC) 2018, Hyatt Regency Trinidad Contact: Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business – 645-6700, www.dlictt.com

Events

Cultural

15-17 – The Tableland Pineapple Farmers’ Association Annual Fruit Festival, Nu Image Simplex Complex, Tableland

3 – Chinese Food Festival, Confucius Institute, University of the West Indies, the University Inn and Conference Centre, St Augustine Campus 27 – Tobago Culinary Festival, Pigeon Point, Tobago

26 - The San Fernando City Corporation’s Annual San City Green Expo, Skinner Park, San Fernando

26 – North Coast Jazz Festival 2018, Festival Ground, Sir Solomon Hochoy Park, Blanchisseuse

21-29 – The Tobago Jazz Experience, performances at Speyside, Signal Hill, Scarborough, Castara and Pigeon Point Heritage Park, http://tobagojazzexperience.com

28 – Tobago May Pole Festival, Tobago

Cultural 3 – Buccoo Goat and Crab Race Festival, Buccoo Integrated Facility, Tobago 25-29 – ‘NGC Bocas Lit Fest,’ T&T Literary Festival, NALIS Amphitheatre, Abercromby Street, Port of Spain www.bocaslitfest.com Events 1 – Radio 90.5fm Easter Kite Flying, Queen’s Park Savannah 19 – Tobago Fashion Coda, Magdalena Grand Beach and Golf Resort Sports 7-8 – Millennium Lakes Golf & Country Club Open Golf Tournament, Trincity

30-1 Jul – Charlotteville Fisherman Festival, Tobago

5 – World Environment Day 7-8 – Labour Day Celebrations 2018

17 – Father’s Day 19 – Butler Day Celebrations hosted by Tobago African Union (TAU), Dock Site, Milford Road 19 – Oilfield Workers Trade Union (OWTU) Butler 20K Run in San Fernando Sports

Events

2-10 – National Open Championships Tennis Tournament

3 – The Republic Bank DECIBEL Entertainment Conference, Queen’s Hall, St. Ann’s www.decibelexpo.com

9-23 – National Open Tennis Championships, Eddie Taylor Public Courts

5 – Point Fortin Borough Day 13 – Mother’s Day 13 – The Vitas House Hospice Annual Tea Party, Hyatt Regency Trinidad, Wrightson Road, Port of Spain Contact: 628-4673, 628-9824 18 – United Way of Trinidad and Tobago’s (UWTT) National Day of Caring 23-27 – The Embassy of Mexico, United Airlines, Copa Airlines and Corona Beer’s Mexican Food FestivaL, Hyatt Regency Trinidad, Wrightson Road, Port of Spain Sports

9 – Massy Rainbow Cup - 14th National Triathlon Championship at Turtle Beach, Courland Bay, Tobago www.rainbowcuptobago.com 9 – Trinidad And Tobago Game Fishing Association Kingfish Tournament www.ttgfa.com 15-17 – Chief Secretary’s Golf Tournament, Plantations Golf Course, Lowlands, Tobago 18 – Tobago Dragon Boat Festival 22-24 – National Athletic Championships, Hasely Crawford Stadium 24 – Oval Golf Tournament Public Holidays

8 – Trinidad and Tobago Triathlon Federation National Aquathlon, Las Cuevas Beach

5 – Masters Local Championships 2018 (Athletics), Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo

10-14 – Trinidad And Tobago Game Fishing Association 38th Marlin Madness Game Fishing Tournament, www.ttgfa.com

5 – Point Fortin Borough Day Annual Dragon Boat Regatta

19 – Labour Day

12 – Prime Minister’s Charity Golf Tournament, St Andrews, Trinidad

JULY 2018

15-19 – Tobago International Game Fishing Tournament at Charlotteville, Tobago

Business

13 – Lady Hochoy Charity Golf Tournament, St. Andrew’s Golf Club, Moka, Maraval, www.ttgfa.com 14-17 – Easter International UCI Cycling Grand Prix www.ttcyclingfederation.org 15 – CAJGC/CAGC Fundraiser Golf Tournament 20 – GC T20 Festival Final, Balmain, Couva 21-22 – Sagicor Golf Tournament, St. Andrew’s Golf Course, Maraval, www.golftrinidad.com 28-29 – Caribbean International Invitational Open Combat Sports Championship, National Cycling Centre (NCC), Couva TBA – West Indies v Bangladesh Test Series TBA – Visiting Test tour of West Indies, Queen’s Park Oval

19 – Rainbow Cup International Triathlon, Grafton, Tobago

15 – Eid-ul-Fitr

5-8 – Trinidad & Tobago Manufacturers’ Association Trade & Investment Convention (TIC), Centre of Excellence, Macoya Road, Tunapuna, www.tic-tt.com

19-20 – Sea to Sea Marathon, Tobago, www.seatoseamarathon.com

Cultural

23 – Cotton Tree Foundation Charity Tournament, St. Andrew’s Golf Course, Maraval, www.golftrinidad.com

5-9 – Mango Festival, University of the West Indies, (UWI), St. Augustine

30 – Midsummer Classic, Santa Rosa Park 30-1 Jul – Tobago Dragon Boat Association Regatta, Pigeon Point Heritage Park, Tobago http://ttdbf.webs.com

16-1 Aug – Tobago Heritage Festival, various villages, Tobago. Events continue through to November Contact: (868) 639-5016/4441 www.tobagoheritagefestival.com

2 – St Peter’s Day (Fisherman’s Fete), Matelot Village

Public Holidays

Events

Public Holidays

30 – Indian Arrival Day

25-29 – Great Fete Weekend, Tobago

1 – Easter Sunday

31 – Corpus Christi

Sports

2 – Easter Monday

MAY 2018 Business 15-16 – ICT PRO TT Conference – Ignite Your Digital Transformation at the Hyatt Regency Trinidad, Ictprott.com Contact: TT Chamber of Industry and Commerce 637-6966 Ext. 1239, Ictprott.com

JUNE 2018 Business 8-10 – 5th Annual Medical Conference & Community Outreach Programme, Hyatt Regency Trinidad http://tntmedical.com/ Cultural 1 – Tobago Heritage Festival Launch at the Market Square Car park, Scarborough 3-7 – We Beat 2018, St. James

6 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

1 – St. Andrew’s Golf Club - TTMCO Charity Golf Tournament, www.golftrinidad.com 12-16 – Tobago Motor Rally (Grafton) 15-20 – Sagicor Tennis Tournament TBA – West Indies v Sri Lanka Test & ODI Series

AUGUST 2018 Cultural 3 – Laventille Steelband Festival – Eastern Main Road, Laventille

2018 CALENDAR

2018 Calendar 5 – Seminar – Pan, Progress & Patent, NALIS, Abercromby Street, Port of Spain 12 – Arima Borough Day 23 – Pan on the Avenue, Ariapita Ave, Woodbrook 25 – Carib Santa Rosa Festival 26 – Indepan Fest along Tragarete Road, from Colville Street to Maraval Road, Port of Spain Sports

24 – Republic Day Regatta, Roxborough, Tobago

Cultural

24 – Republic Day Cycling Classic, Mandela Park

20-6 Nov – Divali Nagar 2018

24 - ‘Trinidad Derby,’ Horse Racing, Santa Rosa Park www.arimaraceclub.com

Events

24 – UWI Endowment Fund Charity Golf Tournament, Millennium Lakes Golf & Country Club, Trincity

18 – San Fernando Day

29 – Scotiabank Women Against Breast Cancer at Queen’s Park Savannah Port of Spain and Skinner’s Park, San Fernando

Caribbean Premier League T20 Cricket, Queen’s Park Oval & BCLA Tarouba - Various dates, several matches

29-30 – Tobago Open Tennis Tournament, Shaw Park

1 – Horse Racing, Santa Rosa Park www.arimaraceclub.com

24 – Republic Day

Public Holidays

14 – World Diabetes Day

Sports 2-4 – Bago Beach Football International 3 – TT ProLeague Cup Final, Hasely Crawford Stadium 17-18 – Trinidad & Tobago Matchplay Golf Tournament 25 – The Shelter Charity Golf Tournament Public Holiday

4-5 – TTGFA’s ‘Tarpon Thunder,’ Fishing Tournament, www.ttgfa.com

OCTOBER 2018

7 – Divali

5 – The Felicity Charlieville Fishing Association (FCFA)’s Annual Fishing Tournament, Felicity. For more information and registration, contact 389-7413

Business

DECEMBER 2018

9-12 – Tobago Open Golf, Magdalena Grand Beach & Golf Resort

24-25th – AMCHAM T&T’s 21st Annual HSSE Conference & Exhibition. Contact: AMCHAM 622-4466 http://hsse.amchamtt.com

Business 3 – Tobago House of Assembly Day

Cultural

Cultural

1 – Hosay Festival 12 – Chinese Arrival Day

6 – The Annual Tobago House of Assembly Tree Lighting Ceremony at the Louis D’or Nurseries

16 – World Food Day

Events

19 – Ramleela

1 – International World National AIDS Day

21 – Tobago Blue Food Festival, L’Anse Fourmi Bloody Bay Recreation Grounds, www.visittobago.gov.tt

1-7 – Tobago House Assembly Week Celebrations at Shaw Park Complex; Dwight Yorke Stadium and other venues

Events

4 – Tobago Day, www.tha.gov.tt

7 – Chaguanas Borough Day

Sports

21-28 – National Tourism Week

3-7 – TennisTT Top 16 Invitational Tennis Tournament

SEPTEMBER 2018

24 – United Nations Day

Business

26 – Breast Cancer Awareness Day

TBA – Trinidad & Tobago Olympic Committee Sports Awards

19-1 Oct – International Caribbean Building, Construction & Real Estate Exhibition – Centre of Excellence, Macoya Road, Tunapuna Email: build@ametrade.org

20-6 Nov – Divali Nagar 2018

25 – The Great Race, Pier 1 Chaguaramas to Store Bay, Tobago 31 – Bankers Insurance Half Marathon, Pt. Lisas Public Holidays 1– Emancipation Day 31 – Independence Day Independence Day Parade, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Bacolet, Tobago Independence Day Fireworks, Port of Spain and San Fernando, Trinidad, and Scarborough, Tobago

27-1 Oct – SOUTHEX International Expo “The World in 2020” Gulf City Shopping Complex, La Romaine www.southex.co.tt

Sports Super 10 National Basketball Tournament - through to December

Public Holidays 25 – Christmas Day 26 – Boxing Day

1- 5 – Tour of Tobago

JANUARY 2019

3 – Beacon’s Cycling on the Avenue 7, Port of Spain

Business

Cultural

3-7 – Tobago International Cycling Classic

7-9 – Angostura Rum Festival hosted by Angostura Ltd Laventille compound

6 – RBC Run for Kids, Queen’s Park Savannah, Port of Spain

22-24 – Trinidad and Tobago Energy Conference 2018, Hyatt Regency, Port of Spain www.ttenergyconference.org

18-25 – Trinidad and Tobago film/18 festival www.ttfilmfestival.com

13-14 – Tobago Open Golf Tournament

19-29 – Rio Claro Heritage Festival

7 – Fatima Class of ’75 Charity Golf Tournament 7 – Dragon Boat Festival, Chagville, Chaguaramas

Events

14 – Store Bay Open Water Swimming Classic, Tobago

17 – International Coastal Clean Up Day 28 – World Tourism Day

20 – National Surfing Championships, Mt. Irvine, Tobago

30 – Caribbean Youth Day

21 – CAJGC/CAGC Fundraiser Golf Tournament

Sports

22 – UWI Half Marathon

1 – 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifier T&T v Honduras, Hasely Crawford Stadium

NOVEMBER 2018

8-9 – Chaguaramas Open Golf Tournament

Business

14-16 – 17th South Caribbean Open Golf Tournament

1 – Champions Of Business Event – (NAPA) National Academy for the Performing Arts Contact: Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce. Contact: 637-6966 Ext. 1252

16 – Maracas Open Water Swim Classic, Maracas Bay 16 – Living Waters Community Charity Golf Tournament

8 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Public Holiday 1 – New Year’s Day

FEBRUARY 2019 Events 14 – Valentine’s Day

MARCH 2019 Cultural

TBD – Annual Caribbean Conference of Accountants Contact: ICATT - 623-8000

4-5 – Carnival Monday & Tuesday (Parade of the Bands).

Most businesses closed Events 1-30 Sep – Turtle Watching Season TBA – techAGRI Expo, University of the West Indies (UWI) St. Augustine Campus. Contact: 662-2002 Ext 82113 Public Holidays 30 – Spiritual Baptist Liberation Day

Photo: Richard Lyder

CONTENTS

Contents 12

TRANSFORMING THE T&T ECONOMY Message from the Minister of Trade & Industry Senator the Honourable Paula Gopee-Scoon

T&T’S HIGH VALUE OPPORTUNITIES 14

Attention Investors!

High Value Opportunities are available in T&T Dr Kieron Swift

17

Aviation: A Unique Value Proposition Parissram Jaggernath

18

ICT’s High Value Possibilities Jean-Paul Dookie

Business - Unit Manager – Competitiveness and Innovation, Economic Development Advisory Board Secretariat Ministry of Planning and Development

Aviation Director, Aviation Institute, University of Trinidad and Tobago

Executive Vice President, Fujitsu Caribbean (Trinidad) Ltd

RICH ENERGY RESOURCES 20 Energy Outlook – T&T’s Oil and Gas Developments

The Energy Chamber of

Trinidad and Tobago 24

Opportunities in Guyana – T&T’s Strategic Advantage Donald Baldeosingh President, ENMAN Group & Founder, Carbon Zero Initiative of Trinidad

AGRICULTURE’S UNIQUE ADVANTAGES 30

Writer, Journalist and Communications specialist

33 Diaspora Investment Success

– T&T Fine Cocoa Company Ltd InvesTT 34 T&T’s Agricultural Revolution NAMDEVCO EXPORT POTENTIAL 38

Opportunities in Trend Reversal – The Franchise Flip Sheldon Waithe

42

Exporting Higher Education Services Tarin Hodges

Writer

44

Senior Advisor Organisational Development & Assessment Centre (ODAC) - Consulting Services, Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business, The University of the West Indies

Doctors In Surplus Kevin Baldeosingh Writer, Journalist

ICT OPPORTUNITIES 46

Unleashing the Potential Atiba Phillips

50

The Digital Commerce Opportunity Atiba Phillips

52

Embracing The FinTech Wave Rudolph A. Hanamji

10 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Leveraging T&T’s Geographical Indications to Boost Exports Joel Henry

Principal Consultant and Managing Director, INFOCOMM Technologies Ltd

Principal Consultant and Managing Director, INFOCOMM Technologies Ltd

Manager, Marketing & Communications Trinidad and Tobago International Financial Centre (TTIFC)

ENTREPRENEURIAL AND CREATIVE 58

Growing Global Companies in T&T - An E&Y Perspective Maria Daniel

64

The Five Cs For A Successful Start-Up Nigel Romano

Partner, Transaction Advisory Services, Ernst & Young Services Ltd

LOCAL SUCCESS STORIES 28

Iconic businesswoman and a visionary adept at making the right decisions at the right time. Focused and determined yet compassionate and humble.

Managing Director and CEO, JMMB Bank

TOBAGO 68

A Growth Plan for Tobago Natalie Dookie Business Development & Market Research Consultant Business Writer, ND Caribbean Consulting Services

FINAL THOUGHTS 72

Recession? Press the Accelerator!

Ram Ramesh

80

It’s Not Easy Being Green Joel Henry

Bevel Wooding Chief Knowledge Officer at Congress WBN, and an Executive Attaché in the Office of the President of Congress WBN.

Executive Director, Caribbean Centre for Leadership Development

Writer, Journalist and Communications Specialist

USEFUL INFORMATION 86 88 90

56

T&T’s Incredible Innovators and Entrepreneurs - are our Bright Future Trinidad & Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

74

Helen Bhagwansingh

Stock Market Review Fast Facts Guide Trinidad & Tobago Contact Information

Excellent Stores Celebrating its 60th Anniversary in 2018, the company - now known as Excellent Stores - has become a household name and the leading department store in the country.

78

ADVERTORIALS 26 BP Renegades 41 TIC 2018 54 Police Credit Union 63 The Beacon Insurance Company Ltd 66 The Skin Health Institute 76 Movietowne

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 11

MESSAGE FROM THE MINISTRY OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY

TRANSFORMING the T&T Economy

T Minister of Trade & Industry Senator the Honourable Paula Gopee-Scoon

12 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

he Ministry of Trade and Industry’s (MTI) core responsibility continues to be the growth of trade, business and investment through the development of the economy’s non-energy sectors; as well as to promote consumer protection and empowerment.

To achieve this, the Ministry has undertaken several new policy initiatives aimed at expanding and reinvigorating local industry. Each of these is strategically aligned with the themes of the National Development Strategy of Trinidad and Tobago 2016-2030 (Vision 2030), which focuses on delivering good governance and service excellence, improving productivity through quality infrastructure, and building globally competitive businesses.

The strengthening of investor confidence is a key element in achieving these goals.

An Investment Approval and Facilitation Framework was developed in 2017 to facilitate and expedite regulatory approvals for substantial investments through an InterMinisterial Committee.

In 2017, a number of investment projects were successfully expedited. These projects have the potential to provide sustainable employment opportunities across varying sectors such as Information and Communication Technology services, Business Process Outsourcing, Manufacturing and, in particular, Food and Beverage and Distribution.

In keeping with the objective to facilitate an expanded and more competitive nonenergy sector, a Special Economic Zones (SEZ) policy was approved in 2017 and is in the process of being implemented. The Policy will modernise and bolster the current framework with a dynamic structure of competitive and non-financial incentives in strategic sectors.

While the Government is open to and welcomes investment in all areas, the sectors of particular interest include: Maritime Services, Manufacturing, Agro-processing, Creative Industries (Film, Fashion and Music), ICT, Financial Services and Tourism Services.

New economic spaces are being pursued to encourage new investments. The Tamana InTeck Park in Wallerfield, the Caribbean’s

A Special Economic Zones (SEZ) policy was approved in 2017 and is in the process of being implemented.

The Policy will modernise and bolster the current framework with a dynamic structure of competitive and non-financial incentives for strategic sectors in the non-energy sector. largest science and technology park on 1,100 acres of land, offers lots of varying sizes already fitted with infrastructure for water, electricity, fibre optics and natural gas. An Agro-Processing and Light Industrial Park in Moruga is expected to be in operation in early 2019 and an industrial space is planned at a new state-of-the-art industrial park on 133 acres in Phoenix Park, California.

Prime Minister Keith Rowley has articulated that the Government will continue to focus on expanding trade arrangements and on efforts to improve the ease of doing business. To this end, the MTI is collaborating with public sector partners to improve business processes in areas such as trading across borders, resolving insolvency, accessing credit, and re-engineering the construction permit process for greater efficiency and effectiveness.

In the context of competitiveness, Trinidad and Tobago’s industries cannot falter in this rapidly evolving world. Our manufacturing sector remains important and dynamic with the potential to reduce significantly the country’s import bill, generate foreign exchange and provide sustainable employment. Plans to expand total manufacturing output depend on improving the sector’s export performance and

this, in turn, requires local industry to be more internationally competitive in every way.

Trinidad and Tobago’s emphasis is on delivering products and services that are differentiated in the world marketplace on the basis of quality, value and innovation rather than on price alone. A National Quality Policy has been developed to guide the establishment of appropriate national quality infrastructure (NQI) which will relate to all aspects of metrology, standardisation, testing, quality management, certification and accreditation. The implementation of the National Quality Policy will strengthen the trading environment as well as the ability of firms to meet international standards and increase the potential for generating revenue, employment and export earnings in Trinidad and Tobago.

In this regard, the Government continues to facilitate trade expansion beyond traditional export markets in order to develop new export opportunities. In 2017, there was greater engagement with Cuba, Chile and the

“An Investment Approval and Facilitation Framework was developed in 2017 to facilitate and expedite regulatory approvals for substantial investments through an Inter-Ministerial Committee.”

Dominican Republic and a Governmentled Trade Mission to Costa Rica and Panama took place in March 2018.

We were also pleased to have finalised a national e-Commerce Strategy which seeks to facilitate and promote e-commerce for local businesses that serve, or intend to serve, domestic and/or international consumer markets.

Given the Government’s continued efforts, it is important to underscore that the private sector’s role in development is a much broader and more fundamental one. At the enterprise level, the critical role of companies is to build capabilities

that encourage value creation and competitiveness. In this regard, the Government will continue to create the conditions necessary for the private sector to become the main engine of Trinidad and Tobago’s growth.

Everyone has a stake in the future of our economy; everyone has a critical role to play. It is important that we partner across all levels and strengthen these interwoven networks to transform our economy, together. http://tradeind.gov.tt/

Trade and Industry Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon along with Cabinet Colleagues, The Mayor of Port-of-Spain and key stakeholders of the Music Industry, launch the first Live Music District (LMD) in Trinidad and Tobago. The LMD will serve as a cultural and entertainment hub, offering access to performance spaces, throughout the year, for diverse and talented local musicians from all genres and highlighting the richness in diversity.

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 13

T&T’S HIGH VALUE OPPORTUNITIES

ATTENTION INVESTORS!

High Value Opportunities are available in T&T 14 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Cambridge University and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) have embarked on an exciting and potentially far-reaching initiative with the T&T Government, aimed at achieving significant improvements in the competitiveness of T&T’s non-hydrocarbon sectors through an entirely new approach to supporting firms and small entrepreneurs in their efforts to modernise and innovate. The first phase of this initiative, concluded in 2017, identified high value opportunity areas of distinctive competitive strength in Trinidad and Tobago. These sectors represent tremendous and diverse investment opportunities. In this article, Dr Kieron Swift outlines the overall project, next steps and some of the opportunities.

Photo: Christopher Anderson

“There’s a difference between knowing the path and walking the path…”

Although uttered by a fictional character in 1999’s sci-fi standard, The Matrix, these words accurately highlight Dr Kieron Swift the gap between Business Unit understanding the Manager – need for economic Competitiveness diversification and and Innovation, getting on with the Economic job of selecting Development opportunities, and Advisory Board planning, executing Secretariat and capturing value Ministry of on Monday morning.

Planning and T&T’s Economic Development Development Advisory Board (EDAB) is now in the process of helping the private sector in Trinidad and Tobago bridge that gap, drawing from the findings of a 2017 IDB-funded technology foresighting consultancy. The consultancy project sought to identify opportunities for economic diversification in which nonhydrocarbon firms could benefit from intensified research, development and innovation.

A focus on diversification might appear trite to some after so many years of the term being shuffled around with little concrete action to show for it.

However, the underlying emphasis this time around was on setting priorities that would build and match local research and innovation strengths with business needs, in order to address emerging opportunities and market development an approach otherwise known as ‘smart specialisation.’

The consultancy resulted in five roadmaps that set out medium to longterm strategies for supporting innovation and industrial growth in five key areas of economic specialisation through the creation of several ‘Centres of Excellence.’

These Centres are intended to be highly flexible tools for promoting innovation and competitiveness, functioning in one or more of three modes:

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 15

T&T’S HIGH VALUE OPPORTUNITIES

•

Knowledge Generator – developing new technologies, tools and techniques through R&D, or acquisition and adaptation of foreign know-how.

•

Knowledge Diffuser – forming networks between firms and universities, diffusing relevant market and technological knowledge among businesses, and co-ordinating innovation projects among clusters of firms.

•

Knowledge Absorber – offering customised consultancy services including expert advice, training and new product development support.

Operating in this way, the Centres will support firms by de-risking innovation projects – bringing those projects closer to the commercial frontier and facilitating their execution in ways that no single firm could do on its own.

Rather than recap each roadmap in detail, let’s focus on some examples of opportunities highlighted for each Centre of Excellence, with suggestions provided for immediate action by the private sector in each case.

Indigenous, High-Value, Agricultural-Based Products The consultancy found that most people agreed that this country possesses indigenous agricultural species that have huge potential for becoming niche, highvalue added, commercial export products.

This potential is driven, in part, by rising global demand for nutritionally-sensitive foods. Efforts to revitalise the cocoa industry by UWI’s Cocoa Research Centre (CRC) and many relatively new gourmet chocolate producers are already underway.

However, options are not restricted to cocoa. We expect that successes achieved within the cocoa industry can be replicated to develop other highvalue added products based on honey, coconuts and peppers, not to mention more sophisticated products such as nutraceuticals.

