I SSU E 1

VOL 2

2011

Inside this issue:

Spotlight on Professional Services SLCSI Meets with Caribbean counterparts Business Opportunities CARIFORUM Mission to EU On Mutual Recognition Tips for Networking

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Focus on
Services
vices. jurisdictions in Canada.
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CARICOM CANADA Trade and Development Forum Places Spotlight on Professional Services
Lucia Coalition of Services Industries provided the opportunity for professional service providers, services Coalitions and other industry representatives to discuss and identify business opportunities between CARICOM and Canada, which may be facilitated by the negotiation of a more mature tradThe CARICO M CANADA ing agreement. CARICOM delegates identified fourteen services sub sectors which they believed held opportunity for services export to Canada. These sectors included plant processing engineering; Architectural Services; Energy Services,; Construction Services; Legal Services; Business Development Services and Management consulting Services. Delegates identified several trade regulations in Canada whichposed challenges to the export of ser1-3 December: 21st Meeting of the Regional Cultural Committee, Suriname. 1- 4 December: 21st Bahamas International Film Festival, Bahamas. 1- 5 December: Caribbean Media Exchange, Jamaica. 5- 10 December: 6th Annual Caribbean Conference on Risk Disaster Management, Trinidad & Tobago.

These included residency re-

quirements, licensing/work permits, differences in Federal and Provisional legislation and the lack of an equivalency framework among and between

Trade and Development Forum (TDF) was held in Ontario Canada from the 2-3 November 2011. The TDF comprised a series of sector roundtables and panel discussions and formed part of the consultative process to ensure private sector input into the negotiations of the CARICOM Canada Trade and Development. This new agreement will replace the decade s old CARIBCAN Agreement between the two parties. The Professional Services Round Table chaired by Ms. Yvonne, Agard, Executive Director of the Saint

FOCUS ON SERVICES IS THE OFFICIAL ENEWSLETTER OF THE SAINT LUCIA COALITION OF SERVICES INDUSTRIES

CARICOM CANADA Trade and Development Forum Places Spotlight on Professional Services cont d... One recommento CARICOM service providers. Through the AIT, federal, provincial and territorial governments have agreed to eliminate interprovincial barriers to the free movement of workers and services.

dation made was that CARICOM should explore the possibility of having Canada s Agreement on Internal Trade (the AIT) extended

SLCSI Meets with the Caribbean Network of Services Coalitions to Discuss the Regions Services Sector.
The TTCSI led an informative session on best practices for Services Coalition management using its experiences over the years. In sharing their experiences and lessons learnt, one common challenge identified was the sustainability of the national coalitions. ParticiFrom Left to right: Ms. Dinah Hippolyte, Saint Lucia Coalition of Services , Ms. Julian Charles, Antigua& Barbuda Coalition of Services and Ms Michelle Hustler, German Development Agency (GIZ)

the Trinidad & Tobago Coalition of Services. Industries (the TTCSI).

pants highlighted that the need to generate streams of revenue for sustaining the work of national coalitions was an ongoing challenge. There was general consensus that developing a mix of membership dues and fee based services suited to the needs of the membership would be successful as long as coalitions provided value added services to its membership. Coalition representatives also got the opportunity to be a part of the TTCSI National Services Week and attended several sessions highlighting different aspects of Trinidad & Tobago s services sector. The meeting was supported by the Caribbean Export Development Agency and the German Development Agency and hosted by
Client: OECS Secretariat Contract: Knowledge, Attitude Request for Proposals Client: Government of Saint Lucia Contract: Develop the Government of Saint Lucia Website Deadline: 2nd December 2012 Click Here: www.ict.gov.lc

On 1st October 2011, the Saint Lucia Coalition of Services met with its counterpart coalitions of the Caribbean Network of Services Coalitions (the CNSC) in Port of Spain, Trinidad to discuss the work programme for the services coalitions in 2012. Presentations were made by each of the national Coalitions on their ongoing projects and work agenda for 2012. The SLCSI took the opportunity to discuss its CARFTFUND project Developing Saint Lucia s Services Sector .

and Practice (KAP) Survey under the project: Reducing the Risks to Human and Natural Assets Resulting from Climate Change

