3rd Annual Caribbean Investment Forum, (CIF), Launched

Trinidad & Tobago’s Trade, Industry & Investment Minister, Vasant Bharath, second from right, chats with (l to r): President of InvesTT , Kelvin Mahabir,; TIC Chairman, Anthony Aboud, and Managing Director Full Circle Animation, Jason Lindsay, during the formal launch of the Caribbean Investment Forum held at the Hyatt Hotel on May 14, 2013. (PHOTO: SHIRLEY BAHADUR)

CaribPR Wire, Port of Spain, Trinidad, Tues. May 14, 2013: The 3^rd annual Caribbean Investment Forum, (CIF), an initiative of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Investment, (MTII), and presented by invesTT, was launched today at the Hyatt Regency Trinidad, Port of Spain. CIF 2013 will take place on June 10^th and 11^th at the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre and is expected to deliver two impactful days of high level discussions on investment opportunities in the Caribbean.

Emphasizing the forum’s mandate to attract potential investors was feature speaker Senator the Honourable Vasant Bharath, Minister of Trade, Industry & Investment. The Honourable Minister noted that meticulous planning was involved in the staging of CIF 2013 with the aim to not only bring investors to Trinidad and Tobago but to keep these investors here.

According to Mr. Kelvin Mahabir, president of invesTT, “As a platform for face to face discussion, Caribbean businessmen and industry experts have the opportunity to showcase the competitive advantages that their businesses and countries have to offer to the potential investor. It is an avenue for direct engagement of international counterparts and a direct link to new projects and investment profiles.”

CIF 2013 will build on the success of last year’s forum which welcomed more than 500 business persons and over 60 international, local and regional speakers to Trinidad and Tobago in an effort to develop industries with the potential for growth.

The targeted industries which will be the focus of parallel and plenary sessions at CIF 2013 include Maritime, Agribusiness, Tourism, Business Process Outsourcing, ICT, Creative Industries and Energy. The presentations will surround the 2013 theme: “Caribbean Competitiveness- The nexus of Innovation & Entrepreneurship” and will provide real and imminent examples of opportunities for development and growth. Leading the cadre of international speakers will be Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben & Jerry Homemade Inc. who will present on successful business models.

The launch also served as an opportunity to highlight successful outcomes of CIF 2012, with a presentation by Mr. Jason Lindsay, Managing Director of Full Circle Animation. The animation sub-sector of the Creative Industries has benefited from the CIF model and is poised for further growth with the announcement of an animation incubator project which was recently established. This seeks to develop pilot projects of independent animators and the animation industry within Trinidad and Tobago and will be elaborated further at CIF 2013 during the parallel session on the Film Industry.

Foreign participation and potential investors are expected from the US, CARICOM, Canada, UK, Poland, United Emirates, India, Korea, Ghana, South Africa, and in Latin America-Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela.

Caribbean Investment Forum is the first event in a packed week of business activity in Trinidad and Tobago, and is followed by the Trade and Investment Convention (TIC). CIF 2013 is presented by invesTT, Trinidad and Tobago’s investment promotion agency.