Implementation of the 10th EDF Regional Provate Sector Programme

ENHANCING COMPETITIVENESS AND PROMOTING INNOVATION

benchmarking study of CARIFORUM investment incentives; it was agreed by the Committee that the results of these two studies would inform the RIPS’ strategy and implementation plan. Twenty-five (25) proposals were received for both studies, and following evaluations by a sub-committee of the RISPC, contracts were awarded to FDI Intelligence for the development and execution of an Investor Perception Survey for CARIFORUM, and to ICA Consulting Limited for the implementation of a Benchmarking Study on Investment Incentives within CARIFORUM. Both studies were completed in July 2013, and feedback on the findings was solicited from key stakeholders, including regional and national policymakers. During successive meetings, the RISPC served as a “think-tank” for matters relating to investment promotion, in addition to guiding the progress of the RIPS. As development of the RIPS progressed, Caribbean Export undertook a series of regional stakeholder consultations in February and April 2014. The missions journeyed to 10 CARIFORUM States, and were executed with a view to gathering information from the local IPAs, private investors, and public sector representatives responsible for investment promotion. The consultations were also conducted to gain a perspective from the IPAs on their national investment promotion strategy, organisation structure, and

IPAS VISITED DURING THE RIPS REGIONAL CONSULTATIONS

Country

Investment Promotion Agency

Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda Investment Authority (ABIA)

The Bahamas

Bahamas Investment Authority (BIA)

Belize

Belize Trade and Investment Development Service (BELTRAIDE)

Dominica

Invest Dominica Authority (IDA)

Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic Export and Investment Center (CEI-RD)

Guyana

Guyana Office for Investment GO-Invest)

Haiti

Center for Investment Facilitation in Haiti (CFI-Haiti)

St. Kitts and Nevis

St. Kitts Investment Promotion Agency (SKIPA)

Suriname

Investment and Development Corporation Suriname (IDCS)

Trinidad and Tobago

Invest in Trinidad and Tobago (InvesTT)

of terms of reference (TOR) for the convening of a Steering Committee, which would guide the establishment and operations of the process. The Regional Investment Promotion Steering Committee (RIPSC) held its inaugural meeting in Guyana in June 2012. On this occasion, the 17- member body deliberated the TOR for the undertaking of an incentives study, investor perception survey, the RIPS implementation plan, and guidelines for the operations of the Committee. In addition to these discussions, Professor Alvin Wint, Pro-vice Chancellor of the University of the West Indies (UWI), and Sonia Roden, General Manager of the Grenada Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC), were selected as Chair and Deputy Chair respectively.

Following the inaugural meeting of the RIPSC, an invitation for proposals was published in August 2012 to conduct an investor perception survey, and a

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