The X Business Forum of the Greater Caribbean

Generalities

Date and Venue

Haiti will be hosting the X Business Forum of the Greater Caribbean, from 21-24 October 2009. The venue for this event will be the Karibe Hotel & Convention Center. This Four Star Hotel is located in Petion-Ville on a small mountain overlooking the city of Port-au-Prince tellThe objective is to promote trade, investments and exchange of knowledge, as well as business opportunities among the entrepreneurs in the region, which includes Caribbean states, Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Panama. This year, the theme of the Forum is “Building partnerships in the Greater Caribbean”. The secretariat for the event will be at the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Haiti (MTI), and technical assistance will be provided by the Secretariat of the Association of Caribbean States.

Central theme of the Forum

The Central theme of the 10th Business forum is : « Building Partnerships in the Greater Caribbean ».

General Objective of the Forum

Promote in a permanent way trade, investment, mutual knowledge among the business people of the Greater Caribbean, as well as discussion on relevant themes on the trade agenda of the region among the business community, government authorities and other relevant actors in this area and the world.

Specific Objectives of the Forum

• Offer a space for the creation of business opportunities in terms of trade and investments in the region ;
• Strengthen trade relations between Member States and the Associate Members of the ACS ;
• Promote mutual ad exchange of knowledge between business leaders of the Greater Caribbean, institutions, les Government representatives and other relevant players in the field of international trade;
• Contribute to revalue the business potentialities of Haiti and partner countries.
• Hold an interactive seminar designed for business leaders, Government representatives and related players during which all relevant trade issues affecting the region as well as those regarded as priorities in the work programme of the ACS.

Target Publics

This event will bring together entrepreneurs from the region as well as political leaders, representatives from bilateral and multilateral financing agencies, members of the private sector, investors looking for business opportunities, all of them willing to share the latest information regarding the political and economic challenges this part of the world has to overcome, so that they can encourage new investments, strengthen and deepen existing economic partnerships.

Expected Results

The organisation of the forum will allow the Member States and Associate Members of the ACS to reach the following results :

• A better knowledge of business potentialities in the region and the host country ;
• A more intense exchange of knowledge and know-how between Member states and Associate Members of the ACS ;
• Greater proximity between the different players and the establishment of partnerships and economic alliances.

Interest of the Forum for Haiti

This will be an invaluable opportunity for Haiti to emphasize the results of the efforts undertaken since 2006 by the national authorities, Haitian businesses and the partners from the international community to come out of the crisis. Indeed, since March 2009, issues related to employment and private investments are among the top priorities on the agenda of the actors of the development of Haiti. The commitments of the 2009 Washington Conference, the various high level missions of international political leaders and potential investors, the recent appointment of President William J. Clinton as United Nations Special Envoy, and the mandate he now has, the ongoing dialogue between the Haitian government and its national partners all tend to confirm this willingness to send out a new message: Haiti is not only a land of conflict but also a country that offers “ a window of opportunities for economic development, sustainable democracy and stability” . While benefiting from the media coverage for this event, this will also be an opportunity to share with the world, and particularly the partners in the region, the outcome of these commitments, as well as the success stories of new investors.
This forum will also be an opportunity for Haitian businesses to engage in talks with traditional buyers as well as future ones, allowing them to establish the basis of partnerships with new investors. The foreign businesses will be able to benefit from this window of opportunity to consolidate and strengthen stronger relationships with Haiti, its businesses and its institutions. To achieve these objectives, the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, the members of Government and other state authorities, the Haitian entrepreneurs, the donors community, the friends of Haiti, should all associate their efforts to make this event one of these which will contribute to boost employment and investment, and change the image Haiti has been given by the international media.

Implementation and Organisation of the Forum

The ministry for trade and Industry of the Haitian government and the ACS (MCI, from its French acronym) and the Secretariat of the ACS will jointly ensure the organisation and implementation of the 10th Forum.