Joint Chamber Media Release - The Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Local Businesses and the Wider Society
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The Joint Chambers (AMCHAM T&T, Energy Chamber of T&T, T&T Chamber of Industry & Commerce & T&T Manufacturers’ Association) along with the Confederation of Regional Chambers held a meeting on Monday 6th April 2020 to discuss the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on local businesses and the wider society. Several initiatives already announced by the Government were discussed and the members of the group expressed appreciation for the support facilitated by the Government. However, the need for implementation around several of these announcements was also highlighted.
Members of the group acknowledged the unprecedented nature of the crisis facing the world and the complexity of dealing with the fallout.
Following the meeting, the group agreed that the following five items will be critical in the immediate term.
1. With the majority of businesses suffering from a near total collapse of sales and therefore thousands of individuals facing a fall in income, we appeal to the Government to support the retention of employment through a tax credit on salaries for companies who realise no profits during this period. We propose that, for each employee that the registered businesses keep on their payroll through the next three months (i.e. April – June 2020), the government grants an additional tax credit (of between 100% - 150%) of the first $6000 of the employee’s salary. This tax credit can be applied proportionally over a three year period starting Q3 2020.
2. We propose that the Government extends income support to the self-employed and their employees in the “informal” sector. We recommend this support for the “informal” business owners and their employees at minimum, under the same terms as the salary relief grant to retrenched employees, once these businesses and their employees register with the BIR.
Unregistered businesses could be encouraged to register, possibly through their regional corporations, with the understanding that they will be forgiven for past non-payment of taxes but will be required to pay going forward. Such a move will widen the tax net and assist with the rebuilding of Government revenue once business and social activity return to some level of normalcy.
3. Based on the substantial excess funds both US$ and TT$ in the banking system, there is an opportunity for GORTT to mobilize these funds and launch a National Recovery Fund denominated in both currencies. Any business or citizen can make a contribution, however small.
There should be some form of incentive by way of deduction for tax purposes over the next 10 -5 eally, it should not be structured in the form of debt, so as not to impact GORTT years at 150%. Id borrowing limits and debt ratios. This Fund must be kept separate from other funds and overseen by It should be used to a Board made up of reputable private sector and government representatives. improve the ease of doing business and for employment generating activities.
4. While we understand that this is a tricky issue and directly impacts the Government’s cash flow and therefore ability to cushion the fallout to all sectors of society, we ask Government to still consider a deferral of corporation tax and value added tax payments for the upcoming period through June 2020. We believe the temporary cash flow interruption to Government can be managed, in light of the HSF withdrawal and the realisation of virtually budgeted corporation tax receipts in Q1 2020. We also ask for a waiver of penalty interest for late payment of same for Q1 and Q2 of 2020.
The business groups are however, appealing to all businesses – large and small - that are able to make these tax payments during this period, to do so. We expect all businesses to continue payment of NIS and Health Surcharge.
5. Clarity needs to be given on the education system going forward. The Chambers call on the Government to design, clearly communicate and implement a plan to ensure that teaching and learning can resume after April 20th, 2020. The Chambers are willing to work with their members to explore means of supporting this effort.
We also commend the many companies who are already doing what they can to minimise the disruption of education. We highlight companies such as TSL and Atlantic for making the Pennacool system more widely available and the myriad of technology companies and service providers who are assisting with implementation of online learning solutions. However, we acknowledge that not every school and certainly not every child will have access to technologically-enabled education and reiterate our willingness to support the education system in bridging these gaps to the extent possible.
While we recognise that these measures are but a small part of what needs to be done to bring stability and then get to recovery, we do hope that the Government will consider and implement these measures as we believe they will go a long way in building trust and confidence and give business some minor, but needed relief in the current, very difficult environment.
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Managing Mental Health And Wellness During Covid-19
MEDIA RELEASE 03/04/2020
The American Chamber of Commerce of Trinidad and Tobago (AMCHAM T&T) hosted a WEBINAR session on the topic “Managing Mental Health & Wellness” during the COVID-19 global pandemic on Friday 3rd April, 2020.
This particular webinar is one of a series that has been envisaged and designed by the AMCHAM T&T HSE Committee, as a means to engage with our membership and the wider public, and to provide the necessary tools to help companies create safe working conditions for their employees during this pandemic.
