Both reports noted that despite the collapse of two insurance firms (Colonial Life Insurance Company and British American Insurance Company (Trinidad) Limited); which accounted for over 10% of GDP; Trinidad and Tobago was able to weather the impact of the financial crisis because the country had low public sector debt, adequate foreign exchange reserves and fiscal space to manoeuvre at the time of the onset of the crisis.

He noted that the authorities had recognised the need to diversify and this was one of the core issues addressed in the Government's Medium-Term Policy Framework 2011-14; he also noted that Members would like Trinidad and Tobago to provide details on the measures it intends to take.
Within the MTPF, the specific objectives pursuant to achieving our overarching trade policy goal, which is to "to grow and diversify trade and generate export-led growth" include: expanding market access for Trinidad and Tobago goods and services globally and regionally; safeguarding sensitive productive  sectors; increasing production and export  capacity and competitiveness of high value goods and services, particularly in the non-energy sector; improving the business and trade-enabling environment; strengthening the institutional framework for trade; mobilizing resources to finance needs of the trade and trade-related sectors; deepening regional and hemispheric integration and cooperation as a means of increasing leverage when dealing with the international community; and mainstreaming trade policy into the wider macroeconomic and development policy-setting.
Initiatives to secure new markets and greater access for our country's products and services include the negotiation of Agreements with Panama, and the engagement with other Central American countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras.
In this regard, the Government, in collaboration with the Inter-American Development Bank, is currently developing a National Aid for Trade Strategy for Trinidad and Tobago which is to be finalized by end June 2012 and we have no doubt that it will supported by WTO Members.
Trinidad and Tobago serves as the region's financial centre, and as a small island state, tourism and transport services, especially maritime transport, have been identified for growth and development.
Given its dependency on hydrocarbon income, the sensitivity of Trinidad and Tobago's economy to external demand could be seen between 2008 and 2011, where oil and gas price fluctuations affected per capita GDP by as much as US$6,000.
National strategies have also been developed to build a knowledge intensive economy, and grow services sectors such as energy, financial services, tourism, creative industry and ICT, so as to provide higher value services.
From the comments submitted, timely notifications and clarity on some of these assistance programmes, such as the Agriculture Incentive Programme and tourism incentives, might also help to ease the concerns of some members on the nature of these programmes.
In the same vein, the continuation of the efforts to enact a legislative and regulatory framework to attract investments outside the oil and gas sector; to protect producers from unfair trade and competition; and to establish a government procurement policy, are also part of a successful development strategy.
Similarly, the Secretariat Report points out that while all duties are bound in ad valorem terms, the government applies specific duties to 27 tariff lines (mainly alcoholic beverages) which could lead to the applied duty exceeding the bound rate.
  In light of the importance of the tourism sector to Trinidad and Tobago's development and the harm to tourism development that the current lack of tourist facilities, such as restaurants and hotels can do, we wonder why Trinidad and Tobago would raise the cost to its consumers, both local and visitors, of popular food items.
Although the legal regime applicable to foreign investment is open, there are various restrictions on foreign ownership of real estate, in the form of licences.

