TIC 2004 opens at Hilton

The Trade and Investment Convention (TIC) 2004 opened its doors at the Hilton Hotel and Conference Centre yesterday to more than 150 exhibitors from 50 countries around the world. Now in its fifth year, the TIC has become the largest business convention in this hemisphere, featuring display booths from the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean. This year saw the entrance of Cuba, Venezuela, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Costa Rica, as well as booths from the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) and the National Entrepreneurship Development Company (NEDCO). 

Speaking at the official opening ceremony of the convention, which will run until Thursday, Vishnu Dhanpaul, acting president of the Tourism and Industrial Development Company of Trinidad and Tobago (TIDCO) Ltd, explained that TIDCO’s involvement in the convention stemmed from its goal to assist local manufacturers in competing in a globalised environment. TIDCO, along with RBTT and the Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers Association (TTMA) are the main sponsors for the convention. The time had come, Dhanpaul said, for manufacturers to recognise the challenges of globalisation and the need to redefine themselves to enhance competitiveness. He said, “The challenge for exporters, therefore, is to redefine the concept of strength so that survival will be guaranteed.”

Ultimately, TIDCO was prepared to work with Government to reduce the country’s dependence on the energy sector, promoting instead investment in other areas including food and beverage production, metal processing, printing and packaging, information technology, tourism, film and entertainment, transportation, commercial and financial services and construction. “In this investment drive, the full support and commitment of the private and public sectors in no longer just an option, but rather the key to continued success,” Dhanpaul asserted. Group chief operating officer of RBTT, Suresh Sookoo, stressed the need for regional integration to survive the onslaught of increased globalisation.

Despite the fact that previous attempts at integrating the region had failed, he stated, entrepreneurs and business leaders should not lose sight of the benefits of such integration, a fine example of which was the TIC. Sookoo said, “We can no longer afford to simply talk about globalisation and liberalisation as theoretical constructs. This is the time to act, and through such initiatives, we are creating success stories across the region. “In a first-class forum, TIC presents a level of networking that sows the seeds for trade and investment in a variety of manufacturing and service areas,” he stated. In 2003, the Trade and Investment Convention brought in approximately $6 million in business transactions over four days, with the total business generated amounting to approximately US $20 million.