AMCHAM T&T CEO, Nirad Tewarie stated “As the COVID-19 pandemic sweeps across the world, one issue facing each and every one of us is how to manage and react to a situation that brings a lot of stress and anxiety where the coping mechanisms are still being developed due to isolation measures that interrupt our usual social activity – and those range of course from mental health to how do we cope economically.”
“Health and Safety during these times have become even more important as we seek to protect both our physical health and psychological well-being in this crisis.”
“Until we achieve the objective of slowing the spread of the virus and containing it, we are not going to get back to any kind of normalcy, whether that be economic normalcy or social normalcy. The thing that we can do most to help is to try and limit our interactions with others and adhere to the government’s request for social distancing.”
In his presentation, Anthony Watkins, CEO of Odyssey Consulting Limited also warned that there will be major disruptions to people’s lives on all dimensions i.e. spiritual, physical, mental, social, economic and financial during the ongoing pandemic. “Many people experience themselves as their jobs. People own their job titles. People have a kind of predictability and a sense of who they are based on the work that they do. Well for many that is going to change, and it has changed.”
“People who will be out of work or on restricted incomes and who may have to pay for health care and other kinds of things in a scenario where the economy heaves in a downturn, jobs are at risk, and things are slow,” he said. “That can be a major source of disruption.”
He further went on to say that during these times we will see a range of things happening to people. “Some people are going to get quiet. Fear is going turn into fury and what may be a little moodiness may become deep depression and we may see people who in normal times be questioning and curious and challenging but that can easily shift and become blaming and shaming of other people.”
To adjust to this new reality, “we will have to accept that people will respond and react in all kinds of ways, but we will come through it,” he says. To do this he maintains that society will have to frame the experience in a different way. This means changing the way we look at the world and the work that we do and ensure that we manage ourselves in the present.
“For many organizations, it was the bottom line, the first-quarter results and the annual results, strategic plans, and direction. Where are all those things now? How do we recalibrate? What is the balance that we have to re-establish around that? And this is an opportunity to go there? How do we relate and engage with the staff and our co-workers?”
Meanwhile, Dr. Ishvan Ramcharitar, Chief Medical Advisor at Atlantic says his company has done scenario planning which assumes that there would be approximately 25% absenteeism of staff during a pandemic, as some persons or their families will get the virus and be unable to work. “Four key areas we look at is: strengthening your health barriers, scenario-based planning, communication with stakeholders and implementation of remote working.”
He advises companies to look at each level of their response and “work out what the scenario is and what the potential risks are for people and the business, and what the response would be.”
One of these risks relates to an employee’s mental health from social distancing and work from home policies. He advises that companies ought to develop more training with staff so that they are familiar with new technology as they are working at home and to ensure that they are comfortable. Employees should have a designated workspace, develop a routine and create a schedule, know when to step away from their screens, and encourage video calls and virtual coffee breaks. Employers should create a space to talk about personal challenges, lead with empathy and take a break where necessary.
“If we spend too much energy in the circle of concern - things we have no control over - we ourselves become more anxious. If we focus on our circle of influence – thing we have direct control over – your behaviours, what you can do to prevent the spread of the virus, your handwashing, staying at home, not going to the supermarkets – you focus on that and you automatically feel more empowered,” said Dr. Ramcharitar.
AMCHAM T&T’s CEO, Nirad Tewarie recommended that we should be our brother’s keepers during this time. “Where people interact – and I don’t mean physically interact – but where people help one another, know one another, and work together, the recovery time is faster and the economic and social impact is lower in times of crisis and disaster. It also helps to reduce crime.”
The AMCHAM T&T HSE Committee is one of the largest and most active committees at AMCHAM T&T, having implemented the region’s largest HSSE Conference for the past 24 years. The Committee is currently led by Cindi Nandlal, HSE manager at Point Lisas Nitrogen Ltd. and is comprised of HSE professionals across a range of sectors. This was one of a series of webinars that will be hosted by the organisation to assist members and the wider business community work through this challenging time.
For further questions or comments please contact: Nirad Tewarie, CEO AMCHAM T&T at niradtewarie@amchamtt.com.
Joint Chamber Media Release - Labor Minister's Response to COVID-19 Work Policy
MEDIA RELEASE 15/03/2020
The Joint Chambers (AMCHAM T&T, TT Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the Energy Chamber and the TT Manufacturers’ Association) fully support the sentiments expressed at this morning’s press conference by the Minister of Labour, Small and Micro Enterprises. We commend the Minister and the Government for taking proactive steps to address this unprecedented threat to the people of Trinidad & Tobago.