From the supply side, a lot of work remains to be done concerning land use policy, infrastructure (such as access roads and testing facilities), and standardisation

16 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“InvesTT is seeking investors to develop a Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility to service the ATR propeller planes operating in the Caribbean and South America. An attractive range of fiscal incentives is already available and the facility could potentially operate at quarter of the labour cost of competitors in the US.” (through certifications and traceability).

However, from the demand side, local food and beverage firms could immediately begin to hash out strategic partnerships and ramp up marketing and promotion efforts within their existing supply chains. Doing so could play a role in overcoming the inertia in one critical part of the sector – the unavailability of labour – by quantifying the estimated increases in revenue that can accrue to cocoa farmers who move up the value chain from the bulk export of beans.

Aviation Services Existing investments such as the Camden Aircraft Engineering Training Campus initiative by UTT can be leveraged to provide a solid foundation for expansion of the aviation sector.

InvesTT is already seeking investors for the development of a Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility to service the ATR propeller planes operating in the region. The range of fiscal incentives already available, coupled with the potential to exploit new markets across the Caribbean and South America, make this an opportunity worthy of consideration for suitable firms - especially since Trinidad and Tobago has the potential to operate such a facility at a quarter of the labour cost of competitors in the US. With its associated Centre up and running, future developments can include flight simulation services, specialised software applications for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) navigation, a training and development academy, and light aircraft parts design and manufacture in the medium-term. Getting this type of activity off the ground could set the

foundation for long-term industry growth and expansion into general aviation manufacture and assembly.

Maritime Services Participants who expressed interest in the maritime sector agreed on a vision that would initially involve the development of ship repair and maintenance capabilities in the country. They saw this growing, down the road, into more complex specialisation areas with growth potential such as port economics, efficiency and logistics; port automation and semi-automation, including specialised ICT tools; maritime environment preservation; autonomous ships; alternative fuels; and associated technology.

Work in this area is currently underway via the Maritime Technology Co-operation Centre – Caribbean. The MTCC-Caribbean was established as a joint International Maritime Organization (IMO) and European Union (EU) initiative in 2017, aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting energy efficiency in the maritime shipping industry.

While a major overhaul of the regulatory system and upgrade of port infrastructure are required to fully realise the potential of this sector, some opportunities in the area of automation of monitoring and maintenance services for moored yachts are presently being explored by startups. (An example of this is the Boat Surveillance Project from UWI-based startup called FaSoVe - https:// fasove.com/).

Energy Engineering Services Oil and gas operators in Trinidad and Tobago currently benefit from the existence of decades of accumulated

T&T’S HIGH VALUE OPPORTUNITIES

Aviation: A Unique Value Proposition Trinidad and Tobago possesses a rich and diverse history in aviation, and is recognised as a world leader in the area of aviation maintenance, dating back to Parissram the early days Jaggernath of British West AMEL,MSc Indian Airlines Aviation Director (BWIA) which Aviation Institute began in 1939.

University of Today, Trinidad and its industry Tobago structure and related services locally boasts of public ownership of two national air operators, namely Caribbean Airlines (CAL) and National Helicopter Services Ltd (NHSL). Further, there are two publicly owned and managed airports as well as a number of private air operators. Regulatory and safety oversight comes from the Trinidad and Tobago Civil Aviation Authority (TTCAA), whose operations conform in all aspects to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) standards and recommended practices. Both airports are also adequately staffed with trained and qualified ground services personnel and receive a stable supply of fuel from National Petroleum Company Ltd. Yet, still, we have only touched the tip of the aviation iceberg with respect to its potential to diversify the economy and be a revenue and employment generator. Significantly, the aviation industry contributes to national economic development through its air operators and the airports’ direct, indirect and catalytic employment and connectivity outflows.

Geographically, Trinidad and Tobago is poised to take advantage of air traffic and locational opportunities for expansion across North, Central and South America via improved connectivity in all

directions, carrying with it the possibility of becoming a central source of services in multiple sectors including education and technology, aircraft maintenance and support services.

The island possesses a long history of safe and reliable aviation operations with the National Airline, having over six decades of experience in effecting aircraft maintenance for its own fleet of jets and for third party entities. This is complemented by the country’s education system which provides a strong grounding in engineering and technology training, which can be leveraged to develop the aviation sector into a recognised centre for aircraft maintenance services.

Core to this goal is The University of Trinidad and Tobago’s (UTT’s) construction of an Aviation Campus geared toward undergraduate education in Aircraft Maintenance, Aeronautical and Airworthiness Engineering, and Management. Complementing this is The University of the West Indies programme offering of a Master of Science degree in Aviation, which would provide the region with improved technical and business competencies.

The UTT, as an entrepreneurial university, constructed its training hanger with the potential to advance into a functional Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul facility. Its programmes offer Aeronautical Engineering fundamentals and Airworthiness capability modules using workshops and live aircraft that aim

to develop the design and repair skills of students in support of this area’s economic potential.

Further, the nation’s potential to not only mushroom its training but its ability to maintain, repair and overhaul aircraft, should not be ignored but rather, it should be actively pursued through CARICOM. A joint venture among regional stakeholders (LIAT, Bahamas Air, CAL, UTT), can see the UTT facility become the centre for maintenance of the region’s ATR Fleet, a CARICOM business entity.

The value of this entity to the region spans the areas of technical skills and knowledge transfer, labour mobility, regional ownership, and technical aviation capability improvements, and also provides a service that fosters economic relationships among regional airlines and CARICOM member states.

The National Development Strategy of Trinidad and Tobago (20162030) provides tangential views that can harness the imagination of our millennial population in establishing the ‘new normal’ that has eluded the region thus far. The UTT – through its education, research and inquiry – can spark a chain reaction that can catalyse air transportation’s success financially and otherwise, adding to the diversification agenda and ensuring a strong and sustainable economic footprint regionally. https://u.tt/?wk=52

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 17

T&T’S HIGH VALUE OPPORTUNITIES

expertise in the energy engineering services sector. Participants agreed that the best way to take the sector to the next level would be to first focus on risk analysis and mitigation services, as well as on completion technology for mature wells and reserve/resource analysis.

The medium-term goal is to establish Trinidad and Tobago (a veritable ‘T&T Inc’) as a respected global brand for energy engineering services and to expand the service portfolio into data science services. Longer term aspirations include moving further towards virtual plant operations and asset restoration activities.

Even before the establishment of a Centre of Excellence for this sector, it was suggested that energy service companies collaborate on a medium-term capability development strategy to maximise the transfer of management and other ‘soft skills’ to the smaller firms.

ICT Products and Services The ICT sector has long been recognised as possessing the potential to be an enabler of other industries, as well as being a sector earmarked for development in its own right. As with the other four sectors, there is huge scope for

ICT’s High Value Possibilities We are in the midst of the Digital Age where the power of ICT is transforming the way we socialise, communicate, teach, learn and Jean-Paul Dookie transact business.

Boundaries for Executive Vice communication President Fujitsu Caribbean and commerce have been (Trinidad) Ltd removed, exposing the world as the marketplace. Moreover the valuable digital extract is the actual data,

18 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“Geographically, Trinidad and Tobago is poised to take advantage of air traffic and locational opportunities for expansion across North, Central and South America via improved connectivity in all directions, carrying with it the possibility of becoming a central source of services in multiple sectors including education and technology, aircraft maintenance and support services.” focusing on quick-win technologies and services to address the ICT needs of the other key domestic industries and later move on to international markets.

Alongside the options available in energy, aviation and maritime services, firms are presently following leads in the financial services outsourcing (e.g.

BPO) and FinTech space. A few smaller local startups have even made strides in the virtual reality and augmented reality space, deploying locally developed solutions in the form of tourism and entertainment experiences. (For an example of this, check out https://www. panjamvr.com/). Although it has been slow to get off the blocks, the IDB-funded Global Services Promotion Programme is aimed at providing further development support for IT-enabled services firms.

We have only begun to scratch the surface of opportunities available to local firms, or to those that wish to invest locally, with respect to the five specialisation areas being championed by the EDAB. A second consultancy, that runs from March to June 2018, will refine and validate the initial strategic specifications into detailed implementation plans, including operational strategies, financing models and resource requirements.

Making any real, lasting progress in any of these areas will require close collaboration, co-ordination and sharing of resources between the private sector, academia and government. No one group can go it alone.

which is the information being collected from people and interconnected “things” over the internet (IoT), supporting new business models, efficiency and competitiveness.

This digital reality and its impact on business transformation has opened exciting opportunities for the ICT sector in Trinidad and Tobago. Our natural creativity as a people, high literacy and tertiary education rates, together with a solid foundation of technical ICT skills, make us ideally positioned to support local, regional and global organisations through their digital transformation journey.

Organisations, more than ever, are seeking ICT skills and services in the areas of digital such as Cloud, Data Analytics, Process Automation, IoT, Artificial Intelligence, Cyber Security and Block Chain. Progressive business

leaders understand that if they stick to business as usual and do not ‘think digital,’ they risk being disrupted.

This presents significant growth potential for the ICT sector which can not only become a major contributor to economic diversification, but to our export of services. Some local ICT companies and professionals have already started to seize the opportunity by focusing on, and skilling up to support, these high demand niche areas.

With an organised ICT sector, supported by targeted capacity development initiatives through cocreation between private sector and government, the possibilities for the ICT Sector in Trinidad and Tobago are endless.

http://planning.gov.tt/

http://www.fujitsu.com/caribbean/

T&T’S HIGH VALUE OPPORTUNITIES

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has been supporting the Government of Trinidad and Tobago in a programme of activity aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of non-hydrocarbon sectors in the T&T economy through investments in innovation.

One key initiative under this programme was a Consultancy on Technological Foresight which was undertaken and completed from January-August 2017.

The consultancy has produced five roadmaps that present an initial overview of the potential missions, innovation functions and services that could be pursued by local Centres of Excellence to support innovation and industrial growth in key economic specialisation areas beyond the hydrocarbon sector.

These areas and the proposed missions of the Centres are: •

High-Value Agricultural-Based Products Mission: Create High Value from T&T’s Indigenous Agricultural Species

•

ICT Products and Services Mission: Establish Excellence in ICT Capabilities for T&T’s Industries

•

Aviation Services Mission: Position T&T in the Global Aviation Sector Map

•

Maritime Services Mission: Utilise Innovation to Strengthen T&T’s Natural Competitive Advantages in the Maritime Industry

•

Energy Engineering Services (EES) Mission: Position T&T as a Globally Recognised Knowledge Centre for EES

For more information, visit the EDAB’s website: https://edab.org.tt/consultancytechnological-foresight/

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 19

RICH ENERGY RESOURCES

ENERGY OUTLOOK

T&T’s Oil and Gas Developments

BY THE ENERGY CHAMBER OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

20 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

RICH ENERGY RESOURCES

The last five years in the energy industry in T&T have been difficult. The fall in global commodity prices has continued to have trickle down effects to the overall economy. Further to this, the country has had issues with production of both natural gas and crude oil.

Current Scenario in T&T In 2017, however, prices for commodities saw some recovery, but still nowhere close to where it was in 2014. In addition, production for both oil and gas have seen a bit of stabilisation.

Natural gas output from 2016 to 2017 showed, for the first time since 2013, a year on year increase. While the year on year increase in total production was just one per cent, it represents the first year on year growth in average production since 2013. This reflects an apparent stabilisation of production and the arrest of the decline which has plagued the sector since 2010.

The production increase in 2017 was led by bpTT, driven by two major capital investment projects coming on-stream.

The Trinidad Onshore Compression (TROC) project came on-stream in April 2017, followed by the Juniper project in August 2017. By the end of the year, these two projects had helped lift bpTT’s total production back up to 2.3 billion cubic feet of gas per day. The company’s average production in 2017 was 12 per cent above its 2016 figures. bpTT remains the biggest gas producer, by far, in the country and accounted for 56 per cent of total production in 2017.

Investment in natural gas in the short term appears to be very optimistic. The major upstream operators have indicated that US$10 billion will be spent in the country over the next five years. The majors - bpTT, Shell, EOG and BHP - have all announced major plans to develop new gas resources. This includes investment in seismic data acquisition and new drilling programmes. Relatedly, major development projects are planned with respect to new platforms and new subsea infrastructure.

Angelin, bpTT’s next major development, is already underway with fabrication of the platform itself taking place in Mexico. Angelin, which will be bpTT’s 15th platform in Trinidad, is due to arrive in Trinidad in the third quarter

22 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“The major upstream operators have indicated that US$10 billion will be spent in the country over the next five years. The majors - bpTT, Shell, EOG and BHP - have all announced major plans to develop new gas resources.” of 2018, with installation planned for Q4.

First gas from the facility is expected in 2019.

Deepwater drilling has also been carded for 2018 by BHP. The company previously indicated that it has had one major deepwater discovery offshore Trinidad at the LeClerc fields. Minister of Energy, Franklin Khan, announced that this field contains four to five trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas. BHP intends to continue drilling in 2018 to prove this gas play.

For crude oil, the outlook seems to be uncertain. Despite an apparent increase at the end of 2017 for crude oil, these figures also include data relating to increased production from the controversy-embroiled A&V Drilling and Workover Ltd – which may mean that production has been less than what was reported to the Ministry of Energy.

The major producer of crude oil in Trinidad is Petrotrin. Historically, the company has been significantly affected by industrial relations action and issues with asset integrity and oil spills. In March 2017, the company was in a lossmaking position and continues to be in the unenviable position of increasing its operating cost without being able to increase its crude production or refinery throughput.

In an address to the nation in early 2018, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley said, “Petrotrin has contributed significantly to the growth and development of Trinidad and Tobago but is now in need of fundamental restructuring, which cannot be put off any longer.”

The restructuring exercise is currently underway, and several senior management officials have since resigned.

One of the reasons why investment in crude oil production is still not forthcoming is that it is being hampered by uncertainty over policy direction in terms of the fiscal regime and concerns around the impact of the supplemental petroleum tax.

Regional Developments Regionally, there have been significant developments in energy, Guyana being the most notable, with

Exxon declaring significant finds in the country since 2015. At present, Exxon has indicated that it has found large deposits of oil offshore Guyana at seven locations – six of which are commercial - Liza, Payara, Snoek, Turbot, Ranger and Pacora.

These finds have the potential to make Guyana a world-class producer of oil since production is likely to be upward of 200,000 barrels per day. This is significant when compared to T&T’s production of about 70,000 barrels per day, according to the latest available data at the end of 2017.

However, Guyana is not the only territory where an emerging energy market is evolving. In Barbados, BHP is already doing some deepwater exploration while Repsol has also secured acreage for exploration. According to BHP, the Eastern Caribbean is very attractive for deepwater exploration and has Tier 1 potential.

In Grenada, Prime Minister Dr Keith Mitchell has confirmed a commercial hydrocarbon find offshore. Dr Mitchell has indicated that hydrocarbons were found in huge commercial quantities, although the press statements are confusing about whether the find is oil or gas. Mitchell stated that one well with millions of cubic feet of gas was currently being evaluated and that there are several other wells to be drilled. While details have not been released, a wildcat exploration well called Nutmeg 2 was spudded by Global Petroleum Group (GPG), a little-known Russian company, in June 2017.

Over the next two years, the energy sector in T&T will see some recovery. The Ministry of Finance has already indicated that it expects energy sector contribution to the economy through taxes to increase in 2018. As well, the opportunities for the services sector are looking positive if all the proposed projects, both locally and regionally, come to fruition.

RICH ENERGY RESOURCES

Photo: Marlon Rouse

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 23

RICH ENERGY RESOURCES

OPPORTUNITIES in Guyana T&T’s Strategic Advantage

“Donald, should I invest in Guyana’s oil exploration?”

The caller was a prominent Guyana businessman and the time was a decade ago.

To answer his question, I Donald brought together Baldeosingh, some of the most MSc Engineering experienced persons President, in the Trinidad oil ENMAN Group and gas industry.

Founder, Carbon We conducted Zero Initiative an analysis of the of Trinidad & Guyana hydrocarbon Tobago potential and, in particular, the opportunity our client was considering. I also interviewed his potential overseas partners to better understand their plans.

At the end of the exercise, and backed by the team’s report, I gave him the short answer: “Yes.” And so he did.

Several months later he had expended a considerable sum of money, though not by oil exploration standards.

The effort yielded no commercially viable hydrocarbon deposits, meaning that his investment did not result in any immediate returns. Of course the data collected would help in future exploration efforts.

He was disappointed; I was devastated. After more than 100 years of oil production, we were not able to give the best support to our friends in Guyana!

Our team reviewed the data we had used, along with our process, and formed a conclusion not unlike “the operation was a success, but the patient died.” I went back to the client and pontificated that, “Oil and gas exploration is not for the faint of heart.” I told him that the “experts” in Trinidad felt that the hydrocarbon potential in Guyana was very high and I suggested that his company, as

24 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

a local business, should remain involved in Guyana’s efforts to find and produce oil and gas. Gentleman that he was, he did not say much, but I suspected that my credibility was completely shot.

Fast forward to today where companies like ExxonMobil, Repsol, Tullow, CGX and others have taken the risk and conducted exploration activities that posit oil production of 500,000 barrels per day, and I can extract some valuable lessons from that decade-old interaction.

In retrospect, we may have appeared arrogant by staying in Trinidad, studying the information at hand, and then sending our report by e-mail to our friends.

Secondly, there may have been a different outcome if we had followed up and attempted to give more support to the client in going forward. Thirdly, we may have considered taking some risk with them or bringing additional investment, if they were so inclined.

It is very natural for Guyanese and Trinis to partner, based on the close historical relationships in sports, culture and family life. There have been many good examples of businesses of very different types crossing between the

countries. These include the Massy Group and Old Mac Rice.

However, we would be foolhardy to take it for granted that we can simply land in Guyana and start operating. Or worse, that we can remain in Trinidad and operate a successful business in Guyana.

The formula for failure in making an entry to Guyana includes arrogance and not taking time to understand the cultural nuances, state of the business sector, hydrocarbon industry and physical amenities in Guyana. Importantly, due to the immense potential of the hydrocarbon industry and the short time before production is due to begin, there is something of a mad rush to get in - from all over the world. Hence, we have to be globally competitive.

The successful T&T business people in Guyana will be those who demonstrate that they are there for the long term. It will include those who choose to partner with local counterparts and hold their hands in getting up to speed. This means participating in developing the systems in Guyana, getting involved in capacity building (local content!) and actively promoting skills transfer. And we have to leave our bad habits at home.

RICH ENERGY RESOURCES

The opportunities are as wide as they are deep along the value chains. The first tier comprises the hydrocarbon industry skills and competencies, keeping in mind that much of the current activity is in the deep water and we have much less experience in this area than on and nearer to land.

Arising out of the slowdown in T&T, there are many journeymen, technicians and engineers on the market. This country would be best placed if such persons keep their families based in T&T as they venture out. It pains when we “export” our trained, experienced brain power due to lack of opportunity on the home front. Well, it can be merely a partial and temporary dislocation where a strong linkage to the homeland can remain.

Enterprising Trinis can also get involved in new travel and accommodation options for T&T nationals. Fast ferry to Georgetown, anyone?

Next up are the oil and gas service companies. They are generally more agile in getting to the external opportunities and some are already in Guyana. In this writer’s opinion, there is an opportunity to establish a base in Trinidad that specifically targets Guyana.

“There is an opportunity to establish a base in Trinidad comprising a cluster of T&T and Guyana companies that partner to specifically serve Guyana’s exploration operations.

Operations at the base would include training facilities, equipment rentals, service shops, logistics and Customs.”

Imagine a cluster of service companies with supporting infrastructure (training facilities, equipment rentals, service shops, logistics, Customs) all looking, literally, towards Guyana, and partnering with Guyanese investors and counterparts on the ground.

The next set of opportunities, I liken to Guyana’s well-established mining industry. Guyana has seen some of the best economic growth in the region recently because of strong prices and significant activity in the gold sector, and the continuation of its bauxite and diamond production. However, mining companies coming to Guyana have focused on these popular minerals and not on other niche mining prospects for such exotic minerals as columbitetantalite, manganese, molybdenite, tungsten, nickel and uranium; and semiprecious stones such as amethyst, green quartz and black pearl. T&T companies could also target the many other opportunities Guyana has on offer.

In the next few years, Guyana is likely to witness a boom such as never seen before in this region. However, there are important needs today. They include those required to support the country’s economic development, taking into consideration: 1. The requirements of the growing oil and gas industry itself.

2. The huge earnings and concomitant spending from taxes and royalties in a few years time.

3. The need to create balance in the economy to avoid Dutch Disease.

4. Guyana’s window of opportunity may be closing even as it is opening given the global trend away from burning of hydrocarbons.

There is no doubt that there exists today a very wide range of needs, and hence business opportunities in Guyana.

These include:• Institutional and administrative support in managing the industry • Training facilities, housing, hospitals, entertainment and other human needs • Transportation infrastructure, telecommunications, (hydro)power, potable water and food production • Professional services such as legal, accounting and engineering as well as contracting of many kinds.

Guyana’s President David Granger has signalled that he is focused on creating balance and on transferring the benefits of the upcoming boom across the spectrum of the country and people.

And so it should be. Guyana has been a land of promise for several decades and now, suddenly, it has been thrust into the global limelight.

For the benefits to be positive and enduring, the “starting point” has to be well understood by those coming in.

Equally, a future made up of efficiently working public and private sector systems must be the goal.

It would be remiss not to point out that, while we in T&T have a “good” history in the 100-plus years of oil and gas development, we also know only too well where the pitfalls are to be found.

We can assist our brothers and sisters in Guyana by being honest about what they should avoid as much as what they should embrace.

It also would be a good time for our Government to remind its counterpart in Guyana that in an earlier incarnation of both administrations, Guyana’s bill (for mostly oil products) ran into several hundred million US dollars, approximately US$500 million of which was written off, as a gesture of our friendship and support. www.enmangroup.com

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 25

ADVERTORIAL

BP Renegades

Celebrating their 70th Anniversary in Style!

T

he BP Renegades Steel Band is showing no signs of slowing down - kicking off their 70th anniversary celebrations in 2018 with their 10th Panorama title. It was a win for a new generation of Renegades players and fans.

BP Trinidad & Tobago (bpTT) has been a proud sponsor of the band for about 48 of those 70 years. The partnership began in June 1970 with an agreement between the band and bpTT heritage company, Amoco. At the time, Amoco was relatively new to the country and was part of the movement towards the establishment of corporate support for steelbands.

The relationship was modest at first, with the company providing T-shirts and pans. Over time, though, the band and bpTT have grown closer. Renegades’ leadership and bpTT now work closely together on the band’s plans for each Carnival season and on areas such as the branding for the panyard. Each year, BP

26 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Renegades’ fortunes are shared by those who work closely with the band as well as other pan enthusiasts in the company.

A lot has changed since 1970. The company and the band have matured .

Through it all, BPTT and Renegades have remained a close-knit family. Why? Because of the commitment by the company and the band to maintain the relationship. Another reason the partnership has lasted is because it is driven by bpTT’s commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR). bpTT’s approach to CSR is based on the philosophy of mutual advantage for both country and company. We believe that the success of our business is closely linked to the success of the communities and the country in which we operate.

We focus on Arts and Culture, Enterprise Development, the Environment and Education. The partnership with Renegades represents one of the company’s leading Arts and Culture initiatives.

Renegades is more than a band. It is a focal

point for the community, with several members ‘growing up’ in the band to become musicians in their own right. The Renegades Youth Steel Orchestra is an institution which provides guidance and a strong foundation for young people in the area to become self-disciplined, successful, valued adults in the community.

Support for Renegades, then, is more than support for a band. By partnering with Renegades, bpTT is actually helping to develop the community through the avenue of arts and culture. This is at the heart of our approach to CSR. Forty-eight years may seem like a long time, but for bpTT and Renegades, there’s a lot more to come!

LOCAL SUCCESS STORY

Helen Bhagwansingh is an iconic businesswoman and a visionary, adept at making the right decisions at the right time. Focused and determined yet compassionate and humble, she turned the Bhagwansingh name into an empire known nationally and abroad. In 2000, the Energy Chamber of Trinidad & Tobago named her their “Woman of the Millennium.” In 2010, she became the first woman to be inducted into the Business Hall of Fame by the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

Mrs. B, as she is affectionately known, was awarded an honorary doctorate from The University of the West Indies (UWI) and in 2011 received the Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the nation’s highest honour. She also donated $5 million to establish the Diabetes Education, Research and Prevention Trust at UWI.

