Economic expansions present the ideal opportunity to launch business ventures, learn new technologies, new business standards and gain improved vocational skill-sets. Driven by significant energy windfall earnings, Trinidad and Tobago is the leading industrial country in the Caribbean, signatory to numerous international trade deals, a leading proponent of the CARICOM Single Market Economy (CSME), and poised to effectively confront the reaches of globalization on its shores.
As Trinidad and Tobago strengthen its export levels, so too must Trinidad and Tobago come to terms with foreign investment and trade liberalization that all open economies must support.
In fact, foreign companies are bidding for and have undertaken mega projects beyond Trinidad and Tobago’s energy sector, bringing the requisite foreign labor, advanced technology, design methodology, quick turnaround times in project completion and heightened work standards at often low competitive prices.
Clearly, significant gains are then afforded the government of Trinidad and Tobago as a result of these savings.
The Tarouba Sports Complex for South Trinidad and Tobago that The Urban Development Company of Trinidad and Tobago (Udecott) initially presented at TT$295M for completion prior to the ICC World Cup Games has received revised cost estimates of TT$558M and progress remains at an early stage of construction – well past the closing ceremonies of the ICC World Cup Games. Recent revelations about these two construction awards alone underscore the country’s growing concerns regarding the award process, and pool of, qualified bidders to undertake mega projects in the Caribbean.
Building on a history of construction projects led by foreign companies in the energy sector, Trinidad & Tobago and the wider Caribbean have also experienced the influence of China’s emerging economic reach.
That Trinidad and Tobago selected China’s JiangSu International Corporation to build the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) campus at Tamana, Wallerfield, one four UTT Campus projects announced in Prime Minister Manning’s 2006 Budget Speech, might be met with awe and resentment, yet soberly assessing the capacity of local firms to undertake and complete infrastructure projects of immense scale and complexity highlight the vast room for growth within the Caribbean’s construction industry and certainly among Trinidad and Tobago.
To bridge this gap, contracts may include fixed price schedules and performance payment milestones, while the Trinidad and Tobago Tenders Board may wish to heighten transparency in the bidding and contract award process by announcing project specifics not met by local contractors and the basis for their disqualification, as well as efforts undertaken by the board to assure the public sound governance and good stewardship has been consistently applied throughout the selection process.
Additional recommendations include:
Allocating a certain percent of work services to be completed by local contractors
Establishing partnerships with qualified local contractors that would include transfer of knowledge to eventually build local expertise for future projects
Ensuring local contractors adhere to current business practices and standards
Incorporating procurement contract clauses that would allow direct payments to local sub-contractors once deliverables are approved by the lead contractor
Surveying the industry to identify weaknesses for their participation in large projects; demonstrably address these weaknesses
The government can maintain a portal of international construction projects that local contractors and laborers may use to submit bids
Qualified persons may hire themselves to projects as individual contractors
The government could provide financial and technical assistance to local contractors in helping prepare them for international construction projects
Collaborating wage rates across the spectrum of construction work services without the need for lengthy bargaining
Aligning International Best Practices with academic course requirements
Establishing hands-on internship requirements for university students on current construction projects to ensure practical knowledge and the students’ capacity to effectively join and further help develop the local construction industry
Identifying prospective opportunities beyond the sunsetting of construction boom periods for graduates of construction training programs
How a society prepares its citizens to meet winds of economic change reflect directly on a country’s ability to adjust and proactively identify growth opportunities.