The Joint Chambers fully support the calls from the Minister of Labour for all employers to put in place measures to encourage home working wherever possible. Many of our member companies have already instituted home working policies and other measures to promote social distancing and intensified hygiene controls in the workplace. We encourage all citizens to take these measures very seriously. Lives depend on it.
The Joint Chambers have noted the guidelines proposed by the Minister of Labour. We look forward to discussing the details of these guidelines with the Government and Trade Union representatives at the National Tripartite Advisory Council (NTAC) in the coming days. We support the call of the Minister of Labour for all employers to be compassionate and to, as far as reasonably possible, grant appropriate leave to employees with unexpected childcare obligations and any employee who needs to be self isolated. The specific form of leave will need to be discussed by employers and employees and in some cases their representatives, taking into account the specific circumstances of each company and each case.
These measures will inevitably have significant effects on the economy and on private sector companies, at a time when intense forex shortages and crippling low commodity prices already have the economy under significant strain. Many companies, in particular small businesses, will find it very difficult to meet payroll costs in a time when their revenue will be under unprecedented pressure. Urgent measures will need to be put in place to help businesses through this very difficult period. The Joint Chambers look forward to discussing these measures further with the Government and other stakeholders.
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AMCHAM T&T Calls for Re-Evaluation of the Education System
MEDIA RELEASE 04/03/2020
(Winners of the AMCHAM T&T's National Youth Productivity Forum (NYPF) 2020 Finals)
The American Chamber of Commerce of Trinidad and Tobago (AMCHAM T&T) is calling for the education system to do more with non-traditional learners. At the closing ceremony of the 11th Annual National Youth Productivity Forum (NYPF), AMCHAM T&T CEO, Nirad Tewarie said the time has come for our nation to re-evaluate the role of education, schools and teachers in our society.
“I personally acknowledge that the role of teachers has been undervalued in the system and society for too long. But with that has come a narrowing of the understanding of what it means to be a teacher,” he said.
“Based on the way society has been constructed, both society in general as well as too many teachers see their role in a narrow manner and this needs to be revisited. We need to do what is necessary to ensure that the teaching profession is once again one of the most valued professions in the society.
“We really hope that a significant conversation could be started between TUTTA, the business community, the Ministry and the government, and civil society about how we educate and why we educate, and therefore what is the role of the educator, both the role of the formal teacher and the informal teacher. This is wider than the role of technology in the classroom and in wider society."
He also advocated for leaders to start doing a better job of dealing with students who are more inclined towards non-traditional learning as opposed to academics, in order to assess the true value of students. “NYPF is trying to create an avenue for non-traditional learners to be able to express themselves, so we encourage students to present information through drama, music and art because education is bigger than just transferring information from a textbook or internet to a notebook or to a test.”
More than 120 students from 24 schools - from Scarborough to Moruga - participated in this year’s NYPF to enhance discussions on the theme “An aging population and pension security… towards a more productive T&T” from a labour, business, government and civil society perspective.
Following intense competition through five discussion rounds, the victorious schools were, Presentation College, Chaguanas (Labour), Cowen Hamilton Secondary School (Business), Vessigny Secondary School (Government) and ASJA Girls’ College, San Fernando (Civil Society). Also, Woodbrook Secondary School was awarded as the project component winner.
Tewarie said in 2018 there was a five percent decline in our labour force participation rate which is linked to the economy and the education system’s inability to adequately deal with non-traditional learners, thereby increasing the urgency of reforming the system to more effectively unlock the potential of non-traditional learners, many of whom leave the formal education system before completing high school.
The NYPF 2020 was supported by title sponsor, First Citizens’ Bank. AMCHAM T&T also partnered with The University of Trinidad and Tobago and The National Insurance Board of Trinidad and Tobago. Winning students were awarded $1000 cash in First Citizens’ Neo Accounts and internships at AMCHAM T&T’s membership companies while the winning school project resulted in the school, Woodbrook Secondary receiving a cheque for $5,000 and the teacher who worked with the students on the project, being awarded $3,000. The Hugh L Howard Prize for Critical Thinking was awarded to Presentation College Chaguanas, with that student receiving $1,500.
For further questions or comments please contact: Nirad Tewarie, CEO AMCHAM T&T at niradtewarie@amchamtt.com or 728-8274
AMCHAM T&T Welcomes Government’s Progress on Critical Matters
MEDIA RELEASE 22/02/2020
AMCHAM T&T welcomes Trinidad and Tobago’s removal on the grey list by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) which has concluded that T&T would no longer be subjected to active monitoring.