Deadline: 9th December 2011 Click Here: www.oecs.org/job-

opportunities

FOCUS ON SERVICES IS THE OFFICIAL ENEWSLETTER OF THE SAINT LUCIA COALITION OF SERVICES INDUSTRIES 2

SLCSI Represents the Caribbean Coalition of Services Network in Exploring Mutual Recognition Agreements with the EU

a systematic method for recognizing qualifications obtained by CARIFORUM students attending schools of architecture in various parts of the world, was also of paramount importance. At the Architects Mission debriefing meeting held on 11 November 2011, it was agreed that work would have to
th

be undertaken between the Caribbean School of Architecture and educational authorities in the Dominican Republic on the subject of equivalence as well as developing either a methodology for equivalence or a list of schools to be reputed as equivalent to promote the intra CARIFORUM MRA
Cross section of the Members of CAMRAC during a meeting with the Royal Institute of British Architects, London, United Kingdom

for Architects. The SLCSI has pledged its support to CAMRAC to provide the needed assistance to undertake its work plan .

In a bid to maintain momentum on discussions regarding mutual recognition (MR) of architects and engineers under the CARIFORUM EU Economic Partnership Agreement (the EPA) two exploratory missions were launched by CARIFORUM to key cities in Europe during the month of October 2011. The purpose of the missions were to conduct an exchange of information on the regulatory regimes for architects and engineers in the CARIFORUM and EU states; and discuss possibilities for co operation on negotiating an MRA for the respective professions. The CARIFORUM Engineers exploratory mission on MR took place from 11- 17 October . During the Engineers debriefing meeting held on 10th November 2011, a plan of action was agreed for commencing work on the intra regional mutual recognition of engineers within CARIFORUM. The CARIFORUM Architects exploratory mission on MR was held from 17-21 October with a CARIFORUM delegation comprising representatives of the Caribbean Architects Mutual Recognition Committee (CAMRAC), the OTN and the Saint Lucia Coalition of Services Industries (the SLCSI). The delegation visited key associations in the United Kingdom, Belgium and France. Discussions held during this mission emphasized the need for the accreditation of schools of architecture in the CARIFORUM region. In addition it was recognized that

CARIFORUM Architects Delegation during a closed session, Brussels, Belgium

CARIFORUM Architects delegates during a closed meeting with the International Union of Architects, Paris, France.

FOCUS ON SERVICES IS THE OFFICIAL ENEWSLETTER OF THE SAINT LUCIA COALITION OF SERVICES INDUSTRIES 3

Networking Tips for Services Professionals

The TANGLED WEB is a philosophy about connecting and reconnecting with people and about developing interconnecting networks that help your business grow. It s designed to help you be efficient and effective and is an approach that actually takes less work and less time but produces better results. There are very common, somewhat surprising mistakes that even very smart professionals make when it comes to networking. The tangled web approach shows how these can be corrected.

MISTAKE #1: You don t know who is in your network.

One of the big-

gest missed opportunities is to actually connect, reconnect and interconnect the network you already have. If you don t know who you ve already got, is there much point to adding more contacts to that database?

Tangled Web Strategy: Start with what you ve got. Your best strategy is
to start with existing relationships. Take a few minutes to make a list of your strategic partners and candidates. Strategic Partners are individuals who 1) are willing to refer your business 2) have the ability to spot potential clients and know how to have the kinds of conversations that will connect those people to you 3) is connected to the kind of people that make good clients for you. And 4) has successfully referred you business. A person with the potential to become a good Strategic Partner is a Candidate. They meet some, but not all of the criteria above. Place your effort into building your network with Strategic partners and Candidates to keep your business ahead of the game. Be sure to look out for our second networking tip in our next issue of Focus on Services!

SAINT LUCIA COALITION OF SERVICES INDUSTRIES INC. P. O. Box Choc 8056 Castries, Saint Lucia. W.I. Tel: 1 758 452 7865 Fax: 1 758 452 8695 Email: slcsi@candw.lc .

We appreciate your feedback! Please share with us your comments and thoughts on any of the stories featured in this article and let us know what you would like featured in our upcoming Issue. www.facebook.com/saintluciacoalitionofservices

With the Kind Support of CARTFUND

FOCUS ON SERVICES IS THE OFFICIAL ENEWSLETTER OF THE SAINT LUCIA COALITION OF SERVICES INDUSTRIES 4