28 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Helen Bhagwansingh SUCCESS STORY BUILDING AN EMPIRE

I

t all began in 1959 under a 20’ x 20’ shed in Sea Lots, Port of Spain when Helen Bhagwansingh, with a dream and a determination to succeed, started her empire.

She didn’t know it at the time but when she started a building blocks depot, it was to be the beginning of a long journey in business, in service to community and to philanthropy. For over five decades, Bhagwansingh’s has become a leading name in the hardware industry, a testament to its dynamism.

With her husband Hubert Bhagwansingh at her side, Helen Bhagwansingh became a pioneering figure in the business community, building up the Port of Spain outlet into a thriving business which she then bought from her father and renamed Bhagwansingh’s Hardware & Steel Industries Ltd. The expansion drive continued with new outlets opened in Chaguanas (1988), Marabella (1995) and Trincity (2007). From Bhagwansingh’s Hardware, the empire grew with the acquisition of Dansteel Ltd (1996) and Central Trinidad Steel Ltd - CENTRIN (1998) among other entities, making the Bhagwansingh’s Group of Companies a formidable presence in the local business landscape.

The Bhagwansingh’s Group of Companies was able to survive the economic depression of the 1980s and the current economic recession by diversifying and maintaining a broad portfolio with a long -term view to success. During such times, it was easy to panic. Panic is fear-driven rather than fact driven and has tremendous power to change the direction of business. However, the company leadership did not give in to panic. They confronted change, seeing change as an opportunity for advances.

While sales have been recovering, a major issue facing the Group is a lack of foreign exchange, which is having a negative impact on the payment of suppliers within a reasonable time. The Bhagwansingh’s Group has been able to rise to the challenges of the times given its excellent relationship with suppliers, and a local, loyal customer base returning to Bhagwansingh’s and Dansteel Ltd time and time again for all their hardware needs.

Looking to the future, the Group is seeking to further expand with the construction of a five-storey business complex in Trincity together with other real estate initiatives across the country. The Bhagwansingh’s Group is also seeking to expand its presence in the wider Caribbean, starting first with the Lesser Antilles. The Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) is proving to be an economic area ready for expansion, providing much needed foreign exchange to offset the shortages that exist here.

Trinidad and Tobago is poised to exit the recession with the ability to fully recover. The Bhagwansingh’s Group of Companies is well-positioned to maximise this new growth by relying on a dynamic investment strategy, with a workforce ready to accept the challenges. Productivity will be a key ingredient to encouraging investment and the workforce must be prepared to modernise and face the challenges of the 21st century.

Mrs. Helen Bhagwansingh is a visionary and she will continue to lead the Group into uncharted territory. Her sharp business acumen coupled with a sense of direction, compassion and a sense of duty to society makes her continued leadership a key ingredient in the success that is Bhagwansingh’s, a foundation well-laid for future generations to follow.

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 29

AGRICULTURE’S UNIQUE ADVANTAGES

Leveraging T&T’s Geographical Indications to

BOOST EXPORTS

30 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

From its awardwinning, uniquely delicious honey and its worldrecognised Scorpion pepper to its globallytraded cocoa and unusual redgrained rice - T&T Joel Henry is home to many Writer, home-grown Journalist and agricultural Communications commodities with Specialist the potential to command exotic, niche market prices.

To showcase the many investment opportunities in this sector, in March 2017, the St. Augustine Campus of The University of the West Indies (UWI) held its inaugural “techAGRI Expo.”

Hosted by the Faculty of Food and Agriculture (FFA), the three-day event highlighted local innovation and entrepreneurship in the agriculture sector.

It exceeded all expectations.

The wide range of original products included start-up coffee brands from local beans, wines made from local fruit and vegetables, and a host of other plant-based products - each one representing a business idea with deep potential.

But business requires more than potential. “Our people are very innovative and imaginative,” says Dr. Wayne Ganpat, Dean of the FFA. “The stumbling block is taking that creativity and transforming it into a profitable business. We had hundreds of products at techAGRI, great variety, but these small entrepreneurs need financial help and business training in areas such as marketing.”

Increasingly, observers have begun to recognise the need to support the commercialisation of agricultural products. Farming and food production require a different kind of expertise to activities such as marketing and branding. So industry experts and policymakers have stepped in, and one of the measures being promoted is geographical indications. In other words - branding it T&T.

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 31

AGRICULTURE’S UNIQUE ADVANTAGES

The Power of a National Brand Geographical indications (GIs), as defined by Trinidad and Tobago’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO), are signs or symbols that “identify goods as emanating from any specific region or location of a country that gives the goods its known quality, reputation or characteristics.”

There are numerous, well-known, global examples - Scotch whisky, Tequila and Champagne being just a few. These GIs carry a reputation for quality and uniqueness. They are in high demand worldwide.

The IPO, an office within the Ministry of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs, not only processes GI applications but is an active proponent of GI branding and protection. The office has approached local producers with potential for a GI and has held workshops to teach producers about its benefits. “They are reaching out in areas they believe are good candidates for GI instead of waiting for people to come to them,” says Agricultural Economist Omardath Maharaj.

The GI application process and the benefits it provides are laid out in Trinidad and Tobago’s Geographical Indications Act of 1996. Its greatest potential benefit is the impact on a producer’s bottomline. “Buyers will pay a better price for a recognised brand that offers consistent quality,” says Professor Pathmanathan Umaharan, Director of UWI’s Cocoa Research Centre (CRC).

The CRC’s mission is to support the growth of the cocoa sector. As such, the centre has been deeply involved in working with cocoa farmers to develop their certification and branding for the export trade. The CRC has assisted the Montserrat Cocoa Farmers Co-operative Society Ltd (MCFCSL) in becoming the first Trinidad-based organisation to achieve their GI application.

“Since acquiring the GI, the Montserrat Co-operative Society has been able to get a better price than anybody else in Trinidad and Tobago,” says Professor Umaharan.

The CRC Director, however, is quick to point out that it is not as easy as simply slapping a ‘Made in T&T’ sign on a commodity. “Branding itself doesn’t

32 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Featured on Cookie Monster’s Foodie Truck on Sesame Street - Trinidad’s Tableland Sugarloaf Pineapple. bring you value. What’s the reputation and story behind the brand? You need certification from reputable agencies, traceability and consistency.”

Products With GI Potential Trinidad cocoa is the perfect commodity for a GI because it has enjoyed a strong international reputation for years. It is already highly sought after in the global fine flavoured cocoa business. It also benefits from the work CRC can do on its behalf in quality certification.

However, cocoa is not the only commodity with the potential to be GIregistered. Trinidad’s second GI process will most likely be completed by Vista Dorado Estates, producers of Moruga Hill Rice. This organic, red-grained rice, native to Moruga, has a compelling story.

It was first brought to the island by the Merikins, African warriors who fought for the British during the American Revolutionary War. Featured in the New York Times in February 2018, Moruga hill rice has market demand particularly in the Southern US as a culinary artefact of the African Diaspora.

Apart from Hill Rice, another commodity with GI potential has reached an international audience. In December 2017, viewers of the classic children’s programme Sesame Street were shown a feature about the Tableland sugarloaf pineapple and the farmers that produce them.

“They featured us on a segment called Cookie Monster’s Foodie Truck,” says Maharaj who, in addition to being a Graduate Student and Instructor with the Faculty, also represents the Tableland Pineapple Farmers Association.

After the segment aired, the IPO reached out to the Association and asked if they would be interested in carrying out the GI process. The Tableland sugarloaf pineapple is a hybrid variety of the Black Antigua, which does well on the international market because of its superior taste.

Maharaj says GI “has value” because of how it can impact prices. However, this is in the long term, he explained, as currently the Association is not prepared for the export business. In the short term, it can serve as a boost to farmer motivation.

“People don’t realise that the dreams and aspirations of our local farmers are low,” he says. “I saw the spirit of engagement with Sesame Street. They are now on a world stage.

Measures like GI are a way to lift the dreams and motivations of farmers.”

If there is any concern about GI, it is not its potential benefits for better prices, improvement and consistency of standards, nor even its ability to enhance the reputation of the nation itself or creating a successful brand.

The far more fundamental challenge facing the local agricultural industry is production itself.

“I think GI is an excellent idea and needs to be pushed,” says Dr. Ganpat.

“I think there are many opportunities to leverage the advantage of ‘made in T&T.’ But we have to raise our level of production. We have to do a better job of feeding ourselves.”

Dr. Ganpat sees the need to support producers through training in commercialisation. In line with this, the Faculty plans on launching a new MSc programme in “Value Addition in Food Security” in 2018.

“With all the meats, fruits and vegetables we have, we can certainly add value and make quality products,” he says. “We will always have to import, but if we can produce more locally we will reduce the import bill and do a real service to the country.”

He adds, “And if we are good enough, we can also export for foreign exchange. In that environment, Geographical Indications will greatly enhance our products.” http://sta.uwi.edu/ffa/

AGRICULTURE’S UNIQUE ADVANTAGES

Diaspora Investment Success – T&T FINE COCOA COMPANY LTD T&T’s wide range of original products include start-up coffee brands from local beans, wines made from local fruit and vegetables, and a host of other plantbased products - each one representing a business idea with deep potential.

Entrepreneur Ashley Parasram shares with InvesTT Trinidad and Tobago, the nation’s investment promotion agency, his reasons for coming back home to invest and the next steps for further growth of his chocolate factory.

Were you born in T&T? Yes, but I grew up in England from the age of four. I have also lived in Finland, Scotland and Indonesia, then came back home five years ago to set up the Trinidad and Tobago Fine Cocoa Company.

Why did you think that T&T was the best place for your investment?

Primarily because of raw material – the availability of the Trinitario bean as a natural resource provided a unique opportunity worth investing in.

The original motivation came about because I was advised that the cocoa industry needed rehabilitating. Since my background is in international development, I felt that my experience working on environmental issues could be used at home. I was particularly concerned that the cocoa industry had declined to the point of disappearing, much like sugar. Not only would we lose valuable genetic material, but also its history and heritage.

What prompted your final decision to invest?

It was the support of institutions like InvesTT, ExporTT, UWI, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Trade & Industry and the British High Commission that was invaluable; they provided much needed advice, knowledge and technical expertise. All these institutions remain key to the project and, working closely together, we are confident of finding a sustainable way forward for the sector.

What has been your strategy for success?

I think that success is measured in different ways. There’s economic success in ensuring that the factory is financially viable and economically sustainable.

However, for us, a major element of success is finding ways to stimulate interest in the sector and getting people engaged in cocoa. In the past five years, we’ve seen lots more cocoa-based companies setting up in T&T, which is exciting.

Did local socio-economic factors deter you from investing at any point in time?

No, I don’t think so. Crime happens everywhere in the world and it’s a genuine concern but I don’t think that it should prevent someone from investing here. I think creating employment and training programmes will help generate a stronger sense of community which, in turn, could help reduce crime levels. The best way to deal with crime is to create opportunities for people and ways of generating income. An industry like agriculture can help people in rural areas who may have limited options otherwise.

What do you consider to be your greatest achievements so far?

Our greatest achievement is building a team that works collaboratively; we have a great team of people who all trust each other, treat everyone fairly and support one another. Like any family we have our good days and our bad days, but still the team is our most important attribute; I think once you have that, success is bound to follow. Winning awards gives us great encouragement and we are excited about developing the products and brand, but if you’re trying to change or stimulate a sector, it has to start with the people.

What has been the success of the IMPACTT (Improving Marketing Production of Artisanal Cocoa from T&T) programme?

We are in year two of a three-year

programme set up in partnership with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Cocoa Research Centre, training cocoa growers to improve their standards. If we want to develop our cocoa industry, we have to start with the growers. They need support, investment and standards to adhere to so that the beans are of the highest quality and can command a higher price. IMPACTT has been a very positive intervention so far and has really helped increase the profile and awareness of T&T’s cocoa sector. It’s no longer only about supplying beans to foreign chocolate companies but to local chocolatiers who can use it in local and international markets.

What’s next for T&T Fine Cocoa?

Last year, we launched our co-branded selection of gourmet chocolates with Harrods Stores in London. This year, we’re very excited to launch our new chocolate shop at the Trinidad Hilton and Conference Centre and we have invited a UK chocolatier to train local chocolatiers. The shop opening will form part of a T&T Chocolate Weekend Experience and will include pairings and tastings.

What advice would you give to other diaspora investors?

I think it’s about bringing back skills. When you’ve spent time abroad, you have a different understanding of standards, quality, marketing and branding because you’ve had more international exposure. The diaspora can also bring valuable networks, which may help the country grow. For them, there’s an opportunity to have a better quality of life here too, so everyone benefits. Many of the popular diaspora hotspots are really expensive to live in and the way of life can be quite gruelling. Now we have greater ability to travel, I think many people will realise there is a lot on offer right here on our doorstep. I also reckon that Tobago has a huge amount of potential which could be appealing to the diaspora, but it somehow gets overlooked. I am actually based in Bon Accord, Tobago, so I’m keen to ensure that Tobago is included in, and benefits from, what we’re doing. http://www.investt.co.tt/ http://ttfinecocoa.com/

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 33

AGRICULTURE’S UNIQUE ADVANTAGES

T&T’s Agricultural REVOLUTION

BY THE NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL MARKETING AND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (NAMDEVCO)

The introduction, and expert management, of technology-based agricultural systems is revolutionising the agriculture sector in Trinidad and Tobago. These systems are creating opportunities for Nirmalla agro-entrepreneurial Debysinghdevelopment that Persad require less manual Chief Executive labour; are improving Officer (Ag.) the quality, safety and yield of produce without the use of harmful inputs; and are promoting the development of sustainable food production systems that are necessary to feed the population, alleviate malnutrition and reduce the food import bill.

Trinidad and Tobago’s agricultural sector continues to be driven by the goal of sustainability. Our production systems have the capacity to produce high volumes of a wide range of tropical commodities, some with indigenous organoleptic quality profiles that are sought after in various pockets of the globe.

Exotic Crops One such opportunity lies in the export of the Moruga Red variety of hot peppers. The varietal characteristic of this commodity lends itself to extended shelf life and good marketable qualities for extended periods of its post-harvest life. The peppers are less susceptible to quality losses during shipping once proper post-harvest conditions are maintained. Trends in the price and volume data collected at NAMDEVCO demonstrate the lucrative opportunities for this commodity, which was sometimes sold at US$18 - $22 / 8-lb box at the USA terminal markets.

Similar trends in the demand for other commodities - inclusive of the pimento variety of peppers, dasheen

34 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

leaves and melongene - are documented as there continues to be daily air shipments of these commodities into the USA terminal markets and regional markets alike.

While this country is able to sustainably produce agricultural goods to meet local demand, there are a number of commodities, such as exotic tropical fruits, that can be produced at a high quality and are in high demand in many tourist-based markets worldwide.

However, few orchards and plantations exist to provide consistent supplies of these exotic fruits, some of which are indigenous to the Caribbean islands.

As such, greater investment opportunities can be created through the application of emerging production practices to ensure year-round availability of seasonal varieties of these exotic fruits.

In addition, improved farming techniques can prevent high postharvest losses, which equate to reduced marketing opportunities, and create the competitive advantage for these high demand exotic fruits. Further opportunities can be found in agroprocessing of these fruits to capitalise on the global market opportunities that are awaiting growth.

Exciting avenues to create sustainable value chains based on other commodities in the staples group also exist. Quite recently, local varieties of rice grown and processed in Trinidad have successfully been marketed in local supermarkets. Now there is a growing demand to export these nutritious and unique varieties to regional and international markets.

Similarly, lucrative opportunities also present themselves for root crops with respect to new varieties of cassava and sweet potatoes. These new varieties offer greater resistance to pest and diseases as well as increased nutritional benefits of minerals, proteins and antioxidants, when compared to the varieties that are currently propagated by farmers. Many

AGRICULTURE’S UNIQUE ADVANTAGES

farmers are eager to gain access to these new varieties to increase the economic benefits of their farming enterprise. The use of technology-driven propagation methods is highly sought after as farmers currently do not have access to enough planting materials to develop their markets.

Corn is another promising staple.

Trinidad and Tobago imports a large volume of corn and corn-based products.

The majority of this commodity is required for animal feed. While farmers are now entering into the production of new varieties of corn for table use that show increasing demand, the opportunity to process corn for animal feed - as well as value addition inclusive of canned, frozen and corn flour industries - can be realised with the availability of equipment and a sustainable raw material supply.

These same possibilities present themselves for the legume food group.

Increased production of pigeon peas, black eye peas and bodi beans are required to meet (in the first instance) the demand of institutional buyers. These nutrient dense foods can be utilised in many cuisines and, in most instances, do not require elaborate equipment for value added opportunities.

The marketing opportunities available locally are inclusive of, but not limited to, the School Feeding Programme, hospitals, hotels and restaurants.

Two other commodities that are of strategic importance currently in Trinidad and Tobago are honey and cocoa. Due to the unique flavour profiles of these commodities, many avenues are available for investment along the value chain, from increased production to agro-processing for international markets. This is a typical case where demand outweighs supply.

Harvesting the bounty of these commodities could be realised with a Commodity Value Chain Approach, which Jamaica and Guyana have already successfully employed to increase the volume of agricultural exports and reduce the price of food. In Trinidad and Tobago, the concept has been adopted to develop the cassava, hot pepper and pumpkin export industries. More importantly, through this approach, the gaps that existed in the value chain of these commodities were identified, which then became opportunities for the discerning businessman.

“Greater investment opportunities can be created through the application of emerging production practices to ensure year-round production of seasonal varieties of exotic tropical fruits that are in high demand in many tourist-based markets.”

Photo: Great Greens

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 35

AGRICULTURE’S UNIQUE ADVANTAGES

Business Opportunities Along the Value Chain There are many business opportunities along the value chain for all the above-mentioned commodities.

These include: • Commercial Farming and Farm Management Systems • Input Suppliers • Machinery and Equipment Suppliers • On-farm infrastructural service providers • Research and Development (R&D) • Post-harvest handling facilities • Specialised transport mechanisms from the field to the points of sale to maintain quality of fresh and value-added products • Certification systems that meet with local and international trade requirements • Training at all levels of the value chain for all players involved • Manufacturing • Shelf life extension technologies – introduction and adaptation of these technologies are underdeveloped • Business development, planning and management services • Market Intelligence Machinery and Equipment Suppliers The manufacturing sector provides wide scope for investments, as demonstrated by the various successful companies who create value-added agricultural products to meet local and export market demands. Examples include beer, cereal, condiments and snacks - for which local companies import their raw material for processing.

There is also need for R&D investments with respect to fabrication of specialised machinery for the processing and post-harvest handling of local varieties of agricultural commodities. This would increase the utilisation of locally available produce and reduce costs associated with inputs from imported sources.

36 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“New varieties of cassava and sweet potatoes present lucrative opportunities.

These new varieties offer greater resistance to pest and diseases simultaneously with increased nutritional benefits of minerals, proteins and antioxidants.”

Post-Harvest Handling Facilities Relatedly, there is clear need for post-harvest handling facilities, inclusive of:• on-field cooling mechanisms, to reduce quality losses at the point of harvest; • curing facilities for items such as sweet potatoes; and • ripening rooms that have the capability to ripen fruits safely and evenly for improved handling in value-added applications as well as improved shelf life properties during the marketing life of the fruit.

Ripening rooms can also be used to de-green citrus and other commodities to improve market opportunities Manufacturing Further value-added opportunities can be found in the manufacture of packaging materials from agricultural waste recovery systems, as well as the manufacture of plastics for other industries such as those seen in developed countries.

Technology Adaptation and Adoption Technology in agriculture is another significant area for further investment. Though some technologies such as hydroponics, greenhouses and machinery have been introduced to T&T, the area of robotics in agriculture and other sophisticated technology solutions are much needed to increase yield and improve food safety and quality to the end user. Farmers in Trinidad and Tobago have successfully adapted to some of the agri-technology solutions to improve their yield and reduce their labour requirements.

Throughout the country, use of greenhouse technologies are noticeable. Farmers are now increasing the number of greenhouses they use and are exploring the production of non-traditional crops that are demanded locally. In addition, with the growing demand for more “organicbased” agriculture, farmers are utilising these technologies, which do not require use of insecticides and other harmful inputs into the food supply chain.

Greenhouse products such as sweet peppers, tomatoes, cantaloupes and cucumbers have found their way to T&T’s shelves and have even opened up regional markets. However, there are many other opportunities to produce more varieties of crops, using greenhouse technologies, based on growing demands for safe food locally, regionally and internationally.

It has also been clearly proven, in T&T, that utilisation of mechanical planters and harvesters result in significant reductions in the cost of production and improved quality of produce. These interventions have demonstrated agriculture’s profitable yet sustainable prospects. Many farmers have actually re-designed and reengineered existing equipment to meet their various production requirements, highlighting yet another area of opportunity - that of agro-engineering - just waiting for someone to knock.

With the many challenges facing the country, inclusive of climate change, investing in agriculture compels us to utilise technologies to improve operational efficiency and create avenues to spur entrepreneurial investment. www.namdevco.com

EXPORT POTENTIAL

Opportunities IN TREND REVERSAL The Franchise Flip

38 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Trinidad & Tobago has made great gains from absorbing global models of the franchising system over the past 50 years with a particularly explosive upsurge in the past decade. As foreign companies enjoy the influx Sheldon Waithe of US cable television and Writer the subsequent brand awareness that it raises amongst the local psyche, T&T’s appetite for franchise consumption seems to continually find space in what should be a crowded, saturated market. This habit has caused myopia of one-way traffic. T&T is so immersed in the importing of franchises that - even with the overriding spiel of diversification of the economy - it is ignoring the option of reversing the franchise pattern.

Derek Waddell sits in the perfect position to analyse the franchise export opportunities of T&T. As Chairman of Restaurants Holdings Ltd, he is at the helm of global brands such as Burger King, Popeye’s Chicken and Little Caesar’s Pizza. He says: “We have benefitted tremendously from local businessmen adopting these franchises and bringing them to the Caribbean.”

However, he adds: “The consumer has great choice but in a depressed economy it’s difficult to grow; there are a number of things weighing on the industry. Firstly, to pay the franchiser because of the foreign exchange predicament that we’re in..... Secondly, the tight labour market means it’s difficult to get the staffing, we have high turnover despite the job opportunities, but it is getting better. Also, the rental cost of locations is very significant because the prices have been inflated by the demand coming in from the franchises.”

Nevertheless, a recent thawing of the stringency in franchise arrangements has led to benefits in other spheres of the local market.

“Franchisers have had to realise that inputs can be provided in Trinidad. So, whereas they initially demanded that everything be imported, with the FOREX squeeze everyone is looking for import substitution and realised that there is a local manufacturing base that can provide that,” he explains.

With these changes occurring, is the local market ready to make the great leap and ‘flip the script’ by exporting franchises of our own across a myriad of industries? Waddell says, “We have examples such as Sacha Cosmetics, Royal Castle and Rituals, who have come up with the concept, perhaps modelled on international brands, and placed themselves in Caribbean and Latin American countries.”

Identifying the demand that he is confident exists for things T&T, Waddell says, “There is a huge market for ‘Caribbean.’ People

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 39

EXPORT POTENTIAL

want to buy, own, to engage with a piece of the Caribbean. Everybody thinks that if they are exporting that they have to focus on the diaspora. A tourist in the Caribbean wants to know what the local beer is and that’s where the Caribbean brands can follow the tourists back to their home market.”

The notion applies across the spectrum, including the big one for T&T - Carnival. Waddell points out: “No one has really franchised Carnival because we think too narrowly as to what Carnival really is. It is the franchising of Caribbean culture. If we think of it in the replicated Carnival events in the UK, New York, Toronto etc yes, those are single opportunities, but there are bigger opportunities. Why is there not a Trinidad Rum Shop in the middle of New York?

That is a year-round prospect. People think of making costumes for one-off events like Miami Carnival, but I’m saying no, think of what our culture is, and people that would like to experience that in Minnesota. It’s how you package it as a whole.”

As for waiting for government to work with private enterprise to do this, Waddell does not mince words.

“Traditionally, businessmen have said that is the role of the Ministry of Tourism.

Forget about government being your partner or promoter. They don’t have the resources. Also, they will invariably have political reasons to be involved, which will be in conflict with the business side. It’s a cop out if you say that ‘the government does not help us.’ Use the incentives that governments have in place to encourage export and make your own way!”

