“Jamaica Trade Desk News” Theme: Working together towards ONE Caribbean! Contact us at (868) 675-8862 Ext. 239 M O N T H L Y
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Email: tradeassist@ttma.com
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Editorial: Resolving trade issues between Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago… (1/2)
HIGHLIGHT THE DYNAMICS OF WORKING TOGETHER: Resolving issues between Jamaica and T&T... INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Strategize, innovate and collaborate: dynamic tools to improve environmental and business performances. Insights on the 37th 2 Meeting of COTED… Traffic congestion dampens local business development!
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Basic Guidelines for import of food and beverage into T&T...
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TTCSI putting the Services Sector into the spotlight!
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TTBizOpp 2013!
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Let ERP solutions minimize your losses!
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Contact JA-T&T Trade Facilitation Desk NOW!!!
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The Jamaica-T&T Trade Facilitation Desk was established in May 2012, to encourage a healthy balance of trade between T&T and Jamaica. This initiative was driven by the foresight of the Bermudez Group Ltd (BGL), which has operations in many Caribbean islands and believes in the strength of the region as a whole. The BGL was also the sole sponsor of the Trade Desk, until June 2013, when the Associated Brand Industries Ltd agreed to partner and provide financial support. This partnership was deemed necessary to maintain the Trade Desk‟s operations and ensure that these specialised support services remain available for Jamaican firms. The Trade Facilitation Desk was also developed to leverage business opportunities for Jamaicans, as a response to the perception of Jamaican firms that the T&T‟s market entry requirements were burdensome. From inception, the Trade Facilitation Desk has gone above and beyond to ensure businesses overcome the current trading difficulties, while creating a way forward to improve the volume of trade in goods, as well as services between Jamaica and T&T. Due to the recent developments between T&T and Jamaica, we are encouraging closer partnership across the region. These problems cannot be solved with traditional policy measures. Innovative solutions are clearly needed. It‟s time for meaningful, diplomatic and financially sound discussions on a public and private sector level, to attempt to rectify the strained relationship that exists.
Searching for suitable distributors or agents, Organizing visits to T&T, Acting as a liaison to share prevailing perceptions with the various trade institutions and regulatory agencies, in order to improve business relations.
It is clear that there is a wide range of services that can be offered and therefore we reiterate our call to all Jamaican businesses to use or continue utilizing the Trade Facilitation Desk as much as possible, in order to voice their concerns and maximize market penetration. T&T may appear as a difficult market to penetrate due to a great variety of products offered and available to the consumer. Furthermore, the transportation of goods across the region, and especially between the T&T and Jamaica is not an easy task, although necessary for a healthy trading system. However, a few Jamaican companies have overcome the burdens with great success, and been trading with T&T for several years.
We cannot deny that over the last four years, the relationship between both islands has worsened and no drastic move has been made by our respective Governments to resolve the situation. However, we need to bear in mind that while government and policy changes could strongly affect business, industry is the foundation of economic growth. Therefore, despite this, public and private sector leaders must work together in creating an enabling environment for business and foster sustainable growth for the region. In keeping with the spirit of the revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, the relationship between T&T and Jamaica needs to improve. This adage captures it We look forward to the JA-T&T Trade Facilitation perfectly: “If you want to go fast, go alone, but if Desk remaining a strong, respected voice and advo- you want to go far, go together.” cate for Jamaican businesses in T&T. This mechanism for trade support is already assisting companies with It is important to highlight that states such as the the following and would be willing to do much more USA, Canada, Europe are interested in conquering if the opportunity presents itself: the Caribbean, not just Jamaica or T&T. Our indi Assessing their export-readiness, vidual markets are insignificant, but together we Becoming compliant with the local market, are an excellent market for these suppliers, Providing information on the T&T business envi- due in large part to the fact that demand for ronment and regulatory requirements, imported food products is largely inelastic.
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… Resolving trade issues between Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago (2/2) While these leading countries may be hesitant to trade with one Member State, they might be enthusiastic to get an opportunity to do business with the whole of CARICOM, and then the investment is almost certainly worth it.
