The U.S. Trade and Development Agency yesterday launched the Caribbean Regional Energy Procurement Assistance Program to support the development of high-quality energy infrastructure in eight Caribbean countries.
The program, supported under USTDA’s Global Procurement Initiative: Understanding Best Value, represents a new U.S. government partnership with the governments of Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Suriname. The program is designed to deliver targeted procurement training to officials who manage energy sector investments in their nations which is to ensure that the best value is received from their investments, a release from the agency said.
“The GPI is an innovative and proven tool that has empowered procurement officials around the world to make stronger, value-based decisions and secure a future of high-quality infrastructure,” said Enoh T. Ebong, USTDA’s Acting Director. “This cooperation with our Caribbean neighbors will help maximize quality and value in their upcoming energy investments, which is crucial to economic development, access to power, environmental sustainability and infrastructure resilience.”
Under the program, USTDA will lead trainings and study tours, both virtually and in the United States, on international public procurement best practices whilst integrating best value methodologies. Training will be carried out in coordination with expert practitioners who have extensive procurement experience in government, the private sector and higher education. Additionally, USTDA will host a high-level virtual forum on achieving value for money in energy infrastructure for policymakers and procurement decision-makers, with emphasis on sustainability, development and innovation.
Since 2013, USTDA’s Global Procurement Initia-tive has assisted public officials in emerging economies to better understand the total cost of ownership of goods and services for infrastructure projects. The initiative now includes 12 partner countries.
