31st Meeting of the Special Committee on Trade Development and External Economic Relations

The Directorate of Trade Development and External Economic Relations of the Association of Caribbean States held its 31st Meeting of the Special Committee at the Secretariat of the ACS on Tuesday 20th September 2016. The focal points of the agenda were: I- Actions to further promote trade convergence and greater participation of ACS members, with special emphasis on the small economies of the Greater Caribbean. II- Development of actions to consolidate and promote the development and expansion of trade and investment, its facilitation, competitiveness and connectivity among countries of the region. III- Integration of the ACS Region with other regional initiatives relating to Business Convergence IV- Promotion and encouragement of International Trade negotiations and training on Trade Issues. Representing the ACS were: Dr. June Soomer (Secretary General)and Mr. Alberto Duran (Director of Trade Development and External Economic Relations Present at the meeting were representatives/ambassadors from: Barbados (Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade) and Colombia (Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism)(via video-conference), Colombia (as Chair of the Meeting), Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, Curaçao and Peru. Also present were representatives from the following Organizations: The University of the West Indies and via video-conference: The International Organization for Migration and The Caribbean Export Development Agency.