Minister hails success of global supply chain forum

Business development minister Senator Lisa Cummins has hailed Barbados’ hosting of the first-ever Global Supply Chain Forum to discuss the future of global trade and logistics.

Reflecting on the achievements of the past two days, she highlighted the robust support and engagement the event had received, predicting similar success for future sessions. “We are confident that on the basis of what we’ve seen so far over the last two days and your own responses, not only has it been a success for the inaugural session, but we can expect that every successive session is going to be just as robustly supported as this one,” she said, pointing to the importance of international collaboration and the critical role of partnerships in addressing global trade challenges.

Some 900 delegates including experts in shipping, policymakers and business leaders are attending the forum, organised in collaboration with the UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the United Nations agency that promotes developing countries’ interests in world trade.

Speaking during the opening of the third Global Forum for National Trade Facilitation Committees, the minister outlined three key focus areas: the role of governments, international partnerships, and private sector collaboration. She emphasised that while governments do not engage in trade or business, they play a crucial role as facilitators. The intent of a trade facilitation agreement, she noted, is to streamline government regulations to enhance the ease of doing business.

Reflecting on her tenure as chairman of the Bridgetown Port, Senator Cummins discussed the substantial efforts made to improve efficiency, reduce business costs, and protect national borders. The introduction of the computerised customs management system ASYCUDA World in 2019, she said, was a pivotal step in modernising customs processes, ensuring revenue collection, and facilitating trade. This initiative led to the creation of the Port Efficiency Subcommittee, a body that embodies the collaboration between the government and the private sector.

“What comes next from our perspective is the collaboration with international agencies,” the senator told delegates. “I want to take the opportunity to make the call here today for us to work far more closely with the WTO, with UNCTAD, with the WCO, to ensure that we’re able to meet the regulatory requirements of the Trade Facilitation Agreement, that we’re also able to live up to the requirements of government, but that we are able to go beyond that.

“How do we integrate digital technology? How do we integrate innovation? How do we ensure that the ease of doing business then leads to opportunities in areas like e-commerce? That then sets the stage for a transformation in the business climate.”

The business development minister also emphasised the importance of integrating green technology into trade facilitation efforts, aligning with Barbados’ commitment to addressing the climate crisis.

She said: “As a minister of energy… how do we integrate green technology and facilitate the energy transition into the work that we do? And… the role to be played by the private sector. We in Barbados tend to focus very heavily on post-clearance inspection. We have a risk assessment which is approximately 80 per cent green, and 20 per cent red. So we send everything to the consignees typically and then we inspect on-site and then we audit after the fact.

“But here’s what I want us to be able to rationalise. Different countries and different regions function in different ways. And in the Caribbean region, if we’re shipping intra-regionally, it’s less than 24 hours from one port to the other. And it means that pre-clearance makes it very difficult to be done if you’re not using digital technologies. And so, the Caribbean region, the Pacific region, the European region all have different dynamics… there have to be those regional nuances that integrate the work of the trade facilitation committees, the work of governments and to facilitate how the private sector does business.”

Senator Cummins pledged the government’s support to work closely with international partners to enhance trade facilitation.

The minister expressed hope for continued dialogue and collaboration, reaffirming the administration’s commitment to building strong, long-standing relationships with global agencies.