The harmonization of our collective ideas, innovative capacity and will can be converted into economic growth. To fulfill this, we must refuse to be constrained by the shackles of nationalistic insularity, pay more than mere lip service to our integration tenets and find a way to harness our regional identity. The world is yet to see a united Caribbean and what it is able to produce.
Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago belong to a beautiful, rich, diverse and resourceful Caribbean. This region has the capacity to astound the world with its strength through the commonality of our struggle for an independent identity.
Let‟s work together to promote the CARICOM region! 2014 is an opportune year of positive change... Article written by Mrs. Naika Pichi-Ayers– TTMA Jamaica Trade Desk Officer. Email: tradeassist@ttma.com
37th Meeting of the Council on Trade and Economic Development (COTED) The 37th meeting of the Council on Trade and Economic Development (COTED) was held from Tuesday, 5 November 2013 to Saturday, 9 November 2013. At this forum, several issues were discussed and resolved. These issues included external economic trade relations, intra-regional trade and the free movement of CARICOM nationals. As the end of the CARIBCAN draws to an end, both CARICOM and Canada are negotiating the CARICOM and Canada Trade and Development Agreement. Unfortunately, it is highly unlikely that the negotiations would conclude before 31 December 2013, when they were expected to be concluded. In this regard, CARICOM would be seeking an extension of the conclusion date of negotiations to the 30 June 2014. This extension would be sought by the Chairman of the Prime-Ministerial Sub-Committee on External Negotiations to the Prime Minister of Canada. Additionally, each member state was mandated to submit any outstanding documentation to the Office of Trade Negotiations, as the reason for the slow progress was linked to the late submission of positions. Both Cuba and Venezuela have approached CARICOM, each with the view of expanding the volume of trade between the parties. While the Agreement on Trade, Economic and Technical Cooperation between the Caribbean Community and the Government of the Republic of Venezuela is limited in scope, the Trade and Economic Cooperation Agreement between CARICOM and Cuba covers a wider range of goods. However, both the Venezuelan and the Cuban governments have expressed their respective interests in increasing the number of goods that is afforded preferential treatment. In both instances, meetings of the Joint Council under both agreements will be convened to address the modification of the agreements. Thus, each CARICOM member state is required to submit its position on topics which should be addressed at the meetings. Among the items discussed pertaining to intra-regional trade included the suspension of the Common External Tariff for petroleum. Jamaica, as a signatory to the PetroCaribe, benefits from a supply of petroleum products (such as crude
oil, gasoline, diesel oil, kerosene, fuel oil and jet fuel) from Venezuela. However, each of these products attracts a duty when being imported extra-regionally. Thus, Jamaica requested that the CET be suspended on these products. In accordance with Article 83 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, the suspension of the CET can be granted once there are no producers of the product within the region, the quantity produced is insufficient, or the quality produced is not of Community standard. The suspension was granted, as Jamaica gathered the support of all member states for its request. While Trinidad and Tobago is a producer of these products, the twinisland state is fully cognisant of the importance of these products to any manufacturing community, and supported a 3-year suspension of the CET. The free movement of nationals was raised at the COTED, with specific focus on the recent court ruling on the Shanique Myrie vs. the State of Barbados case. It was indicated that the procedures to which immigration officers adhere to are important, especially when a potential immigrant is denied entry. Procedures such as: Written reasons for a decision given by the immigration department; Access to meaningful judicial review for a decision by the denied immigrant; The notification of the denial of entry by the immigration department (this notification should be the denied CARICOM national‟s member state, as well as the CARICOM Secretariat), were deemed to be matters of good governance in treating immigrants. While the issue focused on Shanique Myrie, other pertinent issues were raised, including: Bahamas and Montserrat not being party to the Revised Treaty for this aspect; The requirement for visas for Haitian national for intra-regional travel. Thus, member states are required to review the immigration procedures at the port of entry, so that such an incident would not be repeated. An article written by Mr. Christian George– TTMA Research Officer, Trade Unit. Email: trade@ttma.com
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Traffic congestion dampens local business development… (1/2) The issue of traffic congestion is a growing global phenomenon with which we all have to contend. As transportation is a fundamental part of how we live and do business, the ways in which we move people, goods and services have various unintended and harmful side effects on the economy. This is evident through the occurrence of increased levels of congestion on the Trinidad & Tobago roadways – resulting in lower levels of productivity and higher costs for the local business community, especially the manufacturing sector. Overview of traffic congestion in T&T Generally, traffic congestion is characterized as a road system in which one experiences increased road trip times, slower vehicle speeds and increased vehicle lineups. In T&T, this phenomenon is fostered by several factors, including an inadequate road management system, an inefficient public transportation system and the fuel consumption subsidy. Statistics reveal that at peak hours there are over 30,000 vehicles per hour on the main roads and highways. Furthermore, on an average work day over 500,000 vehicles transit the city of Port of Spain, the hub of government offices and other essential service providers. Despite, the recent developments in highway infrastructure, many are concerned that such developments have not kept pace with the number of vehicles that are being imported into the country. Data from the Ministry of Transport unofficially indicates that 3500 private vehicles are licensed on a monthly basis. This fate, coupled with highly subsidized fuel prices, begs the question of whether our economy can sustain this increasing rate of vehicular traffic. Conceptually, through the provision of mass transportation, the public transportation system should ease the traffic woes, by reducing the number of private vehicles on the roadways. However, the system‟s inefficiency inevitably compels commuters to utilize/purchase private vehicles for reliability and efficiency.
