The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

THE MINISTER of Financial Services, Ryan Pinder, said yesterday the Government would take a "close look" at the Bahamas' accession to full World Trade Organisation (WTO) membership.

Speaking with Tribune Business following the new Christie administration's first Cabinet meeting, Mr Pinder said: "Certainly, the country has been progressing in accession to the WTO. We will need to see what the most recent communications are, and the most recent positions the former administration has had with the WTO and take those into consideration. We have an accession process, and we in the Ministry of Financial Services will have to take a close look at that as we proceed."

The Bahamas' lead WTO negotiator, and the Deloitte & Touche (Bahamas) managing partner, Raymond Winde,r recently told Tribune Business that completing the process of achieving full membership was vital to preventing other nations from "abusing" this country and its private sector.

While noting that the Bahamas was the only Western Hemisphere nation not yet a full WTO member, Mr Winder said that achieving such status would give this country a protective "umbrella" to shield it against arbitrary trade-related actions taken by other countries.

With regards to negotiations to replace the Caribbean/Canada trade agreement (CARIBCAN), which allows duty-free access to the Canadian market for most commodities originating in Commonwealth Caribbean countries, Mr Pinder said: "We have had some recent tax negotiations and treaties with Canada ,which make it advantageous to do business between Canada and the Bahamas.

"Certainly, as we proceed with trade agreements with Canada, those are going to be taken into consideration as well to see how we can maximise opportunities from trade for Bahamians. Trade is going to be a significant component of economic expansion in the Bahamas, and a significant component of providing opportunity for Bahamians - both entrepreneurial and career development.

"These trade agreements throughout the country are going to be very important as we finalise these negotiations to give preference to Bahamians in those industries. Trade is going to be an important element of expansion of our industry in the Bahamas, and expansion of economic opportunities for Bahamians."

Addressing the Government's top foreign trade priorities going forward, Mr Pinder said: "Identifying industries that we can as a country really advance is going to be one of the main things we are going to look at.

"We have fisheries that is a mature trade industry, then there's agriculture. We are going to take a breakdown of where we sit as far as all trade agreements are; those that are expiring, those that we are acceding to, and identify key opportunities where Bahamians can have preference, and leverage their institutional experience and knowledge to create new industries in the Bahamas."