EPA & CSME Standby Facility News

October 26, 2021

National and regional entities are implementing activities to build their economies and businesses, increase trade in the region and access to markets beyond. EUR8.75 million from the European Union (EU) is being managed by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) for trade related support to 15 countries. We share the project stories here!

The EU and the CDB enjoy a longstanding and symbiotic relationship collaborating on the region’s development. Here’s Felipe De La Mota, Team Leader Regional Cooperation and Trade Support at the EU Delegation to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean as he shares some thoughts on the new Standby Facility.

Export focused businesses operating in Barbados, Dominica and St Kitts and Nevis involved in construction, transportation and agro-processing will have access to local testing services now sourced overseas upon completion of an EPA and CSME financed project being implemented by the CARICOM Regional Organisation for Standards and Quality (CROSQ). The project, which is already underway, will upgrade labs and facilitate the training of staff at the national standards bodies in Barbados, Dominica and Saint Kitts and Nevis. Local access to these services will result in lower production costs for businesses as well as the availability of increased quality of goods and services for consumers on the local and regional market.

Jamaica’s agri-entrepreneurs will get access to a range of manufacturing, training and marketing support under a new two-year project launched being implemented by the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) through the EPA and CSME Standby Facility. The “Increasing the Export Capacity of Micro and Small Agro-Processors Using the Cluster Approach Project” includes access to an upgraded food incubator, training in world class agriculture and manufacturing practices and branding and marketing support for the Jamaica Harvest brand.

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