The implications of traffic concession of the manufacturing sector The occurrence of traffic congestion impacts negatively on the operations of the manufacturing sector. From a social standpoint, research indicates that traffic congestion has a damaging impact on an individual‟s health. As such, the extensive time spent in traffic on a daily basis is associated with increased levels of stress, fatigue and high blood pressure of workers which ultimately can result in lower levels of productivity - especially in labour intensive jobs, increased inefficiency – due to loss in man hours, and higher costs – including additional salary payments to workers to compensate for overtime hours worked. From an economic standpoint, the average manufacturer, actively engaged in importing and exporting, generally has to contend with a potpourri of challenges in the arrangement for pickup and deliveries of goods to and from his warehouse/port/customers. These challenges range from sea congestion, affecting the berthing of cargo vessels at the port, to regulatory issues with the Customs and Excise Division, especially in terms of having goods inspected for clearance; the challenges involved in clearing the border are numerous. This process is then compounded by the added costs involved in transporting these goods on land, which adds incrementally especially during peak hours, due to traffic congestion. Furthermore, when one considers the large percentage of business persons who utilize (and will continue to utilize) the Port of Port of Spain, for delivery and pickup of their containerized cargo, it intuitively indicates that there is/will always be a severe bottleneck around the city hub that reduces the movement of cargo to snail‟s pace. All of this contributes to the high „cost of doing business‟ and stymies our climb up the Global Competitiveness and Logistics Performance Indices. It is evident that traffic congestion on our roadways can result in the combined effect of rising transport costs and lower productivity, which in itself increases the unit production cost of output. Inevitably this can lead to inflationary pressure and reduced competitiveness in the economy.
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… Traffic congestion dampens local business development
Recommendations Traffic congestion is a national problem and it requires concerted national attention. The solution may be derived from a combination of the following measures:
The government should carefully review the policy and tax structure for imported foreign used vehicles. The age and quantity of used vehicles entering the country on a monthly basis is highly unsustainable and militates against transit efficiency on all levels. Improve the public transport service to increase usage. The fuel subsidy ought to be removed gradually, the savings from which can be transferred and targeted towards the sophistication and development of enhanced the mass transit services.
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The government can identify ways in which their services can be decentralized to reduce the need for users to access them in Port of Spain. This should be followed up by proper sensitization to ensure that the public is fully aware of the new arrangements. The government should ensure that the public is fully aware of and empowered to use their electronic services (which are in fact being actively developed) to reduce dependence on transiting into Port of Spain. Business persons (and by extension haulers, shipping lines and agents) should be encouraged to utilize the Port of Port of Spain‟s night time opening hours to reduce traffic from heavy goods vehicles in the day time. Incentives should be given to persons choosing to car pool; on the other hand, a tiered tax structure can be developed for persons who wish to register multiple vehicles in their name. There should be a direct relationship between owning more vehicles and the tax paid, i.e. the more you own, the more you are taxed.
Contribution from Ms. Arianne Phillip & Mr. Marc Sandy– TTMA Research Officer, Business Development Unit. Respective emails: researchdesk@ttma.com/ research@ttma.com).