Although we maintain that there was no need for our country to ever end up on the “grey list”, we take this opportunity to congratulate the Government and, the Attorney General’s Office in particular, for spearheading and implementing the regulatory and legislative measures required to achieve this milestone.
As the largest economy in the English-speaking Caribbean with the strongest financial sector, we must ensure that our regulatory environment is efficient, modern and robust. The measures taken to get enhance our FATF compliance are a significant step in this direction.
We note also that this announcement comes less than two weeks after the full proclamation of the Fair Trading Act (FTA). The coming into force of the FTA is another extremely positive step to enhancing the regulatory environment by providing a more robust framework for fair competition and therefore for new, sometimes smaller entrants equal access to the market.
We have, in the past, lamented the lack of alacrity in the passage legislation to enhance efficiency in the country. While there is more to be done, we would like to say kudos to the Government in these two instances.
We look forward to the passage of the Tax Information Exchange Bills within the next week since both Government and Opposition have signaled their intent to support. This legislation is critical to having the country removed from the EU list of non co-operative tax jurisdictions and therefore safeguard the ability of the local banking system to conduct international business. It will also allow individual companies to more effectively do business in T&T by reducing the cost and administrative burdens of doing business in our country, thereby increasing our attractiveness if done in tandem with other measures to improve the ease of doing business.
In addition, we look forward to the materialization of the Government’s commitment to pass the Public Procurement Legislation before the end of March 2020; the laying of the Beverage Container Bill and the introduction of legislation to operationalize the T&T Revenue Authority, that are both reflective of the concerns of all stakeholders.
U.S. Deputy Assistant Energy Secretary for Oil and Natural Gas discusses U.S. Energy with AMCHAM T&T Board
MEDIA RELEASE 03/02/2020
(Meeting with U.S. Energy Department Official (l-r) Matt Ciesielski, AMCHAM T&T Director, Karrian Hepburn, AMCHAM T&T Director, Nirad Tewarie, AMCHAM T&T CEO, Shawn Bennett, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oil and Natural Gas, U.S. Energy Department, Patricia Ghany, AMCHAM T&T President, Nicholas Galt, AMCHAM T&T Director, and Stuart Franco, CEO, The T.S.L. Group.)
Shawn Bennett, U.S. Deputy Assistant Energy Secretary for Oil and Natural Gas, held a meeting with members of the Board of the American Chamber of Commerce of Trinidad & Tobago (AMCHAM T&T), on Monday 3rd February 2020 at the AMCHAM T&T building in Newtown.
The meeting primarily focused on the impact of the US becoming a major gas exporter and the structural changes to the industry as a result. DAS Bennet emphasized that the US Administration would like to work collaboratively with T&T even as the private sectors in both countries compete in the market.
He further gave some suggestions on how AMCHAM T&T might play a role in exposing Independent Producers in the US to potential opportunities in the onshore oil and gas sector in Trinidad.
Currently, the U.S. is T&T’s largest trading partner, providing 28% of its imports and accepting 48% of its exports.
Patricia Ghany, President of AMCHAM T&T welcomed the exchange of ideas and business interests with the Deputy Assistant Secretary. “We are grateful to have been paid this special visit with such a high-ranking member of the U.S. Energy Department. Our continued engagement with the U.S. remains vital for our long-term growth and development.”
At the US Energy Department, DAS Bennet administers oil and gas programs, including research and development, analysis, and natural gas regulation. He has more than a decade of experience in public affairs and government relations in the coal and the oil and gas industries. Most recently, he served as the Executive Vice President for the Ohio Oil and Gas Association (OOGA), a non-profit trade association that is dedicated to representing Ohio oil and gas producers. His role at OOGA included overseeing all U.S. federal and state legislative and regulatory activities in Columbus, OH and Washington D.C.
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AMCHAM T&T Signs ARISE MoU with UNDRR
MEDIA RELEASE 23.10.19
The American Chamber of Commerce of Trinidad and Tobago (AMCHAM T&T) signed an agreement with The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) to support the Private Sector Alliance for Resilient Societies (ARISE) project initiative.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed today by Nirad Tewarie, CEO of AMCHAM T&T and Mariana Guzmán Vargas, Public Private Partnership Advisor for the UNDRR at the 23rd Annual Health, Safety, Security and the Environment (HSSE) Conference and Exhibition hosted by AMCHAM T&T at the Hyatt, Regency.
