Even as the country seeks to maximize regional and international attention to the various investment and business opportunities available in the twin-island Republic, the government of Trinidad and Tobago is reporting an encouraging level of external attraction to its Trade and Business Information Portal, (TBIP) launched a year ago. The country’s Ministry of Trade and Industry has revealed that the Portal has attracted more than 350,000 ‘visits from within the twin-island republic as well as from over 140 countries across the globe.’ The ministry is quoted as saying that ‘feedback points to considerable satisfaction with the investment opportunities’ information as well as the various other features which are now much easier to access than had been the case previously.
Investment portals are publicly available websites or apps that offer viewers a range of data that includes promotional material on countries’ economic sectors that are open for investment as well as the procedures involved in actively pursuing investment interest. These portals have taken advantage of advancements in information technology that circumvent other less efficient forms of communicating potential investors’ interest and activating procedures that help to actualize that interest. In Port of Spain, the TBIP is operated by the country’s Ministry of Trade and Industry where it provides, among other things, “a one-stop shop for all the information required to, for example, start, operate, and grow your business locally and globally… It offers detailed information on trade and business procedures and requirements, market intelligence, local business directories and investment opportunities,” according to information emanating from Port of Spain.
News of the success of the Portal in Trinidad and Tobago is likely to resonate with both government and the business community in Guyana where the oil and gas driven external investor interest in Guyana has triggered a tsunami of inquiries, though there have been complaints about difficulties associated with accessing reliable investment-related information and cutting through ‘red tape’ associated with processing investment inquiries. The Trinidad and Tobago Ministry of Trade has disclosed that among the more popular tools used on the portal are those that have to do with market research and market analysis as well as trade and export potential and market access map tools. These tools, the T&T Ministry of Trade says, “Supports the needs of exporters and importers, trade support institutions, trade policy makers and academic institutions ‘in researching and analyzing tariffs as well as other “pertinent market access conditions.’”
Information regarding the uses of the Portal also states that one of its “key features” is the “trade procedure feature” which provides “step by step guidance on how to import and export goods into and from Trinidad and Tobago including contact information for regulatory agencies involved, required documents, cost, time frames, downloadable forms and expected approvals.” Ironically, these issues have been among the primary complaints emanating from potential investors seeking reliable investment-related information on Guyana, one issue which has reportedly given rise to frustration and complaints about a lack of transparency in the investment inquiry regime here. What the Investment Portal does, the authorities in Trinidad and Tobago say, is to reduce the hassle associated with having “to visit multiple websites or conduct in-person visits to various governments to obtain information on how to obtain regulatory information.” These considerations have been at the heart of widespread complaints among overseas-based potential investors seeking to do business in Guyana,