Guidelines for import of food and beverage into T&T... The Jamaica-T&T Trade Facilitation Desk is pleased to announce that the “Basic guidelines for import of food and beverage into Trinidad & Tobago” has been completed early November 2013. This was done with the active collaboration of the Chemistry, Food & Drugs Division (CFDD) of the Ministry of Health, as well as the Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers‟ Association (TTMA). The document was disseminated widely to Ministries‟ Representatives, Business Support Organizations, Regulatory Agencies and Businesses from Jamaica and T&T. This project was initially launched by the Trade Desk Officer, Mrs. Naika Pichi-Ayers, with the main objective to assist Jamaican companies, among others, in getting a better understanding of the labelling requirements, so as to ensure that the import flow into T&T becomes much smoother.
It was also initiated in an effort to strongly collaborate with the TTMA, which has been lobbying the Government of T&T over the years, by addressing the CFDD’s lack of transparency and efficiency, and by extension of the Republic of the twin-islands. The guide was designed to be user-friendly and give a clear and simple vision of the regulatory requirements on food and beverages in T&T, in an effort to facilitate trade and ease movement of goods within T&T. If you wish to download the PFD version, please click on the link below: http://www.ttma.com/attachments/Basic% 20Guidelines%20For%20Import%20of%20Food% 20and%20Beverage%20in%20Trinidad%20%20and% 20Tobago-%20October%202013.pdf If you need any clarification on this guide, please feel free to contact Mrs. Naika Pichi-Ayers, Jamaica-T&T Trade Desk Officer via email: tradeassist@ttma.com
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TTCSI… Putting the Services Sector into the spotlight! (1/2) How do you honour dedicated and resourceful service providers? Well, since 2008 the Trinidad and Tobago Coalition of Services Industries (TTCSI) has been dedicating the first week of November to highlighting the contribution of the services sector to the economy of Trinidad and Tobago. This year was no different. TTCSI hosted its 6th Annual National Services Week 2013 from November 5th to 9th. The theme for the week-long events was “Services Export; Dream it, Do it.” The week of events began with the 3rd staging of the Excellence in Services Award on November 5 th at the Trinidad Hilton Hotel, where several service providers were recognised and awarded. The awards recognize and honour role models in the services industries for their outstanding performance and contribution to the growth and development of the services economy. The aim is to inspire more service providers to be innovative and competitive in their approach to services. TTCSI Members, previous award winners, nominees, government officials, sponsors and other specially invited guests gathered as service providers received awards for Best Use of Innovation in Services, Service Provider of the Year, Young Service Provider and Service Exporter of the Year, among other categories. Speakers at the event included Richard Young, Chairman of the Economic Development Board, who noted that expanding into services should provide a strong diversification thrust away from oil and gas.
Also delivering remarks were Rabindra Jaggernauth, President of the TTCSI, Gregory Camejo of One Caribbean Media, Arthur Lok Jack‟s Nirmala HarrylalMaharaj and TTCSI Chief Executive Offcer, Nirad Tewarie. But the Excellence in Services Awards was just the beginning! National Services Week also included four other events that allowed stakeholders to engage with expert panellists, and allowed secondary school students to be involved in the activities surrounding the week as well. It focused on building capacity to expand the services sector and promote exports. On Wednesday 6th November, a discussion on the financial services sector entitled “Creating the Future you Want” was held at the same venue, where the audience got a chance to interact with Senator Larry Howai, Minister of Finance, Varun Maharaj, Chief Executive Officer of the International Financial Centre and Central Bank Governor, Jwala Rambaran, who was able to shed light on the CLICO financial crisis and reforms planned for the Central Bank and financial regulation. On November 7, the third event got underway, where ICT venture capitalist Kamran Elahian and marketing guru Stephen Arbeit helped participants in „Going Global: Structuring your Winning Pitch for Growth‟. Also delivering valuable insight was Honourable Minister of Trade, Industry and Investment, Senator Vasant Bharath, Senior Investor Sourcing Officer at InvesTT, Renata Girod, CEO at National Entrepreneurship Development Company Limited, Ramlochan Ragoonanan, Shaun Waldron of Exim Bank T&T and Christopher Lewis, CEO at exporTT.
