Bahamas

<p>This project is providing technical assistance to The Bahamas in the design of sector and trade support function strategies. The project is intended to provide a framework for the design of four strategies: such as the creative industries, trade and investment promotion, TVET, and e-commerce. The strategies seek to enhance trade competitiveness, particularly for SMEs, and to bring about a coherent strategic framework for trade development. Outcomes also include the building of capacities among national stakeholders to design and update future strategies. The ultimate goal is to mainstream trade in economic planning, with a view to diversifying the economy, strengthening SMEs competitiveness and trade/investment support institutions, focusing on priority sectors and markets.</p><p>The project will start with the creative industries sector strategy as a single deliverable under the signed MoU, while further strategies may be subsequently added to the framework as and when additional funds become available.</p>

<p>A quadruple shock of COVID, climate change, conflict, and cost-of-living have pushed the topic of food security and the need for collective action to the top of the global agenda. In the Caribbean, food security is a complex issue influenced by climate change, economic challenges, trade policies, and agricultural practices. Key concerns include the region&apos;s vulnerability to climate events, heavy reliance on food imports, limited agricultural productivity due to infrastructure and technique limitations, the impact of tourism on food security, and health problems tied to dietary patterns and access to nutritious foods.</p><p>In this context, this project aims to support agri-MSMEs, cooperatives and producers (smallholder farmers and fishers) to become more competitive and resilient through value addition, diversification and new market development at the regional level. The overall objective is to contribute to incomes, sustainability &amp; resilience as well as to improve food security, nutrition and healthier diets in the Caribbean region.</p>

<p>The United Kingdom Trade Partnerships (UKTP) Programme aims to increase trade from African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (ACP) to the United Kingdom (UK) and the European Union (EU) by maximizing the benefits of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) and the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS). The UKTP Programme works in partnership with government agencies, private sector organisations, public sector institutions, small and medium-sized enterprises and other local stakeholders. It is funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth &amp; Development Office (FCDO) of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC).</p><p>This project provides support to in countries that have signed the UK-CARIFORUM and the Eastern and Southern Africa EPAs that are ineligible for Overseas Development Assistance in the Caribbean region (Bahamas, Barbados, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Trinidad and Tobago) and the Indian Ocean Region (Seychelles). The project also supports UK exports to and imports from countries covered by an EPA and Developing Countries Trading Schemes for activities where the primary beneficiary of the intervention is not ODA eligible, and ODA eligible beneficiaries are only secondary beneficiaries. &nbsp;</p><p>The project will implement activities in the areas of EPA awareness, improved business environment, institutional capacity development and SME strengthening and market linkages.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The ITC&rsquo;s Supporting Trade Negotiations and Policy Reform Programme seeks to strengthen the capacity of public and private sector stakeholders to contribute to trade negotiations and policy/regulatory formulation on emerging matters relating to facilitating investment, green trade, e-commerce/digitalization, inclusive trade, sustainable and resilient value chains, industrialization plans, strengthened multilateral and regional integration, and other trade and investment policy issues identified as relevant for a conducive business environment.</p><p>Through this project, ITC will, in relation to the topics mentioned above, seek to (a) generate awareness/understanding of stakeholders through information-sharing/awareness-raising engagements; (b) capacitate stakeholders to engage in informed and inclusive trade and investment policy and regulatory reforms; and (c) support domestic trade and investment policy reforms through technical studies/analyses and related advisory support to facilitate implementation of reforms, including undertaking legislative/regulatory reforms.</p><p>In designing and implementing such support, ITC builds upon the multilateral and regional/bilateral trading frameworks in place to ensure there is a coherent and coordinated approach to domestic trade and investment policy reforms and that measures implemented are aligned with trade commitments undertaken and/or international best practices in this regard.</p><p>The activities implemented under this project will be based on requests received from countries/institutions.<!--[if !supportAnnotations]--><a href="#_msocom_1" language="JavaScript" name="_msoanchor_1"></a><a href="#_msocom_2" language="JavaScript" name="_msoanchor_2"></a><!--[endif]--></p><!--[if !supportAnnotations]--><!--[endif]--><!--[if !supportAnnotations]--><!--[endif]--><!--[if !supportAnnotations]--><!--[endif]--><a href="#_msoanchor_1"></a>

<p><span data-contrast="none">ITC&rsquo;s trade and market intelligence interventions in the 24 UK Trade Partnerships Programme countries will consist of several interrelated components</span><span data-contrast="none">&nbsp;</span><span data-contrast="none">to foster transparency and &nbsp;enhanced access</span><span data-contrast="none">&nbsp;to information on trade opportunities and market access requirements <span data-contrast="none">for small and medium</span><span data-contrast="none">-</span><span data-contrast="none">sized e</span><span data-contrast="none">nterprises</span></span><span data-contrast="none" lang="EN-US">. This will be done</span><span data-contrast="none">&nbsp;through</span><span data-contrast="none" lang="EN-US">&nbsp;data</span><span data-contrast="none"> sharing, capacity building, and</span><span data-contrast="none" lang="EN-US">&nbsp;the</span><span data-contrast="none"> setting up of&nbsp;</span><span data-contrast="none" lang="EN-US">trade&nbsp;</span><span data-contrast="none">obstacle alert mechanisms.</span></p>

<p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The ITC T4SD Hubs act as a <strong>one-stop shop offering integrated sustainability solutions supporting SMEs to transition to a green economy</strong>. The T4SD Hubs are a 5 year project implemented in 7 countries/regions: the Caribbean, Ghana, Kenya, Laos, Nepal, Peru and Viet Nam.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The offering of the T4SD Hubs is structured around 5 thematic areas under which awareness raising workshops, e-learnings and customized coaching programmes are offered to <strong>build the business case for implementing sustainable business practices:&nbsp;</strong></span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">These thematic areas include:</span></p><ul><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Compliance with Voluntary Sustainability Standards&nbsp;</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Resource efficiency and circular production&nbsp;</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Climate resilience&nbsp;</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Positioning sustainable products in the international market&nbsp;</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Access to green finance&nbsp;</span></li></ul><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Besides the piloting of the service offering to built the necessary technical capacity, the T4SD Hub team supports the T4SD Hub hosts in building the needed management capacity and structures to roll out the service offering.</span></p>