The demand for quality Caribbean products has resulted in foreigners seeking their own channels of purchasing, in the absence of these products being available abroad. For example, Waddell notes: “T&T has a fantastic chocolate story, about having the best cocoa in the world. Yet the chocolatiers come here and buy the cocoa direct from the farmer, then sell it at 10 times the purchase price!

If you are willing to go out there, you have a ready-made story that people get immediately. It lends itself to the credibility of a history of cocoa and that is what needs to be communicated for the foreign markets to accept it. It means looking for the brand legend that the

40 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“People want to buy, own, to engage with a piece of the Caribbean. A tourist in the Caribbean wants to know what the local beer is and that’s where the Caribbean brands can follow the tourists back to their home market.” target markets will understand and want to be part of.”

As for overcoming the investment capital obstacle to interacting in these markets, Waddell emphasises: “The capital is there. It requires ideas and passion. I know people that have begun the process already.”

The final factor that he believes makes exporting T&T products and franchises even more possible is the shrinking world in which we now live. “Globalisation, digitisation, means that you have channels to go directly to the consumer.

The younger people - well younger than me anyway! - get it and have the entrepreneurial skills to drive it.”

It blows open the possibilities, as Waddell sees a limitless line emanating from the underutilised local market, via some unexplored avenues. “Why can’t we be strong in say, coffee, and find other things that can be uniquely Trinidadian?”

Tapping into the global franchise market is the future and that’s exactly where Derek Waddell thinks we should take aim. “Millennials want new and diverse experiences, to travel, to sample cultures and we have to delve into that.

As an example, you wouldn’t have thought 20 years ago that sushi would become this popular globally so why not a chain of doubles franchises across the US and Canada?” That’s a tasty prospect indeed!

Derek Waddell Chairman of Restaurants Holdings Ltd Photo: Gary Jordan

ADVERTORIAL

T

he TTMA invites you to join us in the most diverse and engaging Trade and Investment Convention in the Caribbean! Now in its 19th year, TIC 2018 promises to connect the most successful and progressive commercial enterprises within and outside of the region. This year, we anticipate more than 15,000 participants over the period July 5th – 8th at the Centre of Excellence, Macoya, coming to transact business as we approach the start of a new era in 2020 and beyond.

Powerfully themed “New Horizons, New Opportunities,” this year’s Trade and Investment Convention will offer you, our prospective Exhibitor, the ability to leverage new business in the global market place.

TIC 2018 signifies the Expansion of Business Opportunities for Manufacturers and Service Providers across the region and the globe. TIC serves as an impetus for regional and international trade and it is the ideal forum for finding and creating new markets for both Macro and Micro Enterprises.

Our trade show has traditionally attracted buyers from the Caribbean, North & Latin America and as far as Europe; we expect that this will persist in 2018, as the international reach of our show continues to gain momentum.

We encourage you to Register Now and secure the ideal space at the Convention.

For more information on Exhibiting please email: ticsales@ttma.com or call 1-868-675-8862.

Persons interested in attending as Buyers and/or Visitors can Pre-Register Now on our website ttma.com/tic to gain Free Entry to the Convention.

TIC 2018 – a wise investment as you position your enterprise for heightened success!

EXPORT POTENTIAL

Exporting Higher

EDUCATION SERVICES In our current economic environment, not only is there increasing concern and discussion around diversification, but chatter about the means by which to preserve and boost Tarin Hodges our foreign exchange Senior Advisor earnings. In these Organisational conversations – Development whether at the & Assessment water cooler, in the Centre (ODAC) boardroom or in - Consulting Parliament – it is rare Services to hear educational Arthur Lok Jack services mentioned Global School of as a means to Business, UWI economic growth.

Yet the export of educational services is not a new topic of discussion in Trinidad and Tobago.

As part of a Commonwealth Secretariat funded project, “Strengthening the Competitiveness of Services in Trinidad and Tobago,” a consulting team drafted a “National Strategy for Export of Education Services.” The document was prepared for the Trinidad and Tobago Coalition of Services Industries (TTCSI). The results of the research conducted estimated that foreign students comprised less than five per cent of those attending our tertiary education institutions, and identified three areas for growing and exporting education services in Trinidad and Tobago: Higher Education, English Language Training, and Technical and Vocational Education. It was estimated that this strategy could contribute as much as US$62.5 Million to our GDP, the bulk of which (60%) would come from Higher Education.

With recent newspaper articles reporting the current financial woes of our major tertiary level institutions,

42 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

finding new sources of income may be the key means of survival for these organisations. Hopefully, the need to access funding or become self-sustaining will be a strong enough motivator to make exporting education a point of strategic focus. The export of educational services - and more specifically higher education - may be a means of not just diversifying our economy and generating foreign exchange, but ensuring the continued sustainability of our tertiary education sector.

The export of Tertiary Education has been a notable, yearly contributor to GDP for many countries. According to UNESCO Institute of Statistics (UIS) - which tracks the global flow of tertiary level students – the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia are the top three exporters in this area; moreover, this service is expected to be an ongoing area for growth. According to Universities Australia, the country’s International Education service provided 130,700 jobs and was Australia’s third largest export, moving up from fourth place in the previous year 2014-2015.

Exporting education is a priority for these countries. The question remains as to whether a Caribbean island can expect to compete in this landscape and gain a piece of the pie.

A Caribbean success story One Caribbean island that has successfully enticed students to its shores is Grenada. Due to the numbers it attracts, Grenada is one of the few Caribbean nations with an export of educational services significant enough to register on the UIS database. As the table shows, the nation draws students from 36 countries and the number of students coming to its shores (6,303) is greater that the number that leave (478).

After the United Kingdom and Canada, Grenada is the third most popular destination for US tertiary level students,

appealing to 4,543 US students.

While 92% of Grenada’s student arrivals are from the Western Hemisphere, the island is also able to host students from the world’s largest sources of outbound students, namely China, India, and Nigeria. However, it is interesting to note that none of its tertiary level intake is from Latin America, while only 6% comprise Caribbean nationals.

So what does Grenada have to offer?

St. George’s University. A visit to the home page of this institution’s website, makes one immediately aware of its international focus and the promotion of opportunities for its graduates. If you dig a little further, the school goes on to tout its global recognition and acceptance by professing the career mobility of its doctors, as well as its accreditation.

Lessons for Trinidad and Tobago The Grenada story endorses the OECD’s findings (Education at a Glance 2017) concerning the primary factors that influence international student mobility: geographical distance to travel, the quality of programmes and their international prestige, the language of instruction, accreditation standards, the harmonisation of degree structures and multilateral agreements.

However, there are other key factors that serve as a magnet to students: political stability, a sense of safety and security on campus and in the host country, cultural and religious proximity to a student’s native country, tuition costs, immigration policy, and professional opportunity both during and after graduation.

Trinidad and Tobago already possesses some of these attractors.

We are an English-speaking nation, and countries with English as their official language are reported to be top destinations for international students.

In addition, our rich multi-ethnic society, especially deep in its Indian and

EXPORT POTENTIAL

Chinese heritage, can be a major draw for students from the world’s largest providers of international students such as India and China.

Our highly industrial society also provides opportunity for exposure to and exploration of various industries and professions. Furthermore, with seven universities and colleges, we have a greater capacity to host students.

At the same time, there are factors that we need to develop and promote to enhance these “natural” advantages such as the quality of our programmes, adherence to accreditation standards, the sense of individual safety and security, the improvement of national standards for support services such as accommodation, and our immigration policy.

However, these are areas that other countries are already bolstering in an effort to secure or increase their share of the foreign student market. Australia, for example, has simplified its student visa process, while Canada has amended its immigration policy to give international students access to part-time employment off campus.

Given the trend of increasing external competition in education, the task before us as a nation is to differentiate ourselves from the competition. It is imperative that we consider what would make our higher education services distinctive. For example, with the annual experience of staging “the greatest show on earth,” should our institutions be offering business degree programmes with specialisations in entertainment business?

Connected to this is our expertise in costume design, which our institutions can offer either independently or by taking advantage of the transnational education (TNE) export trend of dual degree programmes.

We also have the ability to provide students with the opportunity to learn from one of the top methanol producers in the world. In these areas, not only can we offer a rich educational experience but provide wide-ranging opportunities for internships.

Our own experience at the Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business has taught the value of a deliberate, strategic focus on internationalisation. Some of the initiatives the school has taken to export education include:

Given the trend of increasing external competition in education, it is imperative to make our higher education services distinctive. For example, with the annual experience of staging “the greatest show on earth,” should our institutions be offering business degree programmes with specialisations in entertainment business?

•

a dedicated internationalisation unit

•

identified target markets with pinpointed promotional initiatives for attracting external students

•

the pursuit of globally recognised accreditations, e.g. AMBA

•

the diversification of educational delivery by increasing online offerings

•

•

building the school’s prestige through research collaborations with the World Economic Forum; hosting conferences with internationally lauded speakers such as Michael Porter, Malcolm Gladwell and Peter Senge.

This has contributed to the institution’s ability to open its doors to students across 15 countries in the last three years. The school has also seen its highest foreign student intake in those countries where there was a deliberate target market strategy.

Yet there remains scope for exploration further afield to educational markets beyond the western hemisphere and direct promotion of the institution’s globally attractive offerings.

The stage is set The The potential clearly exists for potential for Trinidad and Tobago to become another Caribbean success story. As we continue to explore new avenues for diversification, the time is right for our institutions - both public and private - to exploit the opportunities to export our higher education services.

GRENADA COUNTRY OF ORIGIN

NUMBER OF STUDENTS HOSTED

United States

4543

Canada

748

Trinidad and Tobago

298

India

97

Nigeria

95

United Kingdom

66

Botswana

41

Korea, DPR

29

Pakistan

24

Kenya

18

Guyana

17

Jamaica

15

Ghana

11

Egypt

11

St. Vincent & the Grenadines

10

Sri Lanka

10

Thailand

9

China

9

Zambia

9

Iran, Islamic Rep.

9

Cameroon

9

St. Lucia

8

South Africa

7

Haiti

7

Source: UNESCO, Institute of Statistics, http://uis.unesco.org/en/uis-student-flow

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 43

EXPORT POTENTIAL

DOCTORS in Surplus Kevin Baldeosingh Writer, Journalist

Does a business opportunity exist to leverage T&T’s current oversupply of bright, young, qualified, medical practitioners to create a new export industry? Writer Kevin Baldeosingh examines the situation.

Many newly graduated doctors cannot find jobs in Trinidad and Tobago.

This was revealed by Dr Rupert Indar Sr., who was inducted into the Business Hall of Fame by the Trinidad & Tobago Chamber of Commerce in 2017. Dr Indar first started practising medicine in 1952, qualifying as a general surgeon in 1959.

Retired now, he works as an Administrator of the Southern Medical Clinic (SMC) in San Fernando.

“A lot of them have not gotten jobs after internship,” he told Business Trinidad & Tobago at his offices in SMC in February 2018. “Many of them are doing small jobs at the offices of private doctors, maybe for just a stipend.” The issue, said Dr Indar, started about two years ago. “But it’s acute now.”

While he did not have exact figures, the Medical School of the University of the West Indies enrols over 200 students every year for its medical degree programme. (See Table One.) “The Faculty of Medical Sciences experienced increasing growth at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels,” according to the UWI Annual Report, 2016, noting a six percent increase in medical students.

After graduation, the new doctors do four years of internship and about half of them go overseas to study a speciality, which may take two to eight years to complete.

In the past, most of the doctors who did not go away were usually hired by public hospitals, but now that is not happening.

44 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Table Two shows the total number of doctors as collated by the Central Statistical Office up to 2010.

However, a tally of doctors registered with the Medical Council shows that, in 2017, there were over 5,000 doctors practising in T&T. So the rate has risen from 1.8 doctors per 1,000 persons in 2010 to 4 doctors per 1,000 in 2017. This indicates that T&T now has an excess of doctors available for medical services.

Table Three lists the 10 countries with the best healthcare systems in the world, based on a range of criteria compiled by the World Health Organisation (WHO), as well as the ratio of doctors and percentage of GDP spent on healthcare.

With the exceptions of Singapore, Oman and San Marino, all these countries allocate a higher percentage of their GDP to healthcare, but T&T has a higher per physician ratio than all except two countries (San Marino and Austria). These figures suggest that bad management and/or economic contraction is at the core of the unemployment issue. This also

means that there are opportunities for the private sector to use the additional supply of doctors to meet new demands.

Dr Indar says, “They need to have some mechanism to guide these young graduates. You should have a sheltering system.” This, he holds, should be the responsibility of the Ministry of Health or the Medical Professionals Association of Trinidad and Tobago (MPATT). “They should assess the situation, get the requirements for doctors to practise in other countries. They should be liaising with the embassies here.” He adds, “England and America always need doctors. Not in the cities perhaps, but certainly in the rural areas.” Since nearly half of new doctors are studying in North America and Britain, the network already exists to tap into unemployed doctors in T&T. And, even here, the excess supply means that medical services can be provided more cheaply, providing a door for medical tourism which was not open when all doctors were absorbed into the Public Service.

EXPORT POTENTIAL

Another senior doctor, who has long experience in the public hospitals and who preferred to remain anonymous, also recommended government to government arrangements. “There’s a shortage of doctors in Guyana and Suriname and the smaller Caribbean islands,” he says. He also suggested that persons who receive scholarships to study Medicine should have to work for at least five years locally. “But there is a caveat,” he hastened to add. “The government must provide an international standard of quality in the work environment.”

Private hospitals in T&T already have that standard in many respects, so what about privatising the health-care system?

Dr Indar says, “The model has been health insurance. This would help ensure the same standard in public hospitals which private facilities have, since they will all be competing for the same patients.”

Singapore has followed this model, with its public hospitals being managed along private sector guidelines. Medical services are paid for through the country’s health insurance systems, although that system does not cater for outlier medical conditions. A portion of every Singaporean’s salary goes into mandated health insurance plans. The government does subsidise healthcare, but it does so in a carefully calculated way. Wards are classified into five categories by amenities and level of government subsidies. Means testing is used for patients who seek treatment in the wards with highest subsidies.

The A-class wards, which have airconditioning and private bathrooms and where patients can choose their doctors, are not subsidised at all. Emergency care is subsidised at a flat rate for all patients.

Persons over 65 and children receive a 75 per cent subsidy, others up to 50 per cent.

But, as Dr Indar notes: “It’s more difficult to privatise now, because it would involve some contribution from members of the public and that would exclude the unemployed and the elderly, who can’t pay health insurance. Still, with the amount of money that is allocated to health care, we can do a lot better.” https://www.southernmedicalclinic.com/

“The excess supply of doctors means that medical services can be provided more cheaply, providing a door for medical tourism which was not open when all doctors were absorbed into the Public Service.”

TABLE 1 – ENROLMENT FOR MEDICAL DEGREES

SOURCE: UWI ANNUAL REPORT 2016

TABLE 2 – TOTAL NUMBER OF DOCTORS 2001-2010

SOURCE: CSO

TABLE 3 – WORLD’S BEST HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS Country

Physicians per 1000 persons

GDP percentage

FRANCE

3.2

11.5%

ITALY

3.9

9.2%

SAN MARINO

6.3

6.1%

ANDORRA

3.7

8%

MALTA

3.9

9.7%

SINGAPORE

1.9

4.9%

SPAIN

3.8

9%

OMAN

1.5

3.6%

AUSTRIA

5.1

11%

JAPAN

2.3

10.2%

4

6%

T&T SOURCES: WHO, CIA WORLD FACTBOOK

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 45

ICT OPPORTUNITIES

ICT UNLEASHING

THE POTENTIAL 46 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Since the liberalisation of its telecommunications sector 13 years ago, Trinidad and Tobago has moved from having the 2nd highest broadband tariffs (most costly), to being the most Atiba Phillips affordable broadband Principal destination in the Consultant Caribbean region. and Managing Trinidad and Tobago Director at now ranks #16 in INFOCOMM the world in respect Technologies Ltd of the monthly subscription charge for fixed (wired) broadband Internet service, being more affordable than countries such as Japan (21), Switzerland (34), India (36), France (37) and Estonia (50).

Trinidad and Tobago was one of the first Caribbean countries to open up its telecommunications sector.

The Telecommunications Act – the piece of legislation which governs the broadcasting and telecommunications sector – was amended in 2005 to facilitate new entrants into a sector which was previously dominated by the State telecommunications provider, Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT).

Since then, the country has seen an almost 12-fold increase in Internet Household Penetration and also now displays some of the highest mobile service penetration rates in the world, jumping from 40.8% (2004) to 143.8% (2010) to 150% (2017). By contrast, according to World Bank data, mobile penetration is 118% in Europe, 74% in Africa, 127% in the United States of America and 97% in China. The maximum download speeds, as well as the number of television stations, have also seen significant increases over time.

Indeed, between 2011 and 2012, T&T jumped an unprecedented 19 places in the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Information Technology Report (GITR) from 82 to 63. No other country has achieved this feat either before or since.

In fact, Trinidad and Tobago has consistently ranked #1 in mobile network coverage in the GITR among 150-plus countries between 2011 and 2017. T&T also ranks #16 in the world on IPV6 adoption and deployment, beating countries such as Canada, Australia and the Netherlands.

Other major ICT developments have also been taking place. In 2014, the country launched its Internet exchange

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 47

ICT OPPORTUNITIES

point (IXP). Called TTIX, the local IXP brought together seven of the country’s Internet service providers (ISPs) - TSTT, Digicel, Massy Communications (now called Amplia), Open Telecom, Greendot, Lisa Communications and Flow - which have all signed on to the local exchange point. TTIX connects the ISPs to a special network switch that gives the ISPs a costeffective way to connect their customers to locally destined content and services.

In addition, both the government and the commercial sector have built up the ICT infrastructure in-country which now includes multiple data centres, hosting facilities, a DNS root server, five international sub-sea cables as well as terrestrial fibre.

Outside of these significant ICT advantages, Trinidad and Tobago is fortunate in that it lies below the transatlantic hurricane belt. As such, it is much less prone to natural disasters as compared to many of its Caribbean and Latin American comparators such as Puerto Rico, Jamaica and the Bahamas.

This makes the country a good centre for the location of Regional Data Centres.

New Possibilities What does all this now make possible? The key challenge for Trinidad and Tobago now is to accelerate the commercial and institutional uptake and usage of the technologies at all levels in the society, including Government, big business, state sector, professional bodies and SMEs (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises).

The nature of global trade has changed fundamentally in the last 25 years. We may tend to think of competitiveness of individual states, such as Trinidad competing against Barbados or Panama, but goods are no longer assembled entirely within the bounds of one factory in one country. Instead, many goods are produced in “global value chains” in which the efforts of companies in multiple countries are brought to bear.

The global digital technology revolution has made it much easier to outsource and to co-ordinate complex activities at a distance. The multi-billion dollar oil and gas finds in Guyana, for example, are being explored by the American company Exxon. But these operations can be supported remotely

48 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“Both the Government and the commercial sector have built up the ICT infrastructure in-country which now also includes multiple data centres, hosting facilities, a DNS root server, five international sub-sea cables as well as terrestrial fibre.”

and logistically, thus reaping greater efficiencies, by leveraging the robust ICT infrastructure and deep energy expertise of Trinidad and Tobago.

To get into global value chains, however, developing nations like Trinidad and Tobago will have to think again about their tariff structures and foreign investment policy framework. In this new interconnected world, taxing an imported component only raises the cost (and reduces its competitiveness) when it is reexported. Traditional theories of the best way to develop an economy have to be re-evaluated for the digital era.

At the same time, there needs to be preparation for foreign investment such that fewer concessions are required over time, and Trinidad and Tobago can eventually spawn domestic companies that are able to export and lead new global value chains of highvalue, globally competitive products.

This requires strategic policy, long-term (multi-administration) commitment, and measurable and transparent metrics for success.

Disrupting Dysfunctional Institutions and Processes Another huge opportunity for T&T tech firms is in the disruption (or facilitation of orderly digital transformation) of many cumbersome or dysfunctional national or commercial processes, which currently increase the cost of doing business and potentially reduce the quality and competitiveness of the T&T economy.

Anywhere there is frustration, a plethora of middlemen, long waiting times and friction - these are the target points for digitisation. Just consider the global examples of Amazon, Air BnB and Uber which have digitised retail markets, travel accommodation and hired transportation (taxi hailing) respectively.

Avant-garde, innovative and particularly technology companies are thriving in this environment globally. Energetic, passionate and self-confident domestic tech firms in Trinidad and Tobago can do the same! www.ict.co.tt

ICT OPPORTUNITIES

THE STATE OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS MARKET IN TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO PRE VS POST LIBERALIZATION STATISTIC

2004

2010

2017

ANNUAL TELECOMM MARKET REVENUE

TT$3.3B

TT$4.4B (EST)

TT$4.9B

MOBILE SUBSCRIPTION

530,000

1,894,000

2,036

40.8%

143.8%

150%

319,000

293,000

266,000

24.4%

22.3%

19%

53,000

171,000

249,000

4.9%

49.9%

58.0%

451,000

679,571

18.2% (2009)

23.5%

51.4%

1MBPS (2005)

100MBPS

UP TO 1GBPS

33 FM

37 FM

37FM

3

8

16

MOBILE PENETRATION FIXED VOICE SUBSCRIPTION FIXED VOICE PENETRATION FIXED INTERNET SUBSCRIPTIONS INTERNET HOUSEHOLD PENETRATION MOBILE INTERNET SUBSCRIPTIONS MOBILE INTERNET PENETRATION INTERNET DOWNLOAD SPEEDS RADIO STATIONS TV STATIONS

SOURCE: TELECOMMUNICATIONS AUTHORITY OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO (TATT) WWW.TATT.ORG.TT

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 49

ICT OPPORTUNITIES

THE DIGITAL

Commerce Opportunity There are a number of fundamental underlying trends which have contributed to the explosion of digital commerce in Trinidad and Tobago and globally. Increased Atiba Phillips competition Principal (resulting in lower Consultant prices), traffic, and Managing crime, convenience, Director at as well as increased INFOCOMM broadband Technologies Ltd affordability and device availability have all converged to make digital channels increasingly popular.

Trinidad and Tobago has done well, in general terms, to lay a platform of infrastructure and connectivity over the last 10-15 years. Citizens have also responded aggressively, with uptake rates in certain segments (particularly mobile) within the top quartile globally.

Even though credit card penetration – the main vehicle for domestically originated online purchases - is still relatively low (hovering at about 15% of the population), families have found creative ways to leverage a single credit card for multiple members, even across households. This on-line purchasing channel has resulted in significant e-commerce driven trade demand in recent years.

However, the limited availability of an on-line payment infrastructure in-country through the local banking system, has traditionally been a significant hindrance to the development of domestic web-based retail stores and marketplaces. This has had macroeconomic consequences, particularly with regard to the balance of trade. Due to the unavailability of

50 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

local options, on-line domestic buyers purchase from foreign-based retailers and thus – in aggregate - place additional pressure on foreign exchange reserves.

Recently, though, changes have been taking place.

In 2016, the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago granted a licence to First Atlantic Commerce to be the certified inter-bank TT Dollar payment gateway for Trinidad and Tobago. An Internet payment gateway is a system that allows the electronic transfer of funds from a consumer to a merchant with an on-line store. Most mainstream commercial banks (First Citizens, Republic Bank (RBL) and Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)) are also now connected to the platform and offer on-line merchant accounts to their business customers.

y

ICT OPPORTUNITIES

Concomitantly, local developer capability and availability have been improving. There are now a few seasoned development shops available to businesses who want to make a breakthrough and establish themselves in the on-line realm. These development shops have experience not only with the local internet payment gateway infrastructure, but also with international industry e-commerce website platforms and shopping cart offerings.

So, indeed, the basic infrastructure is in place to allow citizens to transfer money to local businesses via on-line storefronts. However, the opportunity to truly capture that potential and value of digital commerce still lies ahead of us.

Some Challenges Remain While there is a plethora of opportunity for young start-up companies and seasoned technology houses alike, to help Trinidad and Tobago become a digital business leader in the region and in the hemisphere, realising this potential will require business and government to incorporate a “technology first” attitude (i.e. how can existing or innovative technologies be leveraged in strategic planning and problem solving initiatives).

Particularly with regard to the domestic banking infrastructure, there are yet some constraints for medium and small firms to access these services.