The winners of the Excellence in Services Award with TTCSI President and CEO, and other Board Members.
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… TTCSI… Putting the Services Sector into the spotlight! (2/2) By far the most exhilarating event, Preparing our Children for Future Education, Technology and Intelligence was held on the Friday. TTCSI with the support of School of Business and Computer Science (SBCS) hosted former Advisor on Education Policy to the UK Government , Mr. Richard Gerver, who was able to enlighten and entertain the audience. He spoke at the event after doing a tour of local schools and urged those in the room to “find a system which is organic…constantly evolving, and relates directly to the interests and purposes of our young people”. In his view, teachers are the ones with the solutions to the problems facing the education system in Trinidad and Tobago. He was joined by Director of Curriculum at the Ministry of Education, John Roopchan, President of the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers Association (TTUTA), Devanand Sinanan and Managing Director of SBCS, Robin Maraj. After the event, Mr. Gerver held a session with a smaller group of educators, which focused on methods of teaching.
petition. She pledged, on behalf of the Ministry, an award of $5000 to each of the schools taking the top three positions. This was in addition to the trophies and prizes that the schools received. St. Joseph Covent San Fernando, Bishop Anstey High School Port-of-Spain and Naparima Girls‟ High School placed first, second and third respectively. Special awards were given for Best Drawing and Most Original Presentation, which Queen‟s Royal College and San Juan South Secondary School received respectively.
The final event on Saturday encouraged secondary school students to conceptualize a project that would create a green space on their school‟s compound. Trinidad and Tobago Green Building Council (one of TTCSI‟s members) co-sponsored the “I AM Secondary Schools Environmental Competition” which culminated in the prizing giving ceremony at the JFK Auditorium at the UWI St. Augustine Campus. Specially invited guests, participating schools, teachers and students who worked on the projects were present at the ceremony, which featured entertainment from 3Canal. The Honourable Ramona Ramdial, Minister of State in the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources gave the feature address and highlighted that she was impressed with the quality of entries into the com-
We hope that you could join us for National Services Week 2014!
For the last six years the National Services Week staged by the TTCSI has become an annual marquee event that brings mainstream attention to the local services industries. With the assistance of agencies such as GIZ (German Agency for International Cooperation), Caribbean Export Development Agency, SBCS, First Citizens Bank, exporTT, invesTT, Guardian Group, One Caribbean Media, Balroops, Tabletop Limited, T&TIFC, Lifetime Solutions, IBL Bank, Ministry of Education, Illuminat and Unversity of T&T, the week exceeded expectations.
An article written by Ms. Aurelia Bruce, TTCSI Research Officer. Ms. Dickson can be reached at (868) 622- 9229 or via email : dabruce@ttcsi.org
Dr. Driver Board member of TTCSI presents Christian Boucaud, Best Young Service Provider of the Year 2013, while Diane Joseph, former treasurer of TTCSI shakes her hand.
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Learning more about Governments contracts in Trinidad & Tobago...
Senator the Honourable Larry Howai, Minister of Finance & the Economy, Honourable Carolyn Seepersad Bachan, Minister of Public Administration, Mr. Moonilal Lalchan, President of the TTCIC, Ms. Catherine Kumar, CEO of the TTCIC, Mrs. Camille Sears Carter-Wells, TTCIC Trade & Business Development Manager, pose with some sponsors and speakers at the Opening Ceremony of BizOppsTT 2013.
For small and micro companies government contracts can seem complex and perhaps even intimidating. However, there is tremendous potential for collaboration between the private and public sectors. The Government buys typically every type of product that is manufactured and service that is offered, from soaps to military tankers to human resource consultant. Business Opportunities in Trinidad and Tobago, referred to as BizOppsTT, is intended to provide an information sharing avenue through which SMEs can unlock their potential. The two day conference hosted by the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce took place on 27th & 28th November, 2013. Business opportunities were presented from Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA), Telecommunication Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT) and Ministry of National Security just to name a few. Noteworthy was the presentation on the FairShare Programme of the Ministry of Labour, Small and Micro Enterprise Development (MLSMED). The FairShare is an avenue for micro and small enterprises and cooperatives that are at least 51% owned by Trinidad and Tobago nationals, to access public opportunities of a maximum value of $1 million. The MSEs are required to first register with the MLSMED in order to access the listing of procurement opportunities. In addition to expounding on the business opportunities, the presentations demystified the pre-qualification requirements for companies wishing to register for future procurement opportunities.
