Valley: TT launches Mission Europe

In making this announcement at Thursday’s post-Cabinet news conference at Whitehall, Trade and Industry Minister Ken Valley said efforts were being made to see if Warriors’ captain Dwight Yorke might be available to join the mission and FIFA vice-president Jack Warner could make the trip too if he wished.

Valley, who will lead the mission, said it will leave TT on September 4 and visit five European nations. Those nations are Ireland (September 6 to 7), Germany (September 8 to 12), Spain (September 13 to 15), France (September 16 to 19) and England ( September 20 to 22). The mission will include representatives from key Government ministries, the Tobago House of Assembly, public and private sector organisations in the energy and non-energy sectors of the economy. The minister said the mission’s European itinery will include ministerial meetings, trade and investment seminars, targeted investments and a cultural element provided by an accompanying group of local artistes.

Explaining that the mission was part of Government’s thrust to diversify the economy, Valley said there will be an even focus to encourage European investors to get involved in the local non-energy and energy sectors. He said this strategy was successful in developing the energy sector to what it is today and now it was time to turn attention towards the non-energy sector. Valley said he was confident that this mission would lay the groundwork for increased European investment in TT and for European firms to partner with local firms such new downstream industries expected to be created from the proposed aluminium smelter projects in South Trinidad.

Noting the importance of air links to trade, Valley said Panamanian airline Copa will begin flights to TT in December but this will not take away any routes from national airline BWIA.

Valley said BWIA was still undergoing restructuring and Government plans to divest its shareholding in the airline. The minister said Warner would be welcome to join the mission as a member of the private sector and efforts were being made to see if Yorke, who currently plays for Sydney FC in Australia, would be available to make the trip. Valley added that future missions to the Far East and Latin America were in the pipeline and the cost of the European mission to Government is $2.7 million.