Barbados Manufacturing Sector To Undergo Transformation

• The Barbadian government has embarked on a number of policy initiatives to breathe new life into the local manufacturing sector. 
• Speaking at the launch of the Barbados Manufacturers’ Association’s Trade and Innovation Summit 2022 at the Hilton Barbados Resort on June 8th, Minister of Industry, Innovation, Science and Technology, Davidson Ishmael, said these initiatives were aimed at improving the competitiveness and export readiness of Barbadian enterprises, with the goal of achieving an export target of US$1 billion by 2030. 
• “One of these initiatives is the corporate reform and rebranding of the Barbados Investment and Development Corporation with a strategic focus on exports. Government is seeking to establish a strong export brand by building a national export culture.  We will globally position Barbados’ industrial brands in the international market to appeal not only to the diaspora, but to consumers across various cultures and borders,” the Industry Minister stated. 
• They are also seeking to establish a subsidiary entity, an Export Bank, through a public-private partnership model. It is intended for this facility to provide a suite of export finance and insurance offerings, such as buyer finance, purchase order financing, project financing, an export guarantee programme, and credit insurance. 
• The overarching goal of this agency is to enable the growth of the export sector through creative export financing solutions utilising a model which is profitable and sustainable.

(Source: Barbados GIS)