The main challenges faced by businesses wishing to process online payments include:

“The seasoned local mobile app development companies and young developer groups that create innovative digital platforms will need the financial capability to sustain offering access to their platforms for free, as a means to gain consumer trial before a payment milestone kicks in.”

•

Application processes tend to be especially rigorous, intense and invasive, which can be a deterrent to many businesses applying for the facility.

•

There are multiple fees and charges payable to secure and maintain access to online payment facilities. These fees include set-up charges, processing fees (usually per transaction), as well as service and maintenance charges.

•

Processing fees tend to be a percentage of the sales generated and are deducted from the vendor’s sales margin (per transaction), which ultimately, affects the profitability of the business.

Capturing the Digital Opportunity Over the last five years or more, there have been a number of opportunities for young people to enter “hackathons,” i.e. programming and software development competitions aimed at exciting a younger generation to get involved in technology and, in particular, to become mobile application developers. There has also been the “Start-up” Country initiatives, targeted

primarily at young technology companies, which attempt to fast-track them with presentation and business skills so that they can launch or scale their products.

In this regard, there are companies as well as innovation centres with individual developers who, though skilled, are underfunded and wait to respond to one-off grant and competition schemes which are not sustainable or able to financially undergird an ability to scale.

The reality is that customers, many times, need to try out innovative technology solutions and have confidence in the supplier of the technology before adopting into their core processes. This means that the seasoned companies and young developer groups alike that create innovative digital platforms, will also need the financial capability to sustain offering access to their platforms for free, as a means to gain consumer trial before a payment milestone kicks in.

Significant value can be unleashed in the connection between knowledgeable financial investment capability and the professional mobile app development community. Such systemic collaboration can yield a plethora of advancements which can have economy-wide implications.

Established traditional business owners, for example, who are profitable enough to be in a position to make business investments in the IT / ITenabled sector, should be encouraged to do so. They should be availed with enough awareness and capacity building interventions to better understand and appreciate the opportunities in technology, such that they can be confident enough to connect their ideas, market understanding, business experience and financial resources with young developers who can build the technology products to transform their business or start entirely new streams of innovative economic activity.

The environment is set. Let’s go! www.ict.co.tt

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 51

ICT OPPORTUNITIES

EMBRACING The FinTech Wave With the digital convergence taking place in the global market, the Trinidad and Tobago International Financial Centre (T&T IFC) has been engaging domestic firms from various sectors in Rudolph discussions about A. Hanamji embracing financial Manager, technology (FinTech).

Marketing & The inherent Communications efficiencies, costTrinidad savings and security and Tobago of Shared Services International (SS) centres make Financial Centre this option a wellaligned business model shift for many organisations seeking to find synergistic ways of managing the prevailing economic challenges while, at the same time, ensuring long-term sustainability for all their stakeholders.

Trinidad and Tobago’s skilled workforce in Finance and Accounting is the country’s competitive advantage. We have over 4,000 persons pursuing various levels of the ACCA programme. Additionally, around 200 students graduate annually from The University of the West Indies with an Accounting degree. This is testimony to how well the citizenry and the country have embraced and benefited from the Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses Programme (GATE).

The talent pool is complemented by cost-effective infrastructure where real estate and utilities, such as broadband and electricity, are inexpensive (as little as a quarter of the costs in developed countries) - making Trinidad and Tobago an ideal location for investment. Indeed, Scotiabank, RBC and BHP Billiton have all utilised our human resources and low-cost infrastructure to establish their Shared Services units - and another large conglomerate has also started the journey.

52 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

But while we have seen foreignowned, locally operated entities set up their SS units in this country, employing just over 1,000 persons and servicing their subsidiaries from here - this does not mean that other foreign companies will come and set up similar operations on a whim.

To attract them, the local ecosystem for Business Process Outsourcing/ Shared Services (BPO/SS) must be developed and nurtured, so that there is a combination of both local and overseas companies operating in the sector. This means we must persuade more companies in the domestic market to adopt the SS model, in order to be more efficient using the new FinTech applications available. This will build the local BPO/SS industry and help our country to achieve critical mass, so that those who are underemployed but possess skills - not just in F&A, but HR, Legal Services and IT - can become employed in the BPO/SS industry.

Local companies that are currently battling with a declining top line must become more efficient and areas like Accounts Receivables, Accounts Payable, General Ledger processing and Financial Statements preparation are some obvious places where the payback is quick.

Riding the FinTech wave can help a company soar, but there are some currents that might require careful navigation. In the world of BPO/SS, there has been much discussion on Robotic Processing Automation (RPA) and the idea that people can be replaced by “bots” (computers). This is a deep issue that requires strong change management, as well as change in business culture and, by extension, customer acceptance.

One of the biggest, but not-talkedabout challenges, is the fact that senior management teams can get bogged down with non-sales activities, when they should be growing the top line and be focused on sales. An SS model

will pre-empt this. Banks have taken that approach and become very salesoriented so senior managers do not spend time on processing, adjudicating credit (also good governance and oversight), collections and the multitude of support activities. Instead, they spend time with their customers, growing the business and increasing the bank’s revenue! This is an imperative with declining top lines.

There are also SS opportunities in government - and the area where it is most needed is in local government administration. The submission of timely financials has not been achieved, as is reported yearly, with the regional corporations submitting accounts which are, on average, four to five years old.

Payroll processing is also a logical area for SS. The impact of accounting and payroll processing being carried out as an SS unit supporting the 14 Regional Corporations is a logical, and highly probable, quick win.

The T&T IFC has prepared a concept paper on this subject and welcomes debate.

If both the public and private sectors embrace an SS model, there will be significant benefits from the heightened efficiency and focus of the various businesses and services. At the same time, a BPO/SS sector will be developed as more people become employed therein, with the consequential improvement in the grade and quality of the jobs.

We all know that change is not easy and can cause fear. Economic diversification is a journey that requires engagement by the country and the willingness to embrace change and take risk.

The BPO/SS sector will bring about greater discipline and productivity and such a developed ecosystem will make our journey of diversification easier to traverse. All must play a role in diversifying our economy and take advantage of the FinTech applications which are being applied elsewhere in the modern world.

ICT OPPORTUNITIES

“All firms should take cognisance of the global trends and accept that finance, distribution, promotions and all other aspects of modern organisations will require usage of technology, if a company wishes to remain efficient and able to respond to the ever-changing face of commerce, trade and consumer demand.”

CREDIT UNIONS URGED - TAKE A LEAP! Technology could breathe new life and vigour into Credit Unions.

“Take a leap,” urged Oriel Doyle CEO, Co-operative Business Centre and former CEO of the Credit Union (CU) League of Barbados - to a number of Trinidad and Tobago’s leading credit unions in March, 2018.

Doyle, himself a recognised trailblazer in the credit union movement, was speaking at a ‘Launch & Learn’ forum at the Hyatt Regency, hosted by a potential investor in the Trinidad and Tobago financial services sector.

The event was brokered through the ongoing efforts of the T&T IFC to attract Finance & Accounting (F&A) Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) firms, to select Trinidad and Tobago as their preferred location for expanding their nearshore operations.

The investor, a global leader in electronic payment systems, is interested in partnering with credit unions to offer them technology applications, which would assist them in developing competitive advantages by being able to offer a stronger value proposition and innovative products.

The investor’s Director of Business Development and Co-Founder proclaimed his personal passion for, and vested interest in, seeing the partnership succeed as his company was “committed to electronic payments for all and such would definitely benefit nationals of Trinidad and Tobago.”

Referencing his own observations in Barbados, Doyle endorsed the high rate of return inherent in the technology solutions suggested, noting that he had seen first-hand

how they allowed a contracting credit union movement in Barbados, to reengage their unitholders and “flip the switch.” However, although credit unions in Barbados have already begun offering new solutions by integrating these financial technology (FinTech) applications into their operations, Trinidad and Tobago’s credit unions hold the majority of the Region’s assets and needed to act as a leader in this regard, he stressed.

Many credit union representatives at the Forum shared their excitement about the opportunity to enhance their business and strengthen their position as an alternative to traditional banking.

Joseph Remy, President of the Cooperative Credit Union League of Trinidad and Tobago, encouraged member CUs to “embrace technological improvements that would redound to shareholder value and improve the access to financial services for those at the very lowest end of the economic ladder.”

T&T IFC Manager - Financial Markets Development Geron Burnett said, “the Trinidad and Tobago IFC foresees

that this opportunity will lead to operational improvements in the Credit Union sector and added value to credit union members as well as the creation of sustainable employment.”

He also emphasised the importance of the T&T IFC working collaboratively with domestic stakeholders to strengthen and expand the prevailing business and financial sector ecosystem. “As our local players continue to grow and become more sustainable, they contribute to economic diversification while also enhancing the already attractive landscape for financial sector investment,” he said.

All firms should take cognisance of the global trends and accept that finance, distribution, promotions and all other aspects of modern organisations will require usage of technology, if a company wishes to remain efficient and able to respond to the ever-changing face of commerce, trade and consumer demand. www.ttifc.co.tt

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 53

ADVERTORIAL

POLICE CREDIT UNION The Strength of a Team The seed of a dream once nurtured with the right soil and foundation is poised to bear success.

Founded by a handful of Police Officers in 1956, Mr. Neil Marquez the Police Credit Chief Executive Union (PCU) is a Officer classic example of such success.

Sixty-two years into its operations, the PCU now speaks of a growth increase of 25% over the last five year period with an average year on year dividend payout rate of 4% to our members, which is quite remarkable given the challenging economic climate of the past several years.

Having had the opportunity to work in the banking sector both locally and abroad, it is my view that the strength of the Credit Union is underestimated when set against the competition in today’s financial services sector. Nonetheless, faced with an increasing diversity of consumer options in a dynamic landscape of the market space, along with a more educated and information driven customer base, the PCU has no choice but to enhance its strategic approach with a view to stimulating further sustainable growth.

At the forefront, we are focusing on an enhanced and unique customer experience which cannot be replicated by any other service in the industry. In keeping with our annual theme, “PCU begins with ME”, we continue to uphold the philosophy that our members are our strength given the fact that the Credit Union was founded by our members for our members.

Additionally, it is without a doubt that technology is pivotal and is the necessary vehicle in moving forward as a financial services provider. In this regard, we have developed within our strategic plan, new and innovative ways to serve and communicate with our members, as well as to motivate and incentivize our empowered team.

54 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

What continues to set us apart as a financial co-operative is our culture and family orientation with our members being our family. A visit to any branch is your second door to home, where a hot cup of tea or coffee awaits you, with a complement of staff that is courteous, knowledgeable, willing and prepared to explore and satisfy your financial needs.

At PCU, we owe our success to every member who has ever walked through our doors. Our management team and support staff have all contributed in a cohesive manner to our success as we continue to strive to offer a high quality customer experience to anyone visiting any of our five locations throughout Trinidad and Tobago.

There still is, to some extent, the belief in the public domain that the PCU is for police officers only, which was the case during the period 19561979. However, we now operate with an open bond whereby, with formidable prowess, we have successfully grown our membership which consists of not only members of the protective services but civilians as well. PCU is the member who is a teacher, maxi taxi driver, lawyer, doctor, social worker, university student construction worker and farmer, to name a few, all having the need for an enhanced and exceptional financial service experience. With absolutely no monthly maintenance fees attached to any account held at our institution, we strive to ensure that operational costs are minimal and we pass these benefits onto our members by way of annual dividends and competitive interest rates on loans calculated on the reducing balance.

Today, we’re saving the environment one statement at a time as we have transitioned to paperless with e-statements, online banking and our PCU mobile application both for iOS and Android devices. We have taken the time to understand our members and their need for mobile portability of the Credit Union. In today’s business where an excellent customer service experience is critical to brand development and sustainable business success, the PCU

ADVERTORIAL

has demonstrated that we understand the value of our members’ time. The less time spent waiting in line means that our members have more time to focus on important aspects of their lives.

Moreover, the PCU holds true to its unique value proposition when considering the Consumer Division of our operation – our very own retail outlet for furniture, appliances, electronics, personal accessories and even vehicle rims and tires. We are what you may call, ‘a one stop shop’ and we are in the process of re-branding this Division with a view to achieving a more pointed competitive advantage by maintaining operational cost at a minimum that would translate into savings and affordability of consumer items for our members and members of the public.

There still is, to some extent, the belief in the public domain that the PCU is for police officers only, which was the case during the period 1956-1979. However, we now operate with an open bond whereby, with formidable prowess, we have successfully grown our membership which consists of not only members of the protective services but civilians as well.

The enduring determination to dream beyond the horizon continues to set the path for our credit union in providing a solid foundation that is conducive to reaping the fruits of success. As the PCU continues to grow and assimilate the ever changing financial landscape, we are certain that, through our corporate social responsibility,

commitment to service excellence and the offering of uniquely tailored products and services, we will continue to enrich the lives of our members and serve the wider communities of Trinidad and Tobago in a highly effective and efficient way. policecreditunion.com

From left to right: Mr. Aldwin Webb - Information & Technology Manager; Mr​s. Bernadette Prescott - Manager, Finance and Accounts; Mr. Neil Marquez - Chief Executive Officer; Mrs. Donna Frederick - Human Resource Manager and Mr. Johann Borde - Chief Operations Officer

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 55

LOCAL SUCCESS STORY

Bevil is the Chief Knowledge Officer at Congress WBN, and an Executive AttachĂŠ in the Office of the President of Congress WBN. As a Director of the Global Communications and Technology Sector of the Congress, he leads initiatives, including the development of software systems, for the management of global productivity, distribution systems for digital content, and hardware products to support global activity.

Bevil also serves as the Caribbean Outreach Liaison for the American Registry for Internet Numbers (www.arin.net), one of five Regional Internet Registries worldwide, and as an Internet Strategist for Packet Clearing House (www.pch. net), a non-profit research firm that supports development of the internet globally.

He is a graduate of The University of the West Indies. Bevil, his wife, Camille and their three children, reside in Trinidad and Tobago. www.congresswbn.org Photo: Relate Studios

56 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Bevil Wooding

Trinidad-born Technology Evangelist Making Global Impact

BY GERARD BEST

I

n 1997, a soft-spoken young man and two friends founded a software firm with a mission to create technology that could impact the world. That company was Teleios Systems, and their first product was Trinidad and Tobago’s first locally built, enterprisescale, pension administration system.

The software did not have the expected success. However, it marked the start of a journey that saw that young man develop from a Trinidad tech entrepreneur into a globally recognised technology expert.

Bevil Wooding is the co-founder of the company that has since grown into one of the largest dedicated software development firms in the Caribbean.

He is also the Chief Knowledge Officer of Congress WBN, a non-profit, UKregistered charity, birthed in Trinidad and Tobago in 1990, and now with operations in over 100 nations.

From the start of his career it was clear that Wooding was destined for extraordinary things. As head of Teleios’ Internet Services division, he pioneered several software and Internet firsts: first e-Government web portal, first locallybuilt enterprise content management system, and first web-based solution for live streaming corporate financial results.

Since leaving the day-to-day operations at Teleios to pursue a more altruistic agenda, his reputation as an innovative and influential technologist and development evangelist has only grown.

He now wears numerous hats, all related to development of the digital economy and information society.

To the Caribbean Telecommunications Union, the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), the Caribbean Court of Justice and several regional governments - he is a special adviser. To the volunteer-based Caribbean Network

Operators Group and Caribbean Peering and Interconnection Forum - he is a technologist evangelist. To international non-profits, such as Packet Clearing House and the American Registry for Internet Numbers - he is a worker and advocate for capacity building and development of the technical community.

To the Caribbean region – where he devotes most of his time - he is a strategist, an educator, a thorough leader and an ambassador.

A man of faith, his personal conviction is that the same values and principles that direct his spiritual and family life must also apply to his work. That work impacts the lives of individuals and organisations from every walk of life in countries near and far.

He has, for example, collaborated with the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) to introduce technology-based improvements to the education sector, including the launch of CXC’s first CAPE Digital Media syllabus and first digitally administered examination, based on the digital content creation work of Wooding’s BrightPath Foundation.

“The ideas he has shared have moved CXC closer to its goal of becoming an IT Intelligent organisation, and changed the way in which we work,” said Dr. Didacus Jules, OECS Director General, and former CXC Registrar and CEO. Working closely with the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU), Wooding was the co-architect of the pioneering Caribbean ICT Roadshow, which brought region-wide awareness of the role of ICTs in Caribbean development. As Programme Coordinator, he led outreach efforts to youths, entrepreneurs, academia and policymakers across the region. “He is a man of integrity with a true heart

for people,” said CTU Secretary General Bernadette Lewis.

In 2016, Wooding’s work with the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) led to the creation of APEX, the region’s first agency focused on technology solutions to strengthen the administration of justice in the Caribbean. In collaboration with the CCJ, he spearheaded the development of the region’s first indigenous electronic filing, case management and performance management software suite.

“Bevil’s contributions to the justice sector in the Caribbean have been transformational.

The CCJ and the region are better poised to reduce backlogs and improve the quality of service offered because of his work,” said CCJ President Sir Dennis Byron.

In 2010, Wooding was appointed as a Trusted Community Representative by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers and is one of seven people entrusted with a special cryptographic smart card that holds part of a key used to secure the Internet.

There are many more accolades that Wooding has received - further testament to his influence and impact. These include The University of the West Indies 50th Anniversary Distinguished Alumni Award in 2011, the 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Latin American and Caribbean Internet Addresses Registry, and the 2017 Caribbean American Heritage Award for Science and Technology.

Dr. Noel Woodroffe, President and Founder of Congress WBN, sums it up well in describing Wooding as the quintessential Caribbean man, saying: “For Bevil, it’s never been just about technology. He’s always held the faith and conviction that technology is simply a tool to help empower people and develop society. He is a true gift to our country, our region and the world.”

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 57

ENTREPRENEURIAL AND CREATIVE

Growing Global Companies in T&T AN E&Y PERSPECTIVE

58 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“Throughout the centuries there were men who took the first steps, down new roads armed with nothing but their own vision.” - Ayn Rand.

Entrepreneurs create at the expense of social acceptance. They invest at the expense of Maria Daniel spending. They believe at Partner, the expense of perceived Transaction Advisory Services insanity. And they succeed sometimes at Ernst & Young the expense of “normal Services Ltd living.” The world as we know it would be very different if these passionate risk-takers did not exist. Entrepreneurs leave a legacy to the world through their innovations, the jobs they create and the growth they stimulate that enrich and reshape people’s lives and the world around us. Their forward-thinking attitude and creativity make a difference to their communities and to society as a whole.

The Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year (WEOY) awards programme, which is in its 18th year as a global programme but 30 years in existence, was created because entrepreneurship matters.

The programme’s goal was to inspire entrepreneurs to reach greater heights; to inspire the ordinary to pursue their passions; and to bring together business leaders, governments and academics to pool their ideas to foster new growth and economic activity in the participating countries.

The Forum, which is held annually in Monaco, is attended by over 1,000 people from over 60 countries and 145 cities.

This beautiful, sovereign city-state with a population of approximately 38,000 was very entrepreneurial in creating its own brand and boasts of a GDP per capita of US$162,000.

So what better location?

Amongst the 50 flags representing the world’s best entrepreneurs at the gala awards in 2017 our red, white and black flew high and proud - the smallest country to participate.

T&T made it to the global finals for the first time in 2016.

There is a certain amount of pride that travels through your bones to see our own Trinidadian entrepreneurs standing with J.W. Marriott or Manny Stul (inventor of Shopkins toys) or the inventor of Rocket Labs (individual rockets that go into space).

Trinidad and Tobago was represented by Dominic Hadeed of Blue Waters Products Ltd in 2016 and Kama Maharaj of Sasha Cosmetics in 2017.

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 59

ENTREPRENEURIAL AND CREATIVE

Our Entrepreneurs have been of particular interest to both the participants and judges. This is partly because over 50 per cent of the participants had never heard of Trinidad and Tobago.

Secondly, they were intrigued that such a high calibre of competitor was coming from the smallest country represented.

In both 2016 and 2017, the judges and participants had Trinidad and Tobago in their Favourites list.

So how does one make it into the final rounds of what is the academy awards for Entrepreneurship, where every competitor is a leader in their respective countries? The differentiators for a winner to emerge include: •

Entrepreneurial spirit - Candidate sets very high standards for self and business and demonstrates strong leadership skills and an unflinching desire and determination to be successful. Entrepreneur demonstrates perseverance in the face of adversity and overcoming obstacles.

•

Strategic direction - Candidate creates and turns business visions into business realities. He or she demonstrates the ability to produce new products, use products innovatively and to differentiate themselves from their competitors.

•

Global (or community) impact - The entrepreneur’s global impact can be measured with either revenue, operational or influential presence in international markets. Results of their presence in these markets include job creation and improved living economics.

“Collaboration is the new innovation and if smaller entrepreneurs can pool their resources, they may build better capability to compete effectively in the global marketplace.”

Satyakama “Kama” Maharaj, Sacha Cosmetics Limited Country winner 2017 - Trinidad and Tobago/Caribbean

• Innovation - The entrepreneur pioneers a new approach/ business model in product, culture or processes. The entrepreneur recognises the business imperative of anticipating and embracing change.

•

Personal integrity/influence/ philanthropy - Living his or her values has earned great respect from staff, competitors, customers, advisors, family and the wider community.

60 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Master Entrepreneur Dominic Hadeed represented Trinidad & Tobago for the first time in the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year competition 2016

The 2016 winner, Manny Stul, the owner of Moose Toys in Australia and a child of Polish refugees, is the creator of the very popular Shopkins Toys. He rebuilt his company after almost going bankrupt in 2007 to beat Barbie in 2015 for “Best Girl Toy of the Year.”

Manny attributes his success to being willing to embrace risk, having an unwavering commitment to integrity and honesty, creating a culture of innovation and creativity with staff, and enjoying what you do each and every day. He lives his conviction of community responsibility and believes in giving at least 10% of his income to philanthropic programmes.

“I had no guidance from mentors and entered the business space with no experience,” Stul said. “Every decision and opportunity helped shape my skills and showed me in practical terms how to run a successful business.”

The 2017 winner Murad Al Katib, one of my favourites from the beginning of the competition, left his job in 2001 with a wife six months pregnant with twins, to move to his basement to write a business plan to start a lentil company. Fast forward 15 years - he is the founder of AGT Food and Ingredients Inc, the world’s largest vertically integrated supply chain for lentils, chickpeas and peas with US$1.4b in revenue (that’s a lot of peas), 2,000 employees on five continents and accounting for 23 per cent of the world trade in over 120 countries. He has made Canada the largest export producer of lentils in the world.

According to Katib, who champions compassionate entrepreneurship, “food security, famine, food aid and emergency refugee food response is a chosen lifetime cause, one that I feel strongly about.”

The two winners had: Passion, Purpose, Persistence and Presence.

2016 was the first year that the Caribbean had any representation in the competition in over 15 years and it was the first time Trinidad and Tobago entered the global competition. Whilst we may not have had much experience, at the end of the conference every participant knew who Dominic Hadeed was and where to find Trinidad and Tobago on the map.

ENTREPRENEURIAL AND CREATIVE The E&Y Trinidad competition that Dominic won in 2016 was indeed one to remember as four of the country’s largest entrepreneurial companies battled for first place - all of them very worthy contenders.

Dominic battled with dyslexia, a degenerative leg disease, and a father who doubted that anyone would pay for water. However, with two trucks and 15 employees, he built Blue Waters into the largest water bottling plant in the Caribbean, and has over 600 employees, significant commercial real estate holdings and currently operates 300 acres of agricultural land.

Derek Chin of MovieTowne has transformed the movie industry in Trinidad and Tobago, defying the odds, battling with financiers and creating an entertainment centre never seen before regionally. His product was, and is, still so good that moviegoers paid $30 when the cineplex first opened (and now pay $50) to see one movie, when you could have seen two movies for $15. However, more importantly, MovieTowne expanded the industry by appealing to a wider cross section of the population.

Global Brands Ltd – Pizza/Burger/ Donut Boys and Rituals - who took a cup of coffee from the ordinary $3 to $22 per cup and created a real coffee drinking industry.

Michael Aboud of Amalgamated Security, who started a business to create his own path which resulted in a regional, technology-based security company.

These four battled to be our Country winner and what edged Dominic into first place was his vision for expansion regionally and into new markets.

Trinidad & Tobago has never been short of entrepreneurs. Aleem Mohammed, who created a small soft drink for poorer parts of the country but ended up with a global brand – Chubby - which appealed to all income levels.

