US Lawmaker promises to help Caribbean businesses

A United States Democratic Senator has pledged to assist in the promotion and development of investment and trade initiatives between the U.S. and the Caribbean.

Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat and member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) diplomatic corps that he will attempt to get some of the region’s concerns on the agenda for next month's Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago.

“Senator Dodd said that he was upbeat about the upcoming event, noting that it presents an opportunity to highlight and promote a range of issues impacting the region, including but not limited to the environment, trade and security,” a release from the Jamaica Government Information Service (JIS) said.

U.S. President Barack Obama is scheduled to attend the April 17-19 Port of Spain summit, which will be the first opportunity for Caribbean leaders to engage with him since he assumed office in January. Dodd also told the region’s diplomats - including Trinidad and Tobago’s Harold Robertson – that he will help in expanding small business ventures.

"I'm a great believer in small business development; that's where most employment comes from,” he said.

“Today, with the availability of the Internet, if you can have access to technology, you can market your products very well, so we'll be glad to try and help in that area," he added.

He assured the meeting that he would make an effort to get the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Export/Import Bank to “sit down and look at how they can jointly assist small and emerging businesses to access markets that commercial banks are sometimes too reluctant to support”.