Trinidad And Tobago Earned Billions In Export Of Non-Energy Products

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad and Tobago, January 3, 2020 (CMC) – The Trinidad and Tobago government says the value of the country’s non-energy exports, during the first six months of last year, was an estimated TT$6.07 billion.

The Ministry of Trade and Industry, in a statement, said that the figure represents a 22 percent increase over the TT$4.97 billion that had been achieved for the same period in 2018.

“Non-energy exports performed well, in a series of products and sectors, to both traditional and non-traditional markets, including those in Latin America, the Caribbean and the European Union (EU),” the statement said, noting that the highest increases were for non-alcoholic beverages (63 percent) in Jamaica (110 percent); rum and other spirits (48 percent) in Grenada (82 per cent); plastic bottles (43 percent) in St. Vincent and the Grenadines (42 percent); and chocolate and other cocoa preparations (40 percent) in Jamaica (37 percent).

The Ministry of Trade and Industry said that it has the responsibility for the growth and expansion of the non-energy sector, here.

“This improvement in the country’s non-energy export performance, from 2018 to 2019, is directly attributable to various measures undertaken by the Ministry and its agencies, such as ExporTT and other stakeholders to boost the performance of the non-energy sector over the past four years.

“In particular, the Ministry of Trade and Industry, and by extension the government, continues to play a leading role in stimulating the non-energy sector by creating lucrative and valuable avenues, through which the private sector can benefit, immensely, including the development of new and innovative products, processes and export markets.”

The Ministry said it has also been working, dedicatedly, to enhance market access for local manufacturers to new and differentiated export markets, by actively pursuing bilateral trade agreements with countries of strategic interest, such as Chile and Curacao, among others.

“Additionally, the Ministry has also been resolute in its pursuit of trade missions to targeted countries, such as Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Panama, among others,” it said, adding that it has also been focused on executing its mandate to create new economic spaces and infrastructure to facilitate private sector development, especially in the non-energy sector.

The Ministry said to guide this overall thrust to improve and expand the non-energy sector in Trinidad and Tobago, the government also launched a National Trade Policy (2019-2023) and a Special Economic Zones Policy for Trinidad and Tobago in 2019.

“These policies continue to serve as roadmaps to guide the progress of the non-energy sector in 2020 and beyond,” the Ministry said.