00:00Businesswoman and former Chair of the Tobago Division of the T&T Chamber of Industry and
00:06Commerce Diane Haddad says Tobago must focus urgently on attracting foreign investment.
00:13She argues that the island cannot continue returning to central government for additional
00:19funding whenever resources are needed.
00:21The foreign direct investment is crucial.
00:24All the other islands, be it the Caribbean, Bahamas, etc., they had foreign direct investment
00:32to help.
00:32It's new money we need.
00:33We don't need to be trying to dig from Trinidad what Trinidad itself does not have.
00:38Haddad tells The Morning Edition, concern is compounded by what she describes as a lack
00:45of visible routines from previous allocations, noting that billions of dollars have been
00:51directed to Tobago over the years without sufficient major developments.
00:57Unless it was used, let us call in emergency funds for the clean-up for the oil spill, or
01:03whether it was used in funds for looking for Little Antonio.
01:07We don't know because there's no explanation as to what was done with those funds.
01:11What I read was a budget that speaks to something as if we are brand new and we are now
01:16coming
01:16in to start to get all of this work done that we start planning for, for four years.
01:22Further, Haddad calls for investment in tourism and hotel development.
01:27However, she cautions that Tobago must become more welcoming to investors, warning that negative
01:34attitudes and resistance to business development can ultimately discourage the very opportunities
01:40the island needs.
01:41Whilst we have the Marriott and welcome it, welcome any other person who is willing to
01:47invest their funds in the island of Tobago, because it doesn't sound very positive.
01:52So for people to invest, there is a risk for them and a high risk.
01:56So I admire anybody who wishes to do it and I think we should encourage it.
02:01And I would like the people who continuously block and have all these things to block our development,
02:07beyond, to please see that the rest of the world is moving on and it does live in harmony
02:12with the ecosystems.
02:15Nicole M. Romany, TV6 News.
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