Additionally, participants got an opportunity to hear first hand from the Procurement Specialists the common errors that they should be mindful of when submitting a bid. While the tips may be obvious to some, it was said that they are too often taken for granted by some companies. The following tips were noted:
Have a packages of frequently requested documents always at hand;
Develop a format and checklist – ensure you follow the format or checklist given. If one is not provided create a clear format and checklist that is easy to follow;
Have a protocol to deal with clarifications and amendments;
Conduct a mock evaluation;
Ensure you attend the site visits.
For further information on the BizOppsTT 2013 Conference or how you can participate in BizOppsTT 2014, please contact the Trade & Business Development Unit of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce at (868) 637-6966.
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Let ERP solutions minimize your losses! With increased competition comes increased cost pressures. This forces us to find ways to squeeze waste out of our processes and ensure we have an optimized product mix to meet customer demand. Obtaining the necessary Derrick Villeneuve, DAVYN- Director information to acof Strategy complish this is one of the benefits of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. I heard a story last year of a local company that found they had been consistently selling a particular product at a significant loss to a foreign customer. This happened for quite some time before the discovery was made and the result was some emergency meetings and a renegotiation of the price with the customer. How could this happen? It turns out that costing was done manually and some errors were made in that computation.
With an ERP solution, costs of your raw material inputs and labour inputs can be properly tracked to specific products. The result is the ability to perform detailed analysis on the profitability of each product you manufacture. This leads to appropriate manufacturing decisions, product pricing and could lead to cancelling some products or lines that are not contributing to the company‟s bottom line.
In another situation, a company ran out of a raw material and in order to fulfill a big order decided to use a substitute. The problem was, the substitute cost several times more than the ingredient they should have used. The result was a loss of several hundred thousand dollars which was only noticed at the end of the month after it was too late to do anything about it. When they told me about this I saw two issues. The first was not having the right inventory when it was required and the second is not having visibility to the cost implications of such decisions.
If your current system is not providing these benefits it is time to start looking at new options. These systems can be a significant investment. However, it does not take more than a couple of errors like the ones I mentioned above to cover the costs of such a system. The real question is can you afford not to do it?
Based on sales forecasts an ERP system can also assist in the timely acquisition of raw materials so products can be manufactured to meet customer demand. The shortage of one raw material can result in tying up a set of other raw materials in your warehouse while also losing potential sales. With the increased freight costs and long lead times Caribbean nations have to live with, it makes this planning even more important. When it comes to selling your products, efficiency can take the form of sales people entering orders on their phone while visiting customers. The result is a reduction in the cost of selling by eliminating the need to transpose written orders into a system or the eradication of errors from communicating them over the phone. The system would also allow data mining customer order history to look for trends which can form the basis for new marketing initiatives, pricing or up sell opportunities.
Contact Davyn today for a free ERP Consultation at info@davyntt.com | www.davyntt.com | (868)-674-9788
Is anyone interested in exporting its products/services to T&T? The Jamaica– T&T Trade Facilitation Desk is there for you:
Informing Jamaican businesses (among others) about import regulations & entry requirements into Trinidad and Tobago, as well as representing their interests; Encouraging networking and facilitating business match-making with T&T companies to boost investment and trade; Addressing main areas of concern and key issues to the relevant trade institutions & regulatory agencies in T&T and Jamaica (intermediating with such arms as customs, the standards authorities, and helping with negotiating the bureaucracy) and offering support solutions; Assisting in the coordination of visits and trade missions to T&T (planning, ground support and follow up); Undertaking consultations with prospective exporters, business support associations and representatives of the public sector institutions that play key roles in the export process in both countries. If you need any additional information, you can contact Mrs. Naika Pichi-Ayers, JamaicaT&T Trade Desk Officer and Editor of the Newsletter at: (868) 675-8862 Ext. 239 Email: tradeassist@ttma.com Webpage: http://www.ttma.com/jamaicatt_trade_desk