As a neighbouring Caribbean island and a sister CARICOM member, Barbados, together with our subregional counterparts in CARICOM have embarked on achieving economic integration, harmonization and interdependence through the CARICOM Single Market and Economy and therefore share several common development goals.
Canada notes that an important commitment was made in 2006 with a view to implementing the CARICOM Single Market and that several regional institutions have since been set up in order to carry out this project.
Over this year and next, Canada hopes that sufficient progress will be achieved through multilateral negotiations at the WTO and through bilateral trade negotiations such that the importance of preferential market access schemes, such as CARIBCAN, will be lessened.
Accordingly, as the Secretariat report shows, one important element for the economy's recovery and future performance is the identification of strategic sectors with the potential to be internationally competitive, for which the Government is carrying out various reforms aimed at developing new export sectors and generating higher value added goods and services, on the basis of quality, value and innovation.
It is important to continue working to streamline procedures and lessen the time taken for both exports and imports, which, according to the World Bank, may be up to five days for customs authorizations and technical controls.
With regard to trade relations between Colombia and Trinidad and Tobago, as the report shows, there has been a Partial Scope Agreement between Colombia and CARICOM members since 1994, under which we grant tariff preferences to CARICOM countries for 1,128 subheadings and in turn receive preferences from Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Barbados and Guyana for 1,074 subheadings.
Although I understand that the promotion of the Compressed Natural Gas is the major policy objective behind this measure, in order to promote environmentally-friendly vehicles and achieve sustainable development, Japan encourages Trinidad and Tobago to consider expanding such fiscal incentives to other environmentally-friendly vehicles, such as hybrid or electric vehicles, as well.
The EPA covers not just goods, services, and investment, but also important trade-related issues such as public procurement, competition, innovation and intellectual property, and environmental and labour standards.
These Trinidad and Tobago's efforts to facilitate trade and make better use of information technology could be complemented by concluding trade facilitation negotiations at the WTO as soon as possible.
The country is a member of the International Standardization Organisation and an affiliate member of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), and it is adopting international standards as national standards where appropriate and applicable.
We welcome the measures taken to facilitate trade by introducing an electronic system for submitting documents, which has reduced the time taken for customs clearance from three to five days down to two days for goods entering by sea and 12 hours for those coming by air.
These include legislation on antidumping and safeguards, legislation on government procurement, the Copyright Act, which has been approved but not yet implemented, and the new legislation on investment, which has not yet been enacted.
We hope that our trade relations will become even closer over time and that the trade balance will improve in favour of the Dominican Republic's exports as well, because our country can be an excellent and reliable regional supplier of food products to Trinidad and Tobago's population.
In this backdrop, we welcome the policy of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago to encourage diversification away from dependence on the oil and gas sector for sustained growth & development of the economy which forms an important component of the medium term policy framework 2011-14 (MTPF) adopted by the government.
Several agreements, including a general Trade Agreement, a Bilateral Investment Promotion Agreement, and a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement, have provided the foundation for the continuing commercial cooperation.
On that occasion, Vice Premier Wang Qishan of China announced new policy measures in six areas for the coming three years to deepen friendly cooperation between China and the Caribbean countries, including finance and investment; capacity building; environment protection and new energies; culture,
China will provide no less than 2500 training opportunities for the Caribbean countries and 30 opportunities with master's degrees for Caribbean professionals to study in China.
The scope and depth of our relations have reached new levels within the context of our shared development vision under the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) which will realize the establishment of a single seamless economic space and economic environment within which businesses and labour will operate.
Hence, despite its advantages and benefits which flow from its natural endowments the country does face to a greater or lesser extent the same and well known structural challenges, limitations and weaknesses that flow from being a small island economy.
The policy focuses on the promotion of an environment for growth and competitiveness on a foundation of macroeconomic stability, strengthening the functioning of the legal system, providing stable government, promoting savings and investment, making strategic interventions with public-sector spending (especially in social infrastructure projects), and high impact interventions in communities and job creation.
Without prejudice to the outstanding performance shown by these figures, we consider that there is still considerable potential for growth of bilateral trade because of the noncompetitive – and indeed in some cases complementary  nature of the main components of this trade, together with the growth in GDP in both economies in recent years.
stimulating new areas of economic growth and moving up the value chain; Pillar VI – Good Governance which treats with institutional responsiveness; and Pillar VII – Foreign Policy which treats with the strategic positioning of Trinidad and Tobago at the regional, hemispheric and global levels.
However, since our last review we have managed to make significant advancements in many areas including: ICT: we have enacted new laws in respect of facilitating electronic commerce and data protection; Financial Services: we have passed a new Financial Institutions Act which will strengthen further the supervision of that sector; and Stabilization Fund: we have passed legislation to protect the uses and access to our Sovereign Wealth Fund through the Heritage and Stabilization Fund Act of 2007 which now stands in excess of US$4 billion.
It is very commendable as it puts us all in the right place where we really want to work with you to make things better and to help you succeed and build on the existing successes you have.
Some of our colleagues mentioned resources that were available, our colleague from China highlighted the very generous gifts to IADB as well as the availability of loans, our colleague from Canada mentioned their support trough the IADB also.
  
Would Trinidad and Tobago please elaborate on the manner in which it is pursuing the matter of your applied tariffs exceeding WTO bound rates, especially in light of the fact that six years have passed since the last revision of the CET, of the record of CARICOM country deviation from the CET, and of the history of CARICOM modifications of the CET in other cases?

Concluding remarks by the chairperson
The third Trade Policy Review of Trinidad and Tobago has given us a better understanding of trade and economic developments in the country over the past six years and helped us to measure the challenges it faces in further developing its economy.
I would like to recognize here some of the comments made by Minister Cadiz this morning in the sense that these legal and institutional reforms are being reviewed by the Government and that steps have already been taken in important areas such as information and communication technology, financial services and the Stabilization Fund;

Diversification: Members recognized Trinidad and Tobago's efforts at diversifying the economy away from the oil and gas sector and they appreciated the Government's efforts, particularly through the Medium Term Policy Framework.
It should also be noted that diversification is not only in sectoral terms – that is away from oil and gas; it can also be geographical, so that Trinidad and Tobago could expand its export markets and be less exposed to downturns in only one or two markets;

Tariff predictability: Many delegations welcomed the reduction in the average applied MFN tariff during the review period, but several also noted the significant gap between the applied MFN tariffs and the bound rates and urged Trinidad and Tobago to make its tariffs more predictable.