Trade Minister meets with new TT Chamber head

Trade and Industry Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon held a virtual meeting on Wednesday with new president of the TT Chamber of Industry and Commerce Charles Pashley.

During the meeting, according to a ministry press release, several matters related to supporting the growth and expansion of the local private sector were discussed.

Among issues raised were combating illicit trade, the Government's export booster initiative and labelling.

On combating illicit trade, Gopee-Scoon pointed out that Government has embarked on implementing a National Action Plan to combat black market trade in consumer goods.

This plan will be implemented over a one year period and extends to cover illegal trade in consumer goods such as alcohol, tobacco, cleaning agents and pharmaceuticals, in the first instance.

The Chamber is a member of the Anti-Illicit Trade Task Force (AITTF) appointed by Cabinet to co-ordinate and implement initiatives in accordance with the national action plan.

The task force seeks to advance government policy to reduce the incidence of illicit trade and its associated negative impact on local businesses and consumers.

It is expected that the chamber will actively participate and support the work of the task force and in the short term, collaborate with Government to promote and highlight legitimate brands versus counterfeit brands in the market place. The inaugural meeting of the AITTF will be held on 15 May.

The minister also discussed the export booster initiative with Pashley and other chamber members who also joined in on the Zoom meeting. The ministry in collaboration with exporTT and the TT Manufacturers’ Association launched the Export Booster Initiative in Trinidad on February 16 and in Tobago on March 1.

This $50 million initiative for the manufacturing sector aims to promote and increase the export value of specific manufactured goods by ten percent at the end of fiscal year 2020/2021, from $2.7 billion in 2019 and to double that to $5.4 billion by 2024.

This initiative is made up of 16 measures under three broad strategic areas including export promotion (accelerating internationalisation), capacity building and institutional strengthening. The chamber gave its commitment to work with exporTT to support initiatives under the programme.

On the issue of labelling, both the minister and Pashley discussed current policy issues facing local manufacturers and importers regarding Front of Pack Labelling (FOPL).

The chamber head later highlighted to Gopee-Scoon the need for VAT refunds to be paid on a timely basis to assist firms with their cash flow requirements.

During the meeting the minister thanked corporate TT for its generous support to St Vincent and the Grenadines following the eruption of the La Soufriere volcano. She also urged the chamber to continue to observe the current public health regulations to ensure business sustainability and the health of employees.