Other companies - such as Associated Brands, Bermudez and Solo - have all expanded not only regionally but internationally.

Our entrepreneurs have Passion and Persistence with some level of Purpose. I asked the judges in Monaco in both 2016 and 2017 what the Trinidadian contenders needed to do to really have a chance in this global race. Whilst in both years the judges were impressed by the journey and passion; we lacked global presence.

Take our 2017 finalist Kama Maharaj, founder of Sacha Cosmetics. Maharaj left a teaching job to pursue his lifelong passion to create a cosmetics line that

2017 Emerging Entrepreneur Winner – Jules Sobion - Caesar’s Army Ltd presented by Pria Narinesingh – Country Managing Partner, Trinidad - EY

2017 Winner Start Up Award – Nigel Jordan & Cheryl Ann Baptiste Twigs Naturals, presented by Wade George, Tax Managing Director - EY

was suitable for multicultural women.

He persisted over many years, creating and discontinuing several products and over 100 different formulas to find the right foundation for ethnic women. After years of building local competency, Maharaj penetrated some

external markets with the help of the Amazon marketplace platform. He created Buttercup Powder, which became the bestselling face powder sold on Amazon, and continues to be ranked in first or second place. Despite this, global penetration is small.

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 61

ENTREPRENEURIAL AND CREATIVE

So how do we create more globally competitive companies or even more sustainable businesses for local and regional expansion? We have the talent and the ideas but seem to lack the execution.

I had the pleasure of buying guava syrup at a CARIRI Food Exposition some months ago. It is an easy substitute to pancake syrup – absolutely delicious! But I haven’t been able to find it since. I then began to think how would they get a continuous supply of guava? How do you scale up something like this? To compete at a scaleable global level will take farming, research, factories and people.

There is significant potential in the agribusiness space. The combination of our natural resources and out multicultural/ ethnic background is surely a winner for differentiation.

From a Trinidad and Tobago perspective, there is no shortage of potential and ideas but just a handful

62 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“Our Entrepreneurs have been of particular interest to both the participants and judges…they were intrigued that such a high calibre of competitor was coming from the smallest country represented.” of companies are competing on a truly global scale. The contraction of oil and gas prices is by no means a curse but an opportunity for the manufacturing and technology sectors to up their game.

However, this opportunity requires that a few basic needs be met to become a reality: a productive labour force, an efficient and transparent regulatory infrastructure and access to global networks (not to mention foreign currency). If all of this is in place then the finance and investment will flow naturally.

There is also a clear opportunity for larger entrepreneurs to invest in and support the smaller entrepreneurs to develop the expertise to build globally competitive companies. This can include

centralised research and development facilities, shared service back office support and supply logistics.

Collaboration is the new innovation and if smaller entrepreneurs can pool their resources, they may build better capability to compete effectively in the global marketplace which, thanks to technology, has become so much more accessible.

Entrepreneurship matters. Given the critical state of the Trinidad and Tobago economy, it is important that we take note of what the rest of the world is doing and how game changers are doing exactly that - changing our world. http://www.ey.com/tt/en/home

ADVERTORIAL

The Beacon Insurance Company Ltd

T

he Beacon Insurance Company Ltd is a regional provider of all General insurance lines, with branches in Trinidad & Tobago, Barbados, Grenada and St. Lucia and agencies operating in Dominica, St. Kitts and St Vincent.

Beacon also prides itself in maintaining the principle of sound underwriting of risks versus underwriting for profit or market share. This ensures that when claims arise, they can be paid out as underwritten because we recognize that our customers depend on and deserve it.

In a heavily commoditized industry such as insurance, Beacon has sought to differentiate itself through the use of specialized technology which speeds up processing time for all transactions, and through the delivery of a superior customer experience that is continuously measured and monitored to ensure consistency in our delivery. Some of the key technological features that contribute to the development of the local insurance landscape would be our introduction to online payments and online claims tracking services via our “Beacon Buddy” app. It is with these advances that we extend our services to save our customers time and money.

Recently, Beacon has introduced several new products and services, developed with specific segments of our market in mind.

• The Be Better plan provides group health and life benefits to small businesses, with as little as 3 employees up to 35 so that our plan grows with your business.

•

Our Premium Financing option now offers 100% financing over a 12-month period and requires no downpayment but instead uses collateral, so that the customer essentially has the option of deciding how that collateral is utilized year after year.

•

As far as Motor insurance goes, we have introduced a discount program that offers deep discounts and added benefits, in addition to NCD and anti-theft discounts, as we recognize the current economic situation and the challenge it has presented to our markets.

It is through a genuine concern for people that begins at the top of the organization that Beacon is able to truly connect with our customers, using advanced technology to provide carefully thought out products and services. This allows us to achieve our stated purpose…

“To help our customers achieve their goals and recover from setbacks through compassionate delivery of our services.”

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 63

ENTREPRENEURIAL AND CREATIVE

The FIVE Cs for a SUCCESSFUL START-UP As the wise among us advise that we must prepare for the new reality of life post petrochemicals, the pundits speak to diversification and the need to take advantage of our innate talents — our Nigel Romano culture and creativity.

Managing Many of our Director and young people are CEO, stepping up to the JMMB Bank challenge. They are exploring art, music, drama and literature.

They are also coding and delving into the world of financial technology (fintech), blockchain and cryptocurrencies.

Across the region, we celebrate the success of Machel, Kes, and Gabriel Abed and Bitt, to name a few. But these are really few and far between. What is the key to a successful venture? Is it access to capital? Is it advice? Is it good governance?

The typical start-up in Trinidad and Tobago usually approaches one of the chambers of industry and commerce, banks, finance houses or, heaven forbid, money lenders or loan sharks seeking capital in the form of loans. I respectfully submit that they are starting at the wrong end of the spectrum. I hope this article will guide budding entrepreneurs to start at the right end and so have a much better chance of achieving their goals.

Starting a business anywhere is a noble undertaking. Unfortunately, many fail because they lack one or more of the factors essential to success. I believe that becoming a successful business owner requires FIVE Cs: Conviction, Commitment, Credibility, Counsel and Capital, in that order.

That brings me to the first ‘C’ — Conviction.

Conviction The first question that I would ask the budding entrepreneur is: What is your purpose? Why are you doing this? Are

64 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

you motivated by the prospect of riches?

Is money your primary motivator? If your answer is yes, I will show you the door and I believe that most of my colleagues in banking and finance would do the same.

While a profitable venture is one metric for success, it should not be the only reason for starting the venture.

Profitability should be the eventual outcome, the reward for successfully solving clients’ problems using a model that results in a win-win outcome for supplier and consumer. If money is the only motivation, I do not believe that the venture will be sustainable over the long term.

If the answer is no, my next question would be: What problem are you trying to solve? Then, why are you trying to solve this problem? And finally, for whom?

Businesses become successful by solving problems for their clients. Entrepreneurs succeed when they match their passion and purpose with an unmet need or an unsolved problem. They must also be convinced that their solution is best for the client and they must be willing to commit everything they have to bringing that solution to life. It is important to remember that the product or service — the solution — makes the brand.

Commitment This brings us to the second ‘C’ — Commitment. Is the entrepreneur really committed to the solution? Is she willing to sell all her possessions and commit all her worldly capital to the venture? I once heard my daughter say that she would die for her art because she knew she could not live without it. Does the entrepreneur demonstrate that kind of commitment?

Usually, lack of commitment will show up in how seed capital is spent.

It shows up as investments in assets that generate no revenues, cash flows or profits for the fledgling business, for example, new cars, fancy phones and over-priced premises. The telling question here is: Are you committed to your lifestyle or your business?

Credibility Next comes credibility. Does the entrepreneur have the necessary skills and experience to make his dream come true?

If it’s a physical product or a software solution, does she have a prototype or working model? If it’s a service, has she experimented with potential customers with credible results? If it’s a work of art — music, paintings or drawings, food, a book, or a play — is there a draft or samples for the potential customer to test? The potential investor or customer must be given a reason to believe, to trust, and the budding entrepreneur must provide this.

Counsel Once that hurdle is crossed, the next critical step is advice. This is where the angel investor can really make an invaluable contribution to the success of the fledgling entrepreneur.

Angel investors have been defined as suppliers of capital — usually the entrepreneur’s family and friends — who invest in start-ups. The capital angel investors provide might be a one-time investment to launch the business or an ongoing injection of money to support the small business through its difficult early stages.

However, I believe that advice is much more important than money at this stage. The right advice with respect to production, legal, finance, accounting, taxes, marketing and people management is critical. Unfortunately, most startups are poorly served by bookkeepers as opposed to finance and business professionals who can really add value.

I am not talking about elaborate business plans. I am not advocating massive spreadsheets or glossy strategic plans. I mean advice about why people should pay for the product or service – the answer to the question, why should I do business with you? Counsel about sourcing supplies and guidance about fixed versus variable costs and commonsense conversations about cash flows and the revenue and cost dynamics of the business. Equally valuable, would be

ENTREPRENEURIAL AND CREATIVE

heart-to-heart discussions about the hard work necessary to bring the idea to life.

There should be no delusions about what lies ahead. The entrepreneur should be comfortable with mistakes and failure, appreciating that this is the only way to learn and grow. He must be prepared to fail, fail fast, fail better.

Capital Passion and purpose, combined with workable solutions and good oldfashioned advice, are the foundation for candid conversations with family and friends about the financial help needed and why they should be the ones to join you in creating your brave new world.

Capital should first come from the entrepreneur in the form of money and sweat equity. It speaks to her commitment and conviction and adds the credibility needed by potential investors that she is serious about this venture and that it is not just another hobby. If you will not risk your own money, potential investors, even family and friends, will question your commitment to the project.

If you claim to have no financial resources or savings, investors may not trust your

“Many of our young people are stepping up to the challenge. They are exploring art, music, drama and literature. They are also coding and delving into the world of financial technology (fintech), blockchain and cryptocurrencies.” strategic planning ability or financial acumen.

Of course, you can decide to go it all on your own. “Bootstrap financing” comes from the 19th century expression, “pull yourself up by your bootstraps,” which means to improve your situation by your own efforts or accomplish something without outside help. In the world of small business and entrepreneurship, bootstrapping means launching or expanding your company using your own finances or the revenues that your business generates.

The heart of bootstrapping is being able to operate and build a client/ customer base without going into debt or having to deal with the involvement of investors.

However, if you need to grow fast, it is advisable to seek the help of family and friends to augment your initial investment and give you that much needed boost. Only

then should you consider approaching outside or professional financiers. By then, you should have working prototypes or some experience and results, actual sales, that you can share to support your business plan. Then, you can consider approaching organisations, such as Planting Seeds Caribbean, which help aspiring entrepreneurs develop their skill sets and connect them with investors. There are also accelerators such as the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship, which provides Caribbean entrepreneurs critical support services to help them structure and scale their businesses.

The bottom-line is that it begins with you. Your passion, purpose, determination and hard work is what will breed success.

If you are committed to your business and helping your clients to succeed and not your lifestyle - you will have a more than even chance of achieving your own success. https://tt.jmmb.com/

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 65

ADVERTORIAL

T

he last few years have seen Trinidad and Tobago face tougher times, with the economy shrinking by as much as 6% in 2016. At times like this, it can be hard to see a rosy future, but it hasn’t all been doom and gloom, with a number of T&T businesses shining through.

It may be difficult to fathom anyone starting up a successful business during this time, but that’s just what Dr. Rachael Eckel of The Skin Health Institute did in November 2016, and the business has been thriving ever since.

66 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“I always knew I wanted to return home to Trinidad,” said Dr. Eckel, who until 2015 had been living and working in Ireland.

“Even though I knew it was going to be a bit of a challenge given the economic climate, it was my goal to return and provide the Caribbean people with the highest standard of cosmetic medicine, and most importantly, healthy skin”.

Dr. Eckel is an internationally renowned cosmetic doctor who was personally trained by Hollywood’s top doctor, Dr.

Zein Obagi. Since they first met, the partnership between Drs. Eckel and Obagi has grown tremendously, with The Skin Health Institute now the flagship clinic in the Caribbean for Dr. Obagi’s worldleading medical skincare line, ZO® Skin Health.

“It was so important to me to bring home the knowledge and treatments that can be found in equally glamorous destinations such as Monaco, Beverly Hills and Paris,” she said.

ADVERTORIAL

“Dr. Eckel has created a thriving business that also brings expats and tourists from nearby Venezuela, Suriname, Guyana and Barbados to the islands for a touch of her highly sought after expertise.”

“Anyone who is lucky enough to visit T&T will know that we are a glamorous, friendly and patriotic population, so being able to provide the Caribbean with an experience that has hitherto been unmatched is a huge honour for me.”

Indeed, since opening its doors in 2016, The Skin Health Institute has quickly become the go-to destination for all things glam throughout the region and has brought something to the market, the likes of which have never been seen before. Dr. Eckel has created a thriving business that also brings expats and tourists from nearby Venezuela, Suriname, Guyana and Barbados to the islands for a touch of her highly sought after expertise.

“We’re the only clinic in the jurisdiction to offer treatments such as CoolSculpting®, Colorescience® mineral make-up, and the ZO® Skin Health and ZO® Medical brands,” said Dr. Eckel. “It has always been hugely important to me to be able to offer my patients a unique experience and a gold standard of treatment that they would struggle to find elsewhere.”

“Being able to create all this in my beautiful home country is also something I’m immensely proud of, and couldn’t have done without the support of the local community.”

The Skin Health Institute continues to go from strength to strength, and having recently played host to Dr. Zein Obagi to celebrate the Institute’s first birthday, Dr. Eckel has been able to expand her local offerings to include Hydrafacials, innovative chemical peels, revolutionary medical lasers, as well as continuing to provide more ‘traditional’ aesthetic treatments such as dermal fillers and Botox, using the latest products and techniques.

As a result, The Skin Health Institute is now the premier destination for beauty and skin health in the region, and is a great example of a local success story in these trying times. With experts now predicting a return to a growth pattern between now and 2020, there is no doubt that Dr. Eckel’s business will continue to go from strength to strength and play an important part in returning T&T to a vibrant economy.

info@theskinhealthinstitute.com • +1 (868) 622 SKIN 8 Anderson Terrace • Maraval, Trinidad, West Indies

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 67

TOBAGO

A GROWTH PLAN

for Tobago

In March 2018, Demi-John Cruickshank, immediate past Chairman, Tobago Division, Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce, sat down with BT&T writer Natalie Dookie and shared his views on a Growth Plan for Tobago.

68 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Tobago is ideally located below the Caribbean’s hurricane belt, close to South America, and also close to the international shipping lanes to Europe and the USA. It is home to the oldest rainforest in the western hemisphere and to many species of coral as well as to whale sharks, manta rays and turtles.

In 2016, Tobago hotels were recognised for regional excellence Natalie Dookie Coco Reef Resort and Spa won Best Business Luxury Resort of the Year as well as Best Development & Business Resort of the Year, and the Market Research Magdalena Grand won Best Beach and Consultant Golf Resort of the Year.

Business Writer, The costs of doing business in ND Caribbean Tobago remain low and, like Trinidad, it Consulting has one of the lowest energy costs in Services the world at US$0.03 per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Tobago also has a high rate of literacy and tourism employs 56 per cent of its population. The A.N.R Robinson International Airport is currently served by several major airlines including British Airways and Condor.

Despite having abundant natural resources, access to a talented workforce and robust infrastructure, Tobago had an economically challenging year in 2017. However, according to immediate past Chairman of the Tobago Division, of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce, and prominent local businessman, Demi-John Cruickshank, Tobago’s future looks bright. He assures that the private sector is determined to reignite Tobago’s growth and development by proactively investing, implementing projects and collaborating with Government.

There has been a new level of assertiveness and engagement from the Tobago Division of the Chamber.

What has been some of its successes?

In recent times, we have become more assertive at holding Government accountable for stimulating and growing the local economy. As a result, Government has been taking a more collaborative approach to working with the private sector and involving us in the decision-making process. We have also been working closely with other public sector stakeholders to provide a platform for the Tobago private sector to flourish.

Our members have participated in several meetings with the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) to discuss current business challenges; revitalising the tourism sector; resolving issues such as the land licence, safety and security; and inter-island travel. These are all areas of concern to the Chamber, and we are delighted that the THA has committed to having regular meetings going forward, and to setting up a joint committee to explore solutions to these issues.

They will also be setting up a business development unit to assist with funding for small and medium sizedbusinesses. As a first step, the THA has also given us its assurance that they will be kick-starting the local construction industry soon.

Photo: Marcus Gomez

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 69

TOBAGO

How has the Chamber been working to overcome recent challenges in the Tobago economy?

The main threat to foreign investment in Tobago has been the Tobago Land Acquisition 2007 order, which states that persons residing outside of Trinidad and Tobago, and who wish to purchase land in Tobago, are required to obtain a land licence. It was envisaged that, initially, this process would take 21 days to complete. Unfortunately, it never got off the ground, so the international investor lost confidence in Tobago.

However, at recent meetings with the Ministry of Finance, we were advised that they have hired several attorneys to focus specifically on resolving this issue, and ensuring that approval going forward will be granted within the stipulated timeframe. We also understand that the other major challenge we are experiencing, which is securing a functional and effective sea and air-bridge, will be resolved soon by the Administration.

Now that these issues are being worked out, what are some of the key infrastructure projects carded for Tobago in 2018?

Earlier this year, the Prime Minister indicated that a number of projects in Tobago will commence in 2018. We expect construction of the new terminal airport building to start in August, and we understand that Government is aggressively seeking to increase direct international flights from the European/ Scandinavian markets.

The desalination plant, which will serve south-west Tobago, is also on the table for 2018, as well as de-silting of the Hillsborough Dam, which will provide an improved water supply to north and east Tobago. The Chamber welcomes the development of the new marina also carded for August of this year. We have been advised that the design is complete and approvals have been sought from the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) and the Institute of Marine Affairs (IMA). In addition, the Sandals project to construct a 750-room hotel is also back on the table, and public consultations are

70 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

The costs of doing business in Tobago remain low and, like Trinidad, it has one of the lowest energy costs in the world, US$0.03 per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Tobago also has a high rate of literacy with tourism employing 56 per cent of its population. due to start by May. All of these projects auger well for the private sector because investment in tourism creates a ripple effect on the local economy.

A number of Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects are being considered for Tobago. How has the private sector responded?

Local businesses in Tobago are willing and ready to support Government in the development of any PPP project which is viable in Tobago. While we await Government’s roll-out of its plans to the private sector, some members of the Chamber, particularly the Warner Group, have taken the initiative and are developing a PPP to provide low-cost housing in Tobago.

What are the main investment opportunities in Tobago?

The key growth sectors are housing, light manufacturing and tourism. Tobago needs to increase its room stock and therefore hotel development, especially for four and five star accommodation, is a good investment opportunity. One of Tobago’s strategic objectives is to become branded as ‘clean, green, safe and serene,’ so eco-tourism is another area in which we would like to see increased investment, and health and wellness tourism is also a growing niche product.

which will provide a cash guarantee to the government. Since it’s re-launch in December 2017, a number of businesses have been actively preparing proposals in order to apply for the grant.

Tobago’s pristine environment is a fundamental part of its tourism product.

How is the Chamber working to protect it in the midst of this growth in infrastructure?

As a watchdog organisation, the Chamber is monitoring closely how we preserve and protect the environment in Tobago. The new marina and the Sandals Hotel will be built in sensitive ecological areas, therefore, we must ensure that everything we construct is in harmony with the environment. We must protect the environment for our children and our children’s children, so the Chamber will continue to be vocal and we will be monitoring all of these new developments to ensure compliance.

Access to financing has been a challenge in the past. How is the re-launched Tobago Development Fund changing this?

The Tobago Development Fund has a cap of $10 million for any single business, and projects should be linked to the development of the tourism sector. Entrepreneurs must first develop a project proposal, approach their local bank and, if the bank indicates its willingness to fund the project, then the business can approach the EXIMBANK,

Demi-John Cruickshank Immediate Past Chairman, Tobago Division, Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce

Trinidad and Tobago CONFERENCING AND EVENT FACILITIES

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 71

FINAL THOUGHTS

T&T’s INCREDIBLE INNOVATORS AND ENTREPRENEURS

- are our Bright Future

BY THE TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO CHAMBER OF INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE In 2018, Trinidad and Tobago is still navigating its way through the “new normal” of stagnant economic growth.

Businesses and government are working assiduously to develop solutions to pull our still energy-dependent economy out of the rut. While the trend, for both private and public sector, is to adapt by downsizing, this alone is not the solution.

Growth in other sectors is critical, so Trinidad and Tobago must increasingly rely on its entrepreneurial talent.

The local economy has the potential to harness this talent to create new jobs and boost output, but government bureaucracy (long lines and cash-only transactions at government offices, for instance) hinders entrepreneurs.

Admittedly, our ease of doing business ranking has marginally improved from 94 out of 138 in 2016/17 to 83 out of 137 in 2017/18, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index; yet, Trinidad and Tobago is behind regional neighbours like Barbados and Jamaica. There is room in the near future to bridge this gap.

The government is to be commended for its attempt – via TTConnect and TTBizLink – to make some of its services accessible online. Parliament is also in the process of passing stronger legislation to tackle corruption through the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Property Act. It is now up to businesses to take advantage of online government services and firmer laws.

Trinidad and Tobago has a strong legal system following UK Common Law. The country is also home to the Caribbean Court of Justice, the highest Court of Appeal for Caribbean Community (CARICOM) states.

The absence of regulation in some

72 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

industries has resulted in inefficient market outcomes; business interests therefore need to continue working with government to craft legal frameworks for development of these sectors.

To ensure a robust legal system, our laws need to keep up with technological advancements. As is the case in other countries, cryptocurrencies are posing a challenge for regulators. Innovative nationals like Shiva Bissessar are exploring the applications of blockchain technology, and the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago is looking more closely at regulation and cryptocurrency transactions.

The country’s human resource pool is robust and offers high potential for business start-up and expansion. In 2014, enrolment in tertiary education was at 65% – an attainment rate that is comparable or even higher than some First World countries – and graduates add to the pool of qualified people needed to meet the labour demands of modern enterprise.

Trinidad and Tobago is in a favourable position to take advantage of the Digital Revolution. According to data from the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus, in 2016, 29% of local students were enrolled in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programmes. STEM skills like coding and programming knowledge are vital in the ICT Revolution, and leveraging the country’s educated workforce can usher in additional growth in the Information and Communications Technology sector.

Some ICT entrepreneurs are already forging ahead: tech startups like Dingolé are making waves in the local digital and virtual reality industry. In fact, the ICT

sector has grown to the extent that the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce will be hosting an ICT conference – possibly the first of its kind in Trinidad and Tobago - later this year.

Trinidad and Tobago, home to Carnival and its related industries, has no shortage of human capital when it comes to its capacity for creative innovation. Sadly, some creative works – as is the case with steel pan – have not been successfully commercialised, but with proper intellectual property (IP) protection, local inventors would be able to profit from their ingenuity. Reducing or subsidising the cost of IP, therefore, can help remove barriers for emerging startups, allowing entrepreneurs wiggle room to successfully grow their businesses.

Despite the cost of IP, local creative artistes have experienced commercial success, both at home and abroad.

Performers like Machel Montano and Kes are bringing soca music to the world through collaborations with internationally known artists like Major Lazer.

However, the business community cannot simply rely on its existing strengths, or focus on what has been tried and tested. It also needs to venture out into the unknown, dispelling its reputation

“Trinidad and Tobago, home to Carnival and its related industries, has no shortage of human capital when it comes to its capacity for creative innovation. Sadly, some creative works – as is the case with steel pan – have not been successfully commercialised.” of being risk-averse. In these trying economic times, businesses need – more than ever – to seek out opportunities in unfamiliar areas. Exploring new export markets can make up for a reduction in local demand and offer expansion opportunities. Trinidad and Tobago has signed bilateral trade agreements with Panama and El Salvador, and more are in the works. ExporTT also offers services aimed at helping businesses discover which markets are ideal for export.

Some companies have been heeding the warnings and have altered their objectives and models to strive in the “new normal.” Conglomerates Massy and ANSA McAL, for example, have been directing greater expansion efforts into regional markets. Local manufacturers who may not be able to afford to establish bases abroad are expanding through export to Latin America, with Panama and the Dominican Republic being two lucrative destinations. One major import distributor, HADCO, has

seen the potential of import substitution, and hopes to do its part to cut the food import bill by establishing an ice cream factory in Trinidad and Tobago.

