Trade Watch V8 No 3 July 2014

INVESTMENT PROMOTION Caribbean Export and CAIPA Push Green FDI through UNCTAD Workshop

Participants of the UNCTAD Green FDI Workshop

Green initiatives have been recognized as critical to the socio-economic and environmental sustainability of the Caribbean region. An environmentally conscious blueprint is paramount to the formation of self-sufficient enterprises, which not only are economically viable but have long term growth potential. Establishing a relationship with foreign investors can be a beneficial component in the development of this blueprint. It was with this in mind, that the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) conceptualised and organised a workshop to inform regional IPAs on the best means of attracting this crucial support. Caribbean Export, in partnership with the Caribbean Association of Investment Promotional agencies (CAIPA), facilitated the participation of representatives from the IPAs of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) in this workshop, officially entitled “The Regional Workshop on Fostering Green FDI Opportunity in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC)”. The symposium, which attracted the participation of 50 representatives from 25 LAC territories, took place in Bogota, Colombia from May 6-8, 2014. The region’s IPAs are taking proactive measures to ensure that they remain relevant and competitively equipped to attract FDI, which might otherwise go to other regions in the world, for example to Emirates. The agencies under CAIPA in particular have been involved in several Caribbean Export interventions aimed at foreign direct investment promotion. Agencies represented at the workshop included the Antigua & Barbuda Investment Authority (ABIA), Investment and Development Corporation Suriname (IDCS), the Grenada Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC), Centre for Export and Investment in the Dominican Republic (CEI-RD), CFI Haiti, St. Kitts Investment Promotion Agency (SKIPA), the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest), Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO), the Ministry of Economic Development for Curacao, Invest in Trinidad and Tobgo (invesTT) and the National Investment Promotion Agency for St Lucia (Invest Saint Lucia).

According to the Financial Times, in 2013 US$13.3bn was invested in the LAC region for sustainable resource development; approximately 90% of these projects were based in Latin American. This data, as noted by Executive Director, Pamela Coke Hamilton, “highlights the significant room for growth that is available to the Caribbean in this sector.” The region as a whole possesses remarkable natural resources, which have the potential for use in renewable energy initiatives. The onus is not only on the private and public sector entities that design the mechanisms to take advantage of these resources to market them, but also on the IPAs of the region to seek financial support for these innovative initiatives. The sessions proved to be highly informative, remaining relevant to the Caribbean context and taking into consideration the specific challenges which investment promotion agencies face. Content included presentations on the best practices for FDI attraction into the renewable energy sector. Examples were cited from the operational approaches of agencies such as CENER, the Renewable Energy Centre in Spain, the Portland Development Commission of Oregon in the USA and ApexBrasil, who have attained tremendous financial endorsement for their projects. In addition, the benchmarks for a successful promotional strategy were established using examples from renewable energy investors, such as the Acciona Group and Juwi Energías Renovables. From these presentations, the participants were able to ascertain the current global trends in low carbon investment and techniques on shaping the promotion strategy for an IPA. This new knowledge informed the interactive session and group exercises in which the participants engaged. The salient points were then concretized by case studies and discussions with investors on their decision-making processes. Finally, the participants were made familiar with the infrastructure of renewable energy centres through site visits and tours. Renewable energy and sustainable business models are of priority focus for the IPAs in the Caribbean given the financial barriers to establishing renewable energy centres the region due to exorbitant operational costs. Caribbean Export and CAIPA continue to collaborate on interventions which will strengthen the capacity of their members to attract FDI to the region, and also to firmly establish the Caribbean region as an ideal location for green FDI investments. (TW)

6 Tradewatch • The Official E-Newsletter of the Caribbean Export Development Agency • Vol. 8 No. 3 July 2014