AMCHAM T&T CEO Nirad Tewarie shakes hands with Mariana Guzmán Vargas, Public Private Partnership Advisor for the UNDRR. Also pictured is Sabine Kast- Director, International Programs at Miyamoto International, a speaker at this year's HSSE Conference.
ARISE is a private sector initiative, which in conjunction with the UNDRR, works towards a resilient, prosperous future where fewer lives are lost to disasters; capital assets and investments are risk-informed; and infrastructure is resilient to natural and man-made hazards.
Citing the damage and destruction caused by recent natural disasters and inclement weather patterns to affect Trinidad and Tobago, Patricia Ghany, President of AMCHAM T&T said in her opening remarks, “Our nation needs a comprehensive disaster resiliency plan that integrates climate change considerations into priority sectors to allow for the appropriate interventions.”
“While the greatest facet of our humanity often emerges in these perilous times it goes without saying that the relief from natural disasters should not be left solely to the charitable acts from private citizens and companies,” Ghany said.
Mariana Guzmán Vargas, Public Private Partnership Advisor for the UNDRR said “With AMCHAM T&T as the national network for ARISE in T&T we are now able to develop new capacities towards accessing disaster risk management and to create action plans to implement tangible projects according to the Sendai Framework which is the connective tissue that can allow us to enhance resilience towards disaster and help us towards achieving the SDGs.”
The MoU is a joint venture between AMCHAM T&T, the UNDRR, the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODPM) and the Caribbean Disaster and Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA).
By signing this document, the Parties will be responsible for the implementation of the National ARISE Network in Trinidad and Tobago which would perform the following activities:
AMCHAM T&T will provide the coordination mechanism link between the UNDRR Regional Office for the Americas and the global ARISE initiative and in coordination with the ODPM and CDEMA will facilitate the scaling up of initiatives and impacts at the regional level. The ODPM as coordinator of the national emergency management system in Trinidad and Tobago, of which AMCHAM T&T is a valued stakeholder, will encourage the continued strengthening of disaster risk management capacities in the local private sector.
AMCHAM T&T CEO Calls for TRUTH and REALITY in Facing T&T’s Economic Woes
“According to the data, this is the worst recession that we have been in since the 1980s and therefore how we get out of it and what we do requires the truth,” said AMCHAM T&T CEO, Nirad Tewarie while delivering the welcome remarks of Day Two at AMCHAM T&T’s 23rd’ Annual Health, Safety, Security and the Environment (HSSE) Conference and Exhibition.
While AMCHAM T&T does not think that we are facing an 80’s style gloom and doom situation, Trinidad and Tobago will have to face the truth and answer to indisputable facts regarding our economic reality. “Official statistics don’t tell the whole story. To give just one example, the central government’s debt is recorded to be 62% of GDP and continues to show an upward trend. However, this recorded debt does not include the TT$40 billion exchequer overdraft, upcoming payables or VAT refunds. Therefore, it does not reflect the government’s true indebtedness,” said Tewarie.
The AMCHAM T&T CEO says the business community has a responsibility to go into the numbers and not get caught by promises that are not based on reality. “Where there is spending promised and cuts are promised but at the same time balancing of budgets and economic growth, we have to ask some questions and we have to use our connections and our resources to ensure that we are pushing the parties to come up with sound economic plans because if we don’t, what therefore is our reality?”
“We saw that GDP growth projected at 1.9% in 2018 and turns out to be -2%. How can we have those things? How can we plan? Can you plan your businesses based on that? So how do we plan a country?”
The business community is going to have to organize and demand that both the government and the opposition provide economic plans based on reality especially with this being an election year. AMCHAM T&T believes any person who is seeking political office, regardless of the party, should lead by truth and reality.
“We have heard the National Budget; we have heard the opposition response. AMCHAM T&T is not concerned with the politics of the matter, what we want is the truth,” said Tewarie.
AMCHAM T&T says all truths are easy to understand once we can discover them. If we want to understand our truths, we need the right tools and the right data to reveal those truths for our companies to succeed. “We have two options: we can complain, or we can put our shoulder to the wheel, and do what all resourceful Trinidadians have always done, and find ways to thrive once again,” said Tewarie.
To move forward, AMCHAM T&T believe we must look at how things are linked and be able to identify the risks especially now that our economic system is a real issue as we plan for businesses and for the future.