In an age where new technology quickly becomes obsolete, it is important for businesses to stay ahead of the curve.

More than ever before, there is the need for an educated, ICT-ready workforce just to remain relevant. Trinidad and Tobago has the advantage of being able to harness the unique strengths of its creative, educated, ICT-competent, multicultural people, who are ready to take on the world.

Despite the economic gloom, local businesses can make bold moves by leveraging technology and government business services to their advantage.

Notwithstanding the bureaucracy involved in accessing these services and the cost of adopting technology, progressive entrepreneurs will set themselves apart by their resilience, carving out space for their businesses to grow.

Trinidad All Stars Steel Orchestra Classical Jewels XI

Photo: Maria Nunes

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 73

FINAL THOUGHTS

RECESSION?

Press the Accelerator!

There is an interesting story about the famous race car driver Michael Schumacher who, in his heyday, had won more world championship races than any other race car driver in history.

Ram Ramesh Once, after winning Executive a keenly contested Director Caribbean Centre race, he was asked how did he manage for Leadership to win despite such Development tough competition, and he said, “as I came around the last bend I saw a pile of cars that had crashed and noticed that everyone was slowing down. That’s when I decided to floor the pedal and overtake everyone to make it to the finish line.”

It is normal human tendency to slow down when everyone else is slowing down. But during a recession, when you see others sitting it out and waiting for it to pass, maybe it is the right time for you to push even harder and take advantage of the unique opportunities that may present themselves. If you are adept at your business and sufficiently nimble to take advantage of the opportunities, you are more likely to come out ahead of the curve when the economy turns around.

Here are five reasons why you should take advantage of the current slowdown in our Trinidad and Tobago economy to come out ahead of your competition.

Undervalued Assets In a depressed economy, many assets are undervalued as future prospects are not that bright – at least to the untrained eye. If you can take a long view on the economy, and have the staying power, this might be the right time to pick up some undervalued assets. For instance, the All T&T Index on the local stock market was at 1,999.88 on March 5th 2014. However,

by March 1st 2018 it had dropped 18 per cent to 1700.23. This not only signifies that the assets on the stock market may be undervalued, but it may be true even

74 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Photo: Edison Boodoosingh

“Since the advent of the downturn, many highly qualified persons who have been laid off have taken to independent contract work – thus creating a vibrant gig-economy in T&T.” in the wider market. For an investor coming into Trinidad and Tobago, or for someone seeking to expand their presence in T&T, this may indeed be the right opportunity.

Oversupply of Manpower Over the past few years many companies have embarked on restructuring exercises that have resulted in retrenchment of manpower. Newspaper reports estimate that more than 10,000 persons have been laid off in 2016 alone. This has caused labour availability to be better overall. Many companies have been able to reduce their manpower cost over the period through voluntary pay cuts as well.

This presents an opportunity to new investors or those who are looking to expand their operations, to hire good, quality staff at much less cost. There are many well-qualified recruitment agencies in Trinidad that can short-list qualified candidates for almost any position you may have and, given the labour situation, you are likely to have a wider choice of talent.

In addition, since the advent of the downturn, many highly qualified persons who have been laid off have taken to independent contract work – thus creating a vibrant “gig-economy” in T&T where the labour market is increasingly being characterised by the prevalence of short-term contracts or freelance work as opposed to permanent jobs.

The gig economy is also being driven by the traffic congestion on the roads which has caused many persons to give up their eight to four jobs and, instead, undertake several part-time jobs that give them the independence to work at their own time and pace. You can find a qualified person for almost any job in Trinidad and Tobago and you can engage them on short-term contracts with no attendant benefits or longterm commitments.

Competitive Suppliers The recession has opened up new opportunities for investors and business owners alike. Many organisations have dropped their prices in order to attract buyers. What might have been an expensive proposition for expanding your business may now seem affordable. Even where sellers quote a price that may be outside your price range, if you sit down to negotiate you will realise most buyers are willing to work with you to make it within your budget. Use the opportunity to enhance your negotiation skills and you will see significant gains to your bottom line.

New Entrepreneurs The downturn in the economy has spawned a new generation of entrepreneurs. Many of them have significant experience in their respective domains, have possibly taken VSEP (Voluntary Separation of Employment Package) and have the necessary capital to start a small business. These persons are a ready market for a number of services such as accounting, marketing, business plan preparation, bank loans, etc. Since interest rates and stock market returns have been low, fora like ‘Shark Tanks’ and ‘Planting Seeds’ have become popular as investors are looking for opportunities to make “angel investments” with a view to seeing potentially extraordinary returns in the medium to long term.

Government Initiatives The Government, through the Economic Development Advisory Board (EDAB), has also embarked on a number of initiatives to spur innovation and entrepreneurship in the T&T economy.

The EDAB has developed a number of work programmes in the manufacturing, services, creative industries, maritime services, etc. that may present interesting opportunities for entrepreneurs to take advantage of.

Like Schumacher, it may be time to press the accelerator, not the brakes! www.caribbeancentreforleadership.com

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 75

BUSINESS TRINIDAD & TOBAGO PROMOTION

LOCAL SUCCESS STORY

L-R: Directors, Alex, Lisa, Richalene, Franco Siu Chong

Founders, Hong Ling Chong and Siu Joy Chong

EXCELLENT STORES A SUCCESS STORY FROM CHINA

As a diamond is formed under pressure, Excellent Stores has been forged in fire, and its resiliency and perseverance continue to be the secret of its success over three generations.

Managing Director Franco Siu Chong and his wife Richalene took over the reins of the company from his parents and founders, Siu Joy Chong and Hong Ling Siu Chong, in 1975 and have grown the company into the leading department store in Trinidad. In 2012, their son Alex and his wife, Lisa, joined the executive leadership and together continue to grow and innovate the business.

The Excellent Diamond 60 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE

I

n 1937, a young Chinese immigrant, Siu Joy Chong, from the small village of Chung Shan in Guangdong Province, China, landed in Trinidad and Tobago to seek new opportunities in this tiny Caribbean island. This strange land with its unfamiliar language, culture and people presented daily challenges to young Mr. Siu. Nevertheless, daily challenges presented daily learning opportunities for growth, until 1958, when he and his wife Hong Ling, opened their first variety store under the name “Excellent Trading Company” on Henry Street, Port of Spain.

Celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2018, the company - now known as Excellent Stores - has become a household name and the leading department store in the country, offering the widest selection of consumer packaged household goods and operating in every major urban centre across Trinidad. It is also the largest Western Union sub-agent in the country.

The company consistently refines its processes in order to solidify its

competitive pricing position in the marketplace, to continuously bring excellent Value for quality products.

Driven by its purchasing power, economies of scale, and sourcing from direct suppliers and manufacturers, the company is able to sustain its pricing strategy and pass on savings to the consumer. Leveraging its strengths in client loyalty, brand awareness and product quality, Excellent Stores combines these attributes with greater convenience, a more targeted product mix with the introduction of over the counter drugs, toiletries, and pet supplies; and service improvements across its network.

Its most recent successes include the near doubling of its footprint with the opening of three new, world-class design store concepts in Port of Spain, San Fernando and Arima; launch of its reloadable gift cards; the launch of its e-commerce platform and omni channel retailing; and pioneering the sport of Dragon Boat racing locally and regionally.

These successes did not come without its fair share of disastrous setbacks.

Fire destroyed two of its main stores in 1985 and its flagship store in 2001.

The company experienced civil uprisings in 1970 and 1990 as well as economic downturns in 1985-1989 and 2008-2009. Yet, the company not only survived - but thrived. The keys to its resilience were the values passed down from its founders of putting in an honest day’s work and learning from each of its challenges.

As a family business, its employees are also considered family and it is not uncommon to have employees with up to 25 years of tenure. Through the years, this has produced a dedicated and loyal workforce that will weather storms with the company.

These tried and tested values, together with its competitive advantages developed over the past 60 years, form the recipe for success as Excellent Stores looks to expand throughout the Caribbean region and beyond.

Opening of the newest retail branch in Shops of Arima (18 November 2017): L-R: Lisa Siu Chong, Alex Siu Chong, Representative of The Honourable Anthony Garcia, Member of Parliament for Arima, Her Worship the Mayor Councilor Lisa Morris-Julian, Hong Ling Chong, Senator the Honourable Paula Gopee-Scoon, Richalene Siu Chong, Franco Siu Chong.

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 79

FINAL THOUGHTS

It’s Not Easy BEING GREEN Joel Henry Writer, Journalist and Communications specialist

We are at the dealership in Chaguanas, looking at a new car. It’s already impressively sleek, and then they lift the hood.

Inside is something remarkable - an engine unusually neat and compact.

Beside it is an alien, shimmering chrome case. It looks like the future.

“It’s so quiet,” I say.

Mr. Babwah responds, “that’s nothing, it’s still powering up. When it shifts to battery power it will go silent.”

And it goes silent.

The car is a hybrid vehicle, specifically an electric/combustion engine hybrid. It uses a traditional gas-powered engine to charge a massive battery, which then powers the vehicle. The result is a fuel savings of more than 60%. This translates into a smaller gas bill and environmental footprint.

And that’s just one model. Visham Babwah, CEO of P&V Marketing Ltd, has two lots filled with brand new hybrids.

He carries over 10 models, from compact cars to SUVs to luxury vehicles, all using electric hybrid sustainable technology.

“I have been bringing these vehicles since 2012,” he says, “bringing, servicing and repairing. Eighty percent of the vehicles that I sell now are hybrid. There is very high demand for them.”

Babwah is a successful entrepreneur but, more importantly, he is successful in the area of sustainable transportation.

He is a “green” entrepreneur in Trinidad and Tobago, a country that has enormous potential, and need, for a thriving green economy. But history has shown, time and time again, potential is not enough.

For T&T, it’s not easy being green.

Although there are several definitions, a handy way of looking at the “green

80 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

economy” is as an economic system that merges business with environmental responsibility in a mutually beneficial relationship. Green sectors include renewable energy, sustainable transport, waste management, and sustainable buildings. In clean energy alone, experts estimate global investments of almost US$350 billion in 2015 and an estimated US$7.8 trillion by 2040.

In the Caribbean region, where islands face high energy costs and a need for new avenues of economic growth, there has been some progress in recent years towards a green sector. In 2015, a US$71.5 million programme -funded by the Inter American Development Bank (IDB) and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) - kick-started a concerted effort to develop the renewables sector in the Eastern Caribbean countries.

Jamaica installed its first megawatt-sized solar facility in 2014 and in 2017, the Government of Jamaica announced it was seeking US$300 million in investments

Gerard Rajkumar Manager and Lead Consultant, Sygma Environmental

for renewable energy. Barbados, in particular, has made considerable strides in renewable energy. In 2017, its Prime Minister Freundel Stuart pledged the island would receive 29 percent of its power from these sources by the end of the decade.

Then there’s Trinidad and Tobago.

“We are a bit behind the curve because we didn’t have to be ahead of the curve,” says Gerard Rajkumar, Manager and Lead Consultant of Sygma Environmental, a health, safety and environmental monitoring firm.

“We have a perceived abundance of natural gas to create electricity so we haven’t looked in earnest for other sources.”

Rajkumar, an environmental scientist, says that there are small pockets of outstanding sustainable economic activity. However, there is a need for greater action at the policy level to incentivise and support green entrepreneurship.

“We need policy for both punishment and incentives. When you create the proper incentives, Trinidadians’ natural entrepreneurial spirit rises. The businesses will form themselves.”

GERARD RAJKUMAR – Manager and Lead Consultant, Sygma Environmental

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 81

FINAL THOUGHTS

T&T’s green activities are regulated primarily under the Environmental Management Act of 2000. Under the Act, rules for water, noise and air pollution have been implemented over the last 15 years. Another major potential influencer on the development of sustainable industries is the Green Fund, a tax-based fund that provides for environmentrelated activities. The Green Fund contains an estimated $4 billion.

With this type of legislative framework and funding it would seem that the country has at least a foundation for green business. But observers point to a need for more dynamic action at the policy level and better oversight, enforcement, data collection and measurement of the existing policies and funding mechanisms.

“Policy is the main driver,” says Rajkumar. “We need policy for both punishment and incentives. When you create the proper incentives, Trinidadians’ natural entrepreneurial spirit rises. The businesses will form themselves.”

Speaking on the viability of a green

Photo: Video Aerial & Ground Solutions

82 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

“People were telling me Trinidadians are not ready for electric cars. But they didn’t have to be ready. We just have to offer them a quality product that meets their needs at a good price and they will buy.”

VISHAM BABWAH – CEO, P&V Marketing Ltd economy in T&T, European Ambassador Arend Biesebroek says, “definitely there is potential to take action in this area.

For instance there is great potential to introduce renewable energy.” Pointing to the EU Delegation’s work with the Government of Trinidad and Tobago on the national innovation policy, he adds: “The concept of using innovation in the area of renewable energy is not a bad idea. If people are creative and willing to test, and the private sector supports these initiatives because they see potential, that is the way to go. This is what the Government intends to do with the development of their innovation policy.”

There are participants already in the renewables space - firms such as Smart Energy Ltd. Likewise, Government is looking at changes in the legislation relating to power generation

(and the nation’s electrical grids) to facilitate renewables and green energy entrepreneurship. Researchers at the University of the West Indies, working with the Trinidad & Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC), have developed smart grid technology that will allow private users and generators of renewable energy to interact with the grid.

In May of 2017, Prime Minister Keith Rowley said the Government had set a goal that 10% of energy generated in T&T would come from renewable sources by 2021.

Apart from renewables, observers also see great potential in waste management.

Estimates for the value of the global waste management business reach as high as US$500 billion. In general, green industries follow the maxim of “with great crisis comes great opportunity,” and nowhere is that more evident than in waste

H.E. Aad Biesebroek, Ambassador, Delegation of the European Union to Trinidad and Tobago

FINAL THOUGHTS

management. In T&T, an estimated 1,000 tonnes of waste was produced per day as far back as 2011. The Beetham Landfill has been over capacity for years.

“In other countries people are using waste,” says Rajkumar. “People are selling shredded plastics. We should be doing much more of that here. With the proper investment we could be a recycling hub for the region.”

He points specifically to single-use plastics, such as water bottles. “We are drowning in single use plastics.” A Beverage Containers Bill, which has been languishing for more than a decade was created to address this issue by putting a monetary value on plastic bottles. “You never see glass bottles lying around. That’s because they have value. The same thing should be done with plastic,” Rajkumar says.

T&T, however, does have entrepreneurship taking place in the area of waste management. Firms such as ACE Recycling and Waste Disposals Ltd have operated for some time. Nature Seekers is a truly green organisation that emerged out of the desire to protect nesting turtles in Matura.

Apart from offering a unique eco-tourism

Visham Babwah, CEO of P&V Marketing Ltd Photo: Adrian Boodan

experience, they also collect and recycle items to produce amazing, high-quality jewellery.

Apart from Government facilitation and research-based innovation, entrepreneurship is critical to the green economy. Green business has to make business sense and that requires vision and serious effort, especially when customers are unfamiliar with products and services.

“If you have to compete, you have to come better,” says Babwah. “I saw what was happening with the car manufacturers since the 1990s. I followed where the technology was going. I have been lobbying for electric cars since 2010 because I knew by choice or by force we would have to go this way.”

He adds, “people were telling me Trinidadians are not ready for electric cars.

But they didn’t have to be ready. We just have to offer them a quality product that meets their needs at a good price and they will buy.”

If that fierce entrepreneurship can be replicated and combined with fierce political will, then T&T will be able to build a thriving and prosperous green economy.

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 83

BUSINESS Trinidad & Tobago USEFUL INFORMATION

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 85

STOCK MARKET REVIEW 2017

STOCK MARKET Review

BY FIRST CITIZENS INVESTMENT SERVICES

In 2017, the Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange recorded varied results across all indices, much like 2016.

The Composite Index, which consists of all listed companies including cross listed Ravi Kurjah stocks, advanced by Senior Analyst, 56.82 points or 4.70% First Citizens over 2016 levels to Research & close at 1,266.35.

Analytics, Conversely, First Citizens the All T&T Index Investment declined by 105.48 Services points or 5.75%, when compared to 2016, to close at 1,728.75, as seen in Figure 1. However, the Cross Listed Index advanced by 30.21 points or by a noteworthy 38.64% over 2016 to close at 108.38.

Banking was the best performing sector in 2017, up 28.98%, primarily due to significant price appreciation in cross listed stocks - First Caribbean International (FCI) and NCB Financial Group Ltd (NCBFG).

This was followed by the Trading Sector, with that index growing by 10.89%, led by Agostini’s Ltd (AGL) which increased 18.57% in 2017 and was largely driven by the additions of Vemco and Pepsi Cola Trinidad Bottling Company Ltd to the Group.

Conversely, unlike 2016’s positive results, the Manufacturing I sector index retreated, falling 20.50%, attributed mainly to Unilever Caribbean Ltd (UCL), One Caribbean Media Ltd (OCM), and National Flour Mills Ltd (NFM), who saw their share price fall by 51.94%, 34.37% and 24.21% respectively.

Table 1 TOP 5 ADVANCES

Closing Price (TTD)

2017 Change (TTD)

2017 Change (%)

NCBFG

6.27

3.27

109.00

JMMBGL

1.65

0.75

83.33

GHL

17.03

4.38

34.62

NGL

26.50

5.50

26.19

AGL

20.75

3.25

18.57

Table 2 TOP 5 DECLINES

Closing Price (TTD)

2017 Change (TTD)

29.00

-30.84

-51.54

OCM

13.06

-6.84

-34.37

NFM

1.91

-0.61

-24.21

100.00

26.94

-21.22

3.75

-0.65

-14.77

WCO TCL

Source: Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange, First Citizens Research & Analytics

86 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

2017 Change (%)

UCL

Major Company Developments in 2017 • In January 2017, Sierra announced its intention to take up all TCL shares deposited, pursuant to the Offer up to a maximum of 132,616,942 TCL shares.

•

In February, CariCRIS assigned initial Issuer/corporate credit ratings of CariAA+ (Foreign and Local Currency) on its regional rating scale, and ttAA+ on the T&T national scale to Massy Holdings Ltd.

•

In March, the OCM group announced its purchase of a majority stake in Green Dot Ltd.

•

In April, GraceKennedy Money Services (GKMS) expanded into a new arena as a moneylender, offering immediate loans in small quantities with premium price to compensate for risk.

•

In May, Telecommunications Services of T&T (TSTT) signed a share purchase agreement (SPA) to buy 100% of the shares of Massy Communications Ltd for $255 million.

•

In June, an Additional Public Offering (APO) of shares in Trinidad and Tobago NGL Ltd (TTNGL) opened.

The closing date for applications was June 28, 2017. The offer was 40,248,000 Class B shares at a price of $21 per share.

•

In July, the JMMB Group invested in upgrades to its branches to launch into commercial banking services while awaiting final sign-off on the licence from the regulator.

•

In August 2017, Guardian Media Ltd (GML) reported an after tax loss of $267,000 for the six months ended June 30, 2017.

•

On September 1st, 2017 Grace Kennedy’s (GKC’s) acquisition of Consumer Brands Ltd became effective.

“Banking was the best performing sector in 2017, up 28.98%, primarily due to significant price appreciation in cross listed stocks First Caribbean International (FCI) and NCB Financial Group Ltd (NCBFG).”

•

In October, Scotia Investment Jamaica Ltd announced that the Supreme Court of Jamaica had approved and sanctioned the Scheme of Arrangement pursuant to which stock units in the Company (other than those held by Scotia Group Jamaica Ltd) would be cancelled in consideration for cash payments of JMD$38.00 per stock unit

•

In November 2017, the JMMB Group issued US Currency dividends to T&T Shareholders.

•

In December, NCB Financial Group Ltd (NCBFG) finalised acquisition of a majority stake in Clarien Group Ltd.

Trading Activity Market activity on the Composite Market in 2017 decreased by 8.07% when compared to the previous year. A total of 84,550,274 shares crossed the floor in 2017 compared to 91,975,523 shares in 2016. Overall market activity resulted from trading in 36 stocks of

which 17 advanced, 17 declined and 2 traded firm. JMMB Group Ltd was again the volume leader with 16,304,481 units, 19.28% of total market volume traded or $23,527,673.04 in traded value, followed

by GKC with 7,693,013 units (9.10%) or $21,666,049.09 and Sagicor Financial Corporation Ltd with 7,415,775 units (8.77%) or $64,449,604.83 in traded value.

Advances and Declines NCB Financial Group Ltd (NCBFG) was the top performer for 2017, growing a significant 109.00% or $3.27 to close the year at $6.27. For the second consecutive year, JMMB Group Ltd (JMMBGL) was the second best performing stock recording a substantial 83.33% improvement or $0.75 to end the year at $1.65. The next best performing stock was GHL, up 34.62% or $4.38 to close 2017 at $17.03.

Unilever Caribbean Ltd (UCL) was the largest percentage price depreciation in 2017, falling 51.54% to $29.00, OCM followed, down 34.37% or $6.84 to close at $13.06. NFM’s share price recorded the third biggest decline, decreasing 24.21% or $0.61 to close the year at $1.91.

Figure 1 Trinidad & Tobago Composite Index and All T&T Index Value Movement for 2017

Source: Trinidad & Tobago Stock Exchange, First Citizens Research & Analytics

DISCLAIMER: This report has been prepared by First Citizens Investment Services Limited, a subsidiary of First Citizens Bank Limited. It is provided for informational purposes only and without any obligation, whether contractual or otherwise. All information contained herein has been obtained from sources that First Citizens Investment Services believes to be accurate and reliable. All opinions and estimates constitute the author’s judgment as at the date of the report. First Citizens Investment Services does not warrant the accuracy, timeliness, completeness of the information given or the assessments made. Opinions expressed may change without notice. This report does not constitute an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any securities discussed herein. The securities discussed in this report may not be suitable to all investors, therefore Investors wishing to purchase any of the securities mentioned should consult an investment adviser.

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 87

Fast Facts Guide OFFICIAL NAME Republic of Trinidad and Tobago LOCATION The southern end of the Caribbean archipelago: Latitude 10.5° N / Longitude 60.5° W. Area - 4820 sq km / 1864 sq mls.

Tobago - Latitude 11.5° N / Longitude 60.5° W. Area - 300 sq km / 116 sq mls.

TIME ZONE Dry Season: EST equivalent to GMT – 4 or 5 hours Rainy Season: EST + 1 hour, GMT – 4 hours.

No daylight saving time in T&T. CLIMATE Mean temperatures of 85 degrees Fahrenheit with 60% humidity in the dry season of January to May, and 90 degrees with 75% humidity June to December. Nighttime temperatures can drop to around 70 degrees in the cooler months.

CAPITAL CITY Port of Spain, Trinidad, seat of the national democratic government.

Scarborough, Tobago, seat of the local government body, the Tobago House of Assembly (THA).

POPULATION Estimated population 1.3 million of which 55,000 reside in Tobago.

THE GOVERNMENT Trinidad and Tobago’s government is a parliamentary democracy. The head of state is the President, who is elected by an Electoral College of members of the Senate and House of Representatives for a five-year term. Executive power, however, is vested in the Prime Minister and Government following elections every five years. Citizens of Trinidad and Tobago must be 18 years or older to be eligible to vote. The next general election is constitutionally due in 2020.

LEGAL SYSTEM The legal system is based on common law and statutes. The judicial system comprises Magistrates Courts and the Supreme Court, which comprises the High Court and the Court of Appeal. There is a separate Industrial Court that deals with most labour matters. The Judicial and Legal Service Commission appoints judges to the Supreme Court. Final appeal is to the Privy Council in England, but consideration is being given to replacing the Privy Council with the Caribbean Court of Justice, inaugurated in April 2005 with headquarters in Port of Spain. www.ag.gov.tt/, www.legalaffairs.gov.tt/, www.moj.gov.tt

ETHNIC PROFILE 35.4% East Indian descent 34.2% African descent 22.8% Mixed descent 1.4% Other (European, Arab and Chinese) OFFICIAL LANGUAGE English (Spanish is being promoted as Trinidad and Tobago’s first foreign language) CURRENCY Trinidad and Tobago dollar tied to the US$ and floating at: US$1 = TT$6.76 Notes: $1, $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100 Coins: 5, 10, 25 and 50 For daily Foreign Exchange Rates: www.central-bank.org.tt/

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUES AND CREDIT CARDS Accepted in most establishments. Customs & Excise Division accepts cash only. Other Government agencies may accept cash or LINX only.

