People doing business at the port will have fewer hindrances in getting their goods
cleared, as the Ministry of Trade has now opened a satellite office at the Port
Authority Terminal building.
Both officials of the ministry and the port authority have lauded the move as a key
step in improving the efficiency of the port and helping to make the conducting of
business in Antigua and Barbuda much easier, which is a requirement of the World
Trade Organization mandates.
Trade Minister, E.P. Chet Greene, said he was proud that under his watch the new
trade facilitation office is being opened at the port and expressed his appreciation
to the staff of the ministry for the work they did to make the project a reality. He
said it was the first of its kind, not only for Antigua and Barbuda but for the rest of
the OECS.
“The idea of Antigua and Barbuda signing on to WTO arrangements is a matter of
course, but implementing and effecting, or giving life to these agreements is what
the government has to do and that is why opening this office is such a proud
moment for us. So opening this office allows for our traders and importers to have
a single window for what they do, or otherwise have to do at multiple locations.
When we speak of next-level, for those who never understood the concept, this is
next level,” he remarked.
He said the ministry is helping to take the country and the economy to the next
level, where all citizens and residents want it to go, upwards. “We are happily
offering this service to our traders, importers, and all who will use the service, who
will see the difference in terms of the time spent to completing their business at the
port,” he suggested.
The minister also urged the staff, who will be based at the new office to ensure that
the service they offer to the public is one with which they would be satisfied. “We
didn’t create this for it to fail,” he stated.
He added that the office fits snugly into the government’s vision for the port to
offer expanded services including transshipping of goods to other islands.
Permanent Secretary Ambassador Clarence Pilgrim who was the driving force
behind getting the office set up and readied for business, said the impetus for
setting up the office came from the WTO agreement in 2017 regarding the free
movement of goods and services between states, and where Antigua and Barbuda
became a signatory.
“As a signatory, there are certain obligations that fall under the agreement. The
Ministry of Trade chairs the National Trade Facilitation Committee, and as such it
became our responsibility to establish ‘a single window,’ a one-stop-shop where
businesspeople and entrepreneurs can have ease in doing business; that is the
purpose of setting up this office,” he explained.
Port Manager Darwin Telemaque said the port authority is happy to partner with
the Ministry of Trade to make the new office a reality and indicated that this move
forms part of the efforts to improve the overall efficiency of the port.