Speaking on the issue of risk and security at the HSSE conference Tewarie said: “We have to think of risk very differently and whether you are in the cybersecurity, or security and HSSE part of the business, seeing how all of these things linked is going to be important and putting that in the national context and in the international context is going to be even more important.”
AMCHAM T&T RESPONDS TO THE 2019-2020 NATIONAL BUDGET PRESENTATION
AMCHAM T&T listened with interest to the national budget statement. We applaud the efforts towards digital transformation of the public sector, in particular the linking of the birth certificate personal identification number to the death registry with the objective of simplifying pension payments. We also note similar efforts in the licensing department and encourage acceleration and deployment of digital transformation across the wider public sector, which we believe will aid in improving the ease of doing business.
We also note that civil matters would be given dedicated space in the-soon-to-be vacated waterfront building. We hope that this will also lead to speedier resolution of commercial disputes. We also hope that the freeing up of the High Court to deal with more criminal matters will result in timelier delivery of justice for all.
A third noteworthy area is the new tax incentives for the development of the agricultural sector but we seek clarification on whether this applies to farmers or corporations or both. We are unsure that this will be enough to stimulate the sector as other concerns such as irrigation and praedial larceny still need to be addressed.
We also applaud the announcement of the Styrofoam ban and look forward to its implementation. Further environmental positives include the initiatives supporting enhanced energy efficiency, for example tax incentives for solar heaters and the planned changeout of regular to LED light bulbs.
However, we are uneasy that the government is increasing expenditure and again planning a fiscal deficit in 2020. This follows a year in which the government’s revenue was bolstered by more than $5 billion in one-off revenue yet resulted in an almost $4 billion deficit. AMCHAM T&T would like to see a clear link between revenue and expenditure patterns with a view towards realistically achieving a balanced budget in the near future. This must be placed in the context of the government’s medium-term policy framework with special emphasis on sustainable growth and improving the ease of doing business.
We lament that the budget presentation did not address the ease of doing business in a more deliberate and tangible way.
These are our initial comments and we look forward to hearing further details as the Budget debate continues.
MEDIA RELEASE
05.07.2019
AMCHAM T&T TO HOST CLEANATHON 2019
AMCHAM T&T will be launching the 23rd Annual Health, Safety, Security and Environment (HSSE) Conference and Exhibition on Saturday, 6 July 2019 with a CLEANATHON and Fun Day event in commemoration of the 2019 UN World Environment Day.
AMCHAM T&T, which hosts the region’s premier HSSE conference that typically brings together the largest gathering of HSSE professionals from both international and regional territories, is seeking to increase local awareness on the effects of air pollution with this year’s conference. With the continuous and elevated levels of the Sahara dust affecting air quality and the lives of citizens across Trinidad and Tobago over the past couple months, AMCHAM T&T believes highlighting the impact of air pollution remains a very timely and relevant issue that deserves addressing.
The World Health Organisation highlights air pollution as the greatest environmental risk to human health, second only to climate change. Air pollution is also estimated to be the cause of seven million premature deaths every year (4.3 million from ambient outdoor pollution, and 2.6 from households.)
A recent UN Environment report on Caribbean Air Quality outlines that Air pollution consistently ranks among the top risk factors for death and disability worldwide. In 2017, air pollution was the fifth highest mortality risk factor globally and was associated with about 4.9 million deaths and 147 million years of healthy life lost.
AMCHAM T&T’s CLEANATHON will engage citizens to collect trash around the Queen’s Park Savannah while highlighting the hazards of environmental abuse with the focus being on the impact of air pollution. AMCHAM T&T believes indoor and outdoor air quality can be improved if the right investments are made towards renewable energy, tightening vehicle emission standards, reducing open burning of agricultural and municipal waste, providing greater access to cleaner cooking and heating fuels and adopting more efficient cook/space heating stoves for citizens. Failure to address these very real concerns would continue to erode the quality of life for all citizens.
AMCHAM T&T is inviting everyone to support this worthy venture to raise awareness on air pollution and by extension the urgent need to protect our planet. So, come out in your numbers and let’s clean up the Queen’s Park Savannah to #BeatAirPollution and maintain Clean Air for a Better Tomorrow.
Location 62 Maraval Road, Newtown, Port of Spain Trinidad, W.I.
T: (868) 622-0340, 622-4466, 628-2508 F: (868) 628-9428 Email AMCHAM T&T
Mailing Address P.O. Bag 150, Newtown, Port of Spain Trinidad and Tobago.
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