00:00Kelvin Mahabeo, board member and chief executive officer of the private sector organisation
00:07Titi, PSOT, says while government's efforts to close the gap are underway, there remains
00:13an imbalance in how the economic benefits are distributed.
00:17He likened it to a family trying to share a personal pizza.
00:22Really what we'd like to see are the strategies around growing that from a personal pizza
00:28the family sized pizza where the pie becomes bigger, strategies are developed to ensure
00:34that the economy grows in a particular way and in particular in terms of foreign exchange
00:39generation such that people feel better off at the end of the day.
00:45He tells the Morning Edition the organisation is not only highlighting concerns but actively
00:51working to address structural shortfalls.
00:54So for the first time I think the private sector has really taken on this challenge of creating
00:58the sector implementation committees around agriculture and agroprocessing, tourism, the
01:06small manufacturing enterprises, the energy services exports etc.
01:13So that what we are doing is taking things that we are already into and seeking to take
01:19away some of what we call the friction.
01:22Mahabir, who is also the former president of Invest TT and former CEO of National Flower
01:29Mills, brings over 30 years of business experience.
01:33He says priority must be given to low hanging sectors such as tourism, agriculture and manufacturing.
01:41He highlights emerging opportunities in the yachting industry which he says could deliver new economic value.
01:48We are able to clear yachts coming into Chagaramas within an hour and that is a significant change and allows
01:58people, particularly
02:00now that you know that the hurricane season is about to start, that we are south of that and people
02:06are therefore inclined to come south.
02:08And not just to stay here, but to partake into our tourism sector in terms of all the sites and
02:14the eco sites and the entertainment that we have partake in terms of the repairs and maintenance of their vessels
02:21in Chagaramas.
02:22He also notes that PSAT maintains a strong focus on small and medium enterprises, which continue to feel the lingering
02:32impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
02:35Nicole M. Romany, TV6 News.
02:39Trevind.
02:41Trevind.
02:42.
02:42.
02:42.
02:43.
02:43.
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