Canada trade boost for SVG

By Marlon Bute

Reporting from Toronto

A NEW INITIATIVE is expected to significantly boost St.Vincent and the Grenadines’ economy in the coming months.

And Clem Ballah, consul based at the St.Vincent and the Grenadines Consulate in Toronto, has outlined several of the areas that would be focused on in a drive to create Canada -wide awareness of the exciting possibilities for trade and investment in St.Vincent and the Grenadines.{{more}}

The diplomat explained that the establishment of the “Canada Vincentian Economic Affairs Council” was in keeping with the Unity Labour Party’s(ULP) philosophy that Vincentians in the Diaspora are an integral segment of the Vincentian nation.

Ballah, also indicated that there is a special interest in the transfer of skills and technology and articulated that this move is essential since the consulate – constrained by the urgency and magnitude of the mandate to establish the council- cannot act alone and is dependant on input from interested stakeholders.

The terms of reference of the initiative include the identification and promotion of St. Vincent and the Grenadines as a suitable trade and investment destination; the development and implementation of strategies to mobilize the Vincentian community; the identification of opportunities that may appeal to Canadian investors; and the establishment of the appropriate framework to facilitate employment and the transfer of skills, science and technology.

The council will also seek to access funding at the public and private sector levels for programmed activities.