Stakeholder's Forum

Technical Coordinating Committee (TCC)

The Ministry provides a forum for the inclusion of civil society into the decision-making process. The Technical Coordinating Committee (TCC) is responsible for devising and coordinating the implementation of an appropriate strategy for Trinidad and Tobago in the conduct of external trade negotiations giving due cognisance to timeframe for such negotiations.  To effectively complete this task the Committee has the mandate to examine international agreements at the multilateral and hemispheric levels, particularly the WTO, NAFTA and Free Trade Agreements in order to identify the implications (costs/benefits) which may accrue to the local economy.

The key functions of the TCC include:

• co-ordinating the overall negotiating process so as to increase access of Trinidad and Tobago's exports to foreign markets and protect the interest of exporters and investors in accordance with the guidelines of domestic trade policy;
• advising the local negotiating team and Minister of Trade and Industry with respect to the strategies and position to be adopted for the various international negotiations; and
• co-ordinating and review the work of the various sub-committees and to expand and merge those committees as necessary;