BUSINESS DRESS CODE Trinidad is more formal with lightweight suits worn, but in Tobago jackets are optional except on formal occasions. Outfits with sleeves must be worn to conduct business in Government offices.

BUSINESS HOURS Generally 0800 to 1600 Monday to Friday, retail outlets 0800 to 1600 except at Malls where opening time is 1000 and closing is 1900.

MAJOR BANKS The major banks have their main corporate offices in Port of Spain with branches in strategic locations throughout Trinidad and Tobago. They maintain international links through their affiliates in North America and Europe.

• Bank of Baroda (Trinidad only) • CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank (Trinidad only) • Citi (Trinidad only) • First Citizens Trinidad & Tobago • JMMB Bank • RBC Royal Bank • Republic Bank • Scotiabank Banking hours are 0800 to 1400 Monday to Thursday, 0800 to 1200 and 1500 to 1700 Friday. Mall branches: usually 1000 to 1700.

SELECTED ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Real GDP (y-o-y % change) Energy (y-o-y % change) Non-Energy (y-o-y % change) Headline Inflation (% average) Unemployment Rate (% average) Current Account Balance (% GDP) Net Official Reserves (US$ Million) Net Official Reserves (in months of prospective imports of goods and non-factor services)

2012 1.3 -2.8 2.3 9.3 5.0 13.1 9,370.7 10.6

All banks have Automatic Banking Machines (ABMs) and major shopping malls contain either full service branches or ABMs. The ABM banking system features LINX, which enables clients to access accounts from any ABM regardless of agency in the country.

LINX can also be used to make purchases at retail outlets throughout the country.

ABMs also offer access to advance cash withdrawals for VISA, MasterCard and VISA Plus clients.

DUTY FREE SHOPPING Available at the Cruise Ship Complex, Piarco and A.N.R Robinson International Airports Apadoca’s at Crews Inn for boats leaving the country.

TAXATION TAX Departure Tax

RATE TT$200 is included in the cost of the airline ticket.

Citizens over the age of 60 years old are exempted Hotel Tax 10% service charge Hotel Room Tax 10% service charge Value Added Tax 12.5% on consumer goods (VAT) and services Income Tax 25% Corporation 25% on Chargeable Profits Income Tax 15% on Long-term Insurance Business Insurance Premium Tax 6% Withholding Taxes Varies TELEPHONE 1 (868) + seven digit number ELECTRICITY 115 volts / 230 volts (+/- 6%) and 60Hz ROAD SYSTEMS Driving is on the left side of the road.

2013

1.0 1.7 0.6 5.2 3.7 20.3 10,175.9 12.2

2014 -0.3 -1.7 0.6 5.7 3.3 14.7 11,497.1 12.9

2015

2016

2017p

1.5 -2.5 3.9 4.7 3.4 4.6 9,933.0 11.2

-6.0 -11.1 -3.1 3.1 4.0 -11.7 9,465.8 10.5

-2.3 -3.1 -2.0 1.9 4.5 -3.8 8,369.8 9.7

Source: Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago, Selected Economic Indicators Annual. www.central-bank.org.tt/

88 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

DOMESTIC FERRY SERVICE Trinidad and Tobago offers an inter-island fast ferry service between Port of Spain in Trinidad and Scarborough in Tobago for transporting passengers and cargo.

Tickets can be purchased on the same day or in advance at various Travel Agencies and Internet Cafes in Trinidad or Tobago. Photo identification is required.

• Adult passengers on the Fast Ferry service TT$50 one way and TT$100 round trip • Children (3-12 years): TT$25 one way and TT$50 round trip • All children under the age of 3 and senior citizens of T&T 60 years & over travel free.

• Private cars cost TT$150 one way and TT$250 round trip.

For more information: https://ttitferry.com.

WATER TAXI SERVICE The Water Taxi sails from San Fernando to Port of Spain and back ($15 one way) from Monday to Friday. The Water Taxi Service is closed on Sundays and Public Holidays.

Tickets can be purchased at the Water Taxi Terminals located at Lady Hailes Avenue in San Fernando or the Cruise Ship Complex in Port of Spain. Free parking is available at both ports. Minors one year & under and senior citizens of T&T 65 years & over travel free. PTSC’s Bus Shuttle Service is available for Water Taxi passengers on arrival in Port of Spain.

For the sailing schedule and other information, visit: www.nidco.co.tt or www. facebook.com/watertaxiservice or call 6245593. Customer Care Hotline: 800-4WTS (4987).

N.B. Personal photo identification is needed when travelling between isles and water taxi services and when purchasing tickets for the ferry, water taxi and airline service.

MEDIA Daily Press includes: Trinidad Express, Trinidad Guardian and Newsday.

Bi-weekly: TnT Mirror.

Weeklies: Tobago News, Catholic News, Bomb, Blast, Metro, Showtime, The Independent, The Weekend Heat, The Probe, Sunday Punch and Newspaper Direct Trinidad and Tobago.

Monthly: Trinidad and Tobago Review, Easterly and Westerly.

Local television stations: CCN TV-6 (Channels 6 & 18 in Trinidad and Channel 19 in Tobago), CNMG (Channels 9 and 13), ACTS (Channel 25), Cable News Channel CNC3 (Channels 12 & 14), Gayelle (Channels 23 & 27), Government Information Services Limited (Channels 4 & 16), Synergy TV (Channel 33), The Parliament Channel (Trinidad and Tobago) (Channel 29), and Tobago Channel (Channel 5 Tobago only).

Local television programming via cable television: CCN TV-6 (5 Flow, 100 Blink, 130 DirecTV), CNMG (6 Flow & 102 Blink), ACTS (9 Flow & 112 Blink), Cable News Channel CNC3 (3 Flow, 104 Blink, 131 DirecTV), Darut Tarbiyah The Islamic Network (T.I.N.) (96 Flow,

115 Blink, 10 Green Dot), Gayelle (7 Flow, 106 Blink), Government Information Services Limited (4 Flow, 103 Blink), ieTV (1 Flow & 116 Blink), Islamic Broadcast Network - IBN (8 Flow, 114 Blink), Jaagriti TV (90 Flow), NCC TV4 (4 Flow & 103 Blink), Sankhya TV (117 Blink, 13 Green Dot), Synergy TV (15 Flow, 108 Blink), The Parliament Channel (11 Flow), Trinity TV (10 Flow), WI Sport (14 Flow).

There are about 39 radio stations.

EMERGENCY SERVICES Port of Spain General Hospital 623-2951; 6232327, San Fernando General Hospital 6523581 and the Scarborough General Hospital 660-4SGH (4744). Roxborough Hyperbaric Facility (RHF), the Dive Chamber, is the only recompression chamber available at the Roxborough Medical Clinic in Tobago. For

more information about the facility you can call 660-5155.

EMERGENCY SERVICE TEL NOS. Ambulance/ Trinidad Emergency Relief 811 Tobago Emergency Relief 211 Coast Guard 634-4440 Crime Stoppers 800-TIPS (8477) Fire 990 Police/Rapid Response 999; 911 The Office of 800-ODPM Disaster Preparedness (6376) and Management 640-1285; (ODPM) 640 8905 Trinidad 640-8653; 640-6493 Tobago 660-7489

AIRPORTS Piarco International Airport (POS) - 17 miles (27 km) from Port of Spain.

A.N.R Robinson International Airport (TAB) - 7 miles (10km) from Scarborough.

PIARCO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AIRLINES

IATA CODE

DESTINATION

TELEPHONE CONTACT

Air Canada Rouge

RV

Toronto (YYZ)

299-0796

American Airlines

AA

Miami (MIA)

627-7013 / 821-6000

British Airways

BA

St Lucia (UVF),

669-6556/ 1-800-247-9297

London Gatwick (LGW)

1-800-452-1201

Caribbean Airlines

BW

The Caribbean,

625-7200

Copa Airlines

CM

Panama (PTY)

669-5949 / 800-271-2672

JetBlue

B6

Fort Lauderdale (FLL),

669-2288

North America

New York (JFK) Liat

LI

The Caribbean

669-2982 / 627-6274

Rutaca Airlines

5R

Magarita (PMV)

669-4688

Surinam Airways

PY

Surinam (PBM),

627-0102 / 627-4747

Curacao (CUR) United Airlines

UA

Houston (IAH),

669-8782 / 1-800-864-8331

NewWark (EWR) Venezolana

AW

Caracas (CCS)

627-4118

West Jet Airlines

WS

Toronto (YYZ)

1-403-444-2586

Turpial Airlines

T5

Magarita (PMV)

669-4688

A.N.R ROBINSON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AIRLINES

CODE

DESTINATION

TELEPHONE CONTACT

British Airways

BA

London Gatwick (LGW)

639-0595 / 639-0588

Caribbean Airlines

BW

The Caribbean, North

660-7200

1-800-247-9297 / 1-800-452-1201 America and the UK Condor

DE

Frankfurt (FRA)

Virgin Atlantic

VS

London Gatwick (LGW)

Thomas Cooke (seasonal

MT

639-0484/ 639-9744 639-0595 / 639-0588 639-0484/ 639-9744

flights from Dec to Mar) For more information on scheduled dates and times log on to www.tntairports.com. The domestic “airbridge” is operated by Caribbean Airlines based in Trinidad, flying regular daily flights between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. to Tobago. The domestic fare for an adult is TT$150 single and TT$300 round trip. Internet bookings are available at www.caribbean-airlines.com.

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 89

Trinidad Contact Information American Chamber of Commerce of Trinidad and Tobago (AMCHAM) 62 Maraval Road, Newtown Port of Spain Tel: (868) 622-4466, 622-0340 Fax: (868) 628-9428 phyllisjohnson@amchamtt.com www.amchamtt.com Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business Max Richards Drive, Uriah Butler Highway North West Mt Hope Tel: (868) 645-6700, 662-9894 Fax: (868) 662-1411 info@lokjackgsb.edu.tt www.lokjackgsb.edu.tt Association of Real Estate Agents (AREA) Suite A4, Kencita Court 76 Picton Street, Newtown Port of Spain Tel: (868) 628-9048 Fax: (868) 628-9049 area.tt.assoc@gmail.com www.areatt.com Association of Trinidad and Tobago Insurance Companies (ATTIC) 8 Stanmore Avenue, Port-of-Spain Tel: (868) 624-2817, 625-2940 Fax: (868) 625-5132 mail@attic.org.tt www.attic.org.tt Bankers Association of Trinidad and Tobago (BATT) Level 2, Invaders Bay Tower, Invaders Bay Port of Spain Tel: (868) 235-6049/235-6051 secretariat@batt.org.tt https://batt.org.tt Bevil M. Wooding Chief Knowledge Officer Congress WBN Unit 11, Executive Centre Courtyard of Artisians, La Joya Complex St Joseph Tel: (868) 663 5673 Fax: (868) 662 1750 cwbn@congresswbn.org www.congresswbn.org Bhagwansingh’s Group of Companies 1 Development Circular Road, Sea Lots Port of Spain Tel: (868) 627-8335 Fax: (868) 623-0804 bhsil@bhsil.com Central Bank of Trinidad & Tobago Eric Williams Financial Plaza Independence Square P.O. Box 1250, Port-of-Spain Tel: (868) 621-2288/235-2288 Fax: (868) 627-4023 info@central-bank.org.tt www.central-bank.org.tt

90 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Caribbean Centre for Leadership Development Ltd Authorised Licensee: Crestcom International, LLC #9, Hilton Trinidad & Conference Centre St. Ann’s, Port of Spain Tel: (868) 221-6933, 684-2757 ram@caribbeancentreforleadership.com www.caribbeancentreforleadership.com Customs and Excise Division Government Campus Plaza Ajax Street, Wrightson Road Port of Spain Tel: (868) 625-3311 asycuda@customs.gov.tt www.customs.gov.tt Delegation of the European Union to Trinidad and Tobago Level 2, Sagicor Financial Centre 16 Queen’s Park West Port of Spain Tel: (868) 622 6628, ext 39 Fax: (868) 622 6355 delegation-trinidad-and-tobago-general@ eeas.europa.eu https://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/ trinidad-and-tobago_en Economic Development Advisory Board (EDAB) Level 22, Nicholas Tower 63-65 Independence Square Port of Spain Tel: (868) 225-4700 Fax: (868) 226-1004 communications@edab.org.tt www.edab.org.tt The Energy Chamber of Trinidad & Tobago Suite B2.03 Atlantic Plaza, Atlantic Avenue Point Lisas, Couva Tel: (868) 6-ENERGY, 679-6623, 679-1398 Fax: (868) 679-4242 execoffice@energy.tt www.energy.tt ENMAN Group B4 Demerara Drive Point Lisas Industrial Estate P.O. Box 72 Couva Tel: (868) 679-7438/9 Fax: (868) 636-3484 admin@enmangroup.com www.enmangroup.com Employers’ Consultative Association of Trinidad and Tobago (ECA) #17 Samaroo Road Aranguez Roundabout North Aranguez Tel: (868) 675-5873/638-6463/9394 Fax: (868) 675-6026 info@ecatt.org www.ecatt.org

Ernst & Young Services Ltd 5-7 Sweet Briar Road, St Clair Port-of-Spain Tel: (868) 628-1105 Fax: (868) 622-0918 www.ey.com/TT/en Evolving Tecknologies and Enterprise Development Company Ltd (eTecK) Flagship Complex 9-15 e TecK Blvd.

Tamana InTech Park Wallerfield Tel: (868) 224-1989 info@eteck.co.tt www.eteck.co.tt Excellent Stores Ltd # 3-5 Frederick Street Port of Spain Tel: (868) 225-1010 www.excellentstorestt.com exporTT Ltd Head Office: 151B Charlotte Street Port of Spain Tel: (868) 623-5507; 624-3923 Fax: (868) 623-6665/624-3919 info@exportt.co.tt www.exportt.co.tt First Citizens Investment Services Ltd 17 Wainwright Street, St. Clair Port of Spain Trinidad & Tobago Tel: (868) 622-3247 Fax: (868) 624-4544 www.firstcitizenstt.com Fujitsu Caribbean (Trinidad) Ltd 6th Avenue Extension & Ibis Avenue Barataria Tel: (868) 223-2826 Fax: (868) 674-8387 fcl_marketing@caribbean.fujitsu.com www.fujitsu.com/caribbean INFOCOMM Technologies Ltd # 10 8th Street, Barataria Tel: (868) 683-6300 atibaphillips@ict.co.tt www.ict.co.tt InvesTT Level 19, Nicholas Tower 63-65 Independence Square Port of Spain Tel: (868) 225-4688 info@investt.co.tt www.investt.co.tt

JMMB Bank (T&T) Ltd DSM Plaza, Old Southern Main Road Chaguanas Tel: (868) 800-JMMB (5662) Ext. 3267 Fax: (868) 665-6663 infottbank@jmmb.com www.jmmbtt.com Label House Group Ltd 24-25 Frederick Settlement Industrial Estate, Caroni Tel: (868) 663-0604 Fax: (868) 663-8226 sales@labelhouse.com www.labelhousegroup.com Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries Levels 15 & 22-26, Energy Tower C International Waterfront Centre #1 Wrightson Road, Port of Spain Tel: (868) 626-6334, 225-4334 62-MOEEI Fax: (868) 625-0306 info@energy.gov.tt www.energy.gov.tt Ministry of Finance Level 8, Eric Williams Finance Building Port of Spain Tel: (868) 612-9700 ext. 2805-9 Fax: (868) 627-6108 comm.finance@gov.tt www.finance.gov.tt Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries Corner Narsloo Ramaya Marg Road and Soogrim Trace, Endeavour, Chaguanas Tel: (868) 220-MALF (6253) fpps@gov.tt www.agriculture.gov.tt Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs Level 10-14, Tower C Waterfront Complex 1A Wrightson Road Port of Spain Tel: (868) 623-6894 Fax: (868) 624-4220 website@foreign.gov.tt www.foreign.gov.tt Ministry of National Security Temple Court 31-33 Abercromby Street Port of Spain Tel:(868) 623-2441-5 Fax: (868) 627-8044 info@mns.gov.tt www.nationalsecurity.gov.tt Ministry of Planning & Development Level 14, Eric Williams Financial Complex Independence Square, Port of Spain Tel: (868) 627-9700 www.planning.gov.tt

Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs 2 St. Clair Avenue Port of Spain Tel: (868) 628-6792 www.msya.gov.tt Ministry of Trade and Industry Level 9, 11-17, Nicholas Towers 63-65 Independence Square Port of Spain Tel: (868) 623-2931-4 Fax: (868) 627-8488; 627-0002 mti-info@gov.tt www.tradeind.gov.tt National Agricultural Marketing and Development Corporation (NAMDEVCO) 3 1/4 MM S.S. Erin Road, Debe Tel: (868) 647-3218, 647-3467, 647-3866 Fax: (868) 647-6087 contact@namdevco.com www.namdevco.com National Information and Communication Technology Company Ltd (iGovTT) Level 1-3, Lord Harris Court #52 Pembroke Street Port of Spain Tel: (868) 627-5600 Fax: (868) 624-8001 igovtt@gov.tt www.igovtt.tt Office of Disaster Preparedness & Management (ODPM) 4A Orange Grove Road Trincity, Tacarigua Customer Emergency Call Centre: 511 Tel: (868) 640-1285/8905/8653/6493 Fax: (868) 640-8988 publicinfo.odpm@gmail.com www.odpm.gov.tt P&V Marketing Co. Ltd #11 Mulchan Seuchan Road Chaguanas Tel: (868) 672-2083 gisuvi@yahoo.com www.pvmarketing.weebly.com Port Authority of Trinidad and Tobago Administrative Building 1 Dock Road, Port of Spain Tel: (868) 623-2901-5 Fax: (868) 627-4945 www.patnt.com Port of Point Lisas PLIPDECO House, Orinoco Drive Point Lisas Industrial Estate, Couva Tel: (868) 636-2201 Cargo Handling: (868) 636-2202, 4388, 2137, 4006 Port Marine: (868) 636-7678, 2132 Fax: (868) 636-4008, 679-2907 plipdeco@plipdeco.com www.plipdeco.com

Shipping Association of Trinidad & Tobago 15 Scott Bushe Street Port of Spain Tel: (868) 625-2388, 623-3355 Fax: (868) 623-8570 om@shipping.co.tt www.shipping.co.tt Southern Medical Clinic 26-34 Quenca Street San Fernando Tel: (868) 652-4535, 652-2064 Fax: (868) 657-4525 info@smctt.com www.southernmedicalclinic.com Stepping Stone Solutions Ltd 24-25 Frederick Settlement Industrial Estate, Caroni Tel: (868) 663-0604 Ext. 313 Fax: (868) 633-4227 Sygma Environmental Tel: (868) 622-7114, 683-5444, 357-5248 gerard@sygmaenvironmental.com www. sygmaenvironmental.com Trinidad & Tobago Fine Cocoa Company Ltd La Reunion Estate, Centeno Carapo Road, Carapo Tel: (868) 642-7141 info@ttfinecocoa.com www.ttfinecocoa.com Trinidad Hotels, Restaurants and Tourism Association (THRTA) c/o Trinidad and Tobago Hospitality and Tourism Institute Airway Road, Chaguaramas Tel: (868) 634-1174/5 Fax: (868) 634-1176 info@tnthotels.com www.tnthotels.com The University of the West Indies (UWI) St Augustine Campus, St. Augustine Tel: (868) 662-2002 Fax: (868) 663-9684 http://sta.uwi.edu/ The University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) Lots 74-98 O’Meara Industrial Estate O’Meara, Arima Tel: (868) 642-8888, 223-4888 Fax: (868) 643-2116 utt.marketing@utt.edu.tt https://u.tt/index.php Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce (TTCIC) Chamber Building, Columbus Circle Westmoorings or P.O. Box 499, Port of Spain Tel: (868) 637-6965-6 Fax: (868) 637-7425 chamber@chamber.org.tt www.chamber.org.tt

Business Trinidad & Tobago • 91

Trinidad & Tobago Creative Industries Company Ltd 47 Long Circular Road, St James Port of Spain Tel: (868) 622-1455, 628-1156, 628-1028 info@creativett.co.tt www.creative.co.tt

Tobago Contact Information

Trinidad & Tobago International Financial Centre (TTIFC) 15th Floor, Tower D International Waterfront Centre P.O. Box 735, 1 Wrightson Road Port of Spain Tel: (868) 627-3081 Fax: (868) 624-0794 info@ttifc.co.tt www.ttifc.co.tt

Chamber of Industry and Commerce Tobago Chapter 2nd Floor, ANSA McAL Building Milford Road, P.O. Box 47 Scarborough, Tobago Tel: (868) 639-2669 Fax: (868) 639-3014 tobagochamber@chamber.org.tt www.chamber.org.tt

Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers’ Association (TTMA) 42 Tenth Avenue, Barataria Tel: (868) 675-8862 Fax: (868) 675-9000 info@ttma.com www.ttma.com Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange Ltd 10th Floor, Nicholas Tower 63-65 Independence Square Port of Spain Tel: (868) 625-5107, 625-5109 Fax: (868) 623-0089 ttstockx@tstt.net.tt www.stockex.co.tt Up Sell Business Solutions Tel: (868) 744-9731 adrianhavelock@gmail.com upsellltd@gmail.com www.adrianhavelock.com www.upsellgroup.webs.com

Cruise Ship Complex Scarborough Tel: (868) 635-0934 Eco-Industrial Development Company of Tobago (E-IDCOT) Ltd First Floor, Isaac T. McLeod Building Sislyn Thomas-Craig Road Cove Eco-Industrial and Business Park Canoe Bay Road, Lowlands Tobago Tel: (868) 635-COVE (2683), 660-COVE (2683) Fax: (868) 631-COVE (2683), 635-2214 info@e-idcot.co.tt www.e-idcot.co.tt Evolving Tecknologies and Enterprise Development Company Ltd (eTecK) Unit 2, Sangster’s Hill (Tobago) Scarborough Tel: (868) 639-6275 Fax: (868) 639-6275 info@eteck.co.tt www.eteck.co.tt exporTT Ltd E-Teck Mall, Sangster´s Hill Scarborough Tobago Tel: (868) 639-4067, 639-2549 info@exportt.co.tt www.exportt.co.tt The Travel Foundation L.P. 159, Black Rock Tobago Tel: (868) 635-0032 Contact: Ms. Rosemary Thomas, Project Co-ordinator tftobago@tstt.net.tt www.thetravelfoundation.org.uk Tobago Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) Office of the Chief Secretary Bacolet Street, Fairfield Complex Scarborough Tobago Customer Emergency Call Center: 211 Tel: (868) 631-CERT (2378), 660-7489 temaeoc@gmail.com www.tema365.com

92 • Business Trinidad & Tobago

Tobago Hotel & Tourism Association Apt. 1, Lambeau Credit Union Bldg.

Auchenskeoch Road, Carnbee PO Box 295 Scarborough Tobago Tel: (868) 639-9543 Fax: (868) 639-9543 tobagohoteltourismassoc@gmail.com www.tobagohoteltourism.com Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Division of Finance and the Economy Victor E. Bruce Financial Complex 6-10 Post Office Street, Scarborough Tel: (868) 635-1203, 299-0771,639-4412 Fax: (868) 635-1203 secretary@fed.tha.gov.tt www.tha.gov.tt Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Division of Tourism and Transportation 12 Sangster’s Hill Scarborough Tobago Tel: (868) 639-2125 or 639-4636 Fax: (868) 639-3566 contact@visittobago.gov.tt www.tha.gov.tt; www.visittobago.gov.tt Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Office of the Chief Secretary Administrative Complex Calder Hall Tobago Tel: (868) 639-2696 Fax: (868) 639-5374 chiefsecretary@tha.gov.tt www.tha.gov.tt Tobago Tourism Agency Ltd The Tobago House of Assembly (THA) - Division of Tourism, Culture and Transportation 12 Sangster’s Hill, Scarborough Tel: (868) 659-5126 Tourist Information Offices Crown Point International Airport Tel: (868) 639-0509

Jaguar-E-Pace-WhosWho Magazine-8.75x11.25.indd 1

4/3/18 3:03 PM

BUSINESS TRINIDAD & TOBAGO

TENTH ANNIVERSARY EDITION - 2018