f Paria - Ins and Outs of Trinidad & Tobago 2013

Business
The upgrade of Trinidad’s flagship
Maracas Bay will be completed in
September 2011 and includes: a children’s
play area, zoned areas on the eastern and
western ends of the beach for sports, an
event area for shows, a timber boardwalk
and elevation of the car park to resolve
the flooding problem.
Work will continue on upgrading the
Scarborough Esplanade—a waterfront
shopping and cultural tourist centre in
Tobago where a variety of public events
take place. It comprises sixteen singlestorey
vendors’ units, a pavilion, paved
walkways and landscaping.
Other beaches, sites and attractions
throughout Trinidad and Tobago will also
be upgraded, including the Caroni Bird
Sanctuary and the Chaguaramas National
Park.
The final phase of the $674.7-million
upgrade of the Trinidad Hilton will be
completed by December 2010 with
refurbishments to meeting rooms, the
entrance area, Pool Terrace Restaurant,
La Boucan Restaurant, Carnival Bar and
Savannah Terrace.
Three exciting projects that will enhance
Trinidad’s cultural tourism include: the
National Cultural Centre (formerly called
the National Carnival Entertainment
Centre) at the Queen’s Park Savannah
and two performing-arts centres.
The National Cultural Centre will
showcase the many cultural events and
festivals that feature in the country’s
cultural calendar. It will offer seating
for 15,000–18,000, a retractable roof,
an expansive food court, studios for
artists, seminar and concert facilities, a
state-of-the-art media centre, a Carnival
museum, a four-storey theatre seating
1,460, four-storey hotel accommodation
with fifty-nine rooms, and a three-storey
Performance Arts Academy. Construction
was scheduled to begin in the last quarter
of 2009 and be completed by December
2010.
Almost completed towards the end
of 2010, the $518-million Port of Spain
National Academy for the Performing
Arts is located next to the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and just across from the
Cultural Centre. It will be a permanent
home for the development of talent in
the performing arts, with particular focus
on the national instrument, the steel
pan. The three-storey Academy will have
twenty teaching and practice rooms, a
four-level theatre with 1,239 seats, fiftytwo-room
hotel, two multifunctional halls
with 516 seats, two restaurants (Chinese
and International) and parking for 232
vehicles.
Work has begun on the San Fernando
National Academy for the Performing
Arts to be located on Todd Street, San
Fernando. It will have a modern, G-clefinspired
design, reflecting the facility’s
goal to be a training ground for worldclass
performers—particularly in the field
of musical performance. It will feature
an acoustically designed performance
school with seating available for 185,
theatre with 850 seats, two practice
halls, performing-arts teaching facility
and high-tech audio-visual equipment.
Other cultural projects to be completed
in 2010 include:
• Refurbishment of Queen’s Hall
• Renovation of Naparima Bowl
• Upgrade of Little Carib Theatre
Overall, the Ministry of Tourism has
received $15 million for its capital
programme while the Tobago House of
Assembly (THA) has received just over
$12 million for its Tourism Programme.
Total budgetary resources allocated to
Tobago amount to $2.27 billion compared
to the $2.7 billion the THA estimated
it would need in its own 2010 Budget,
which was presented in June 2009.
Addressing a problem highlighted by
the tourism industry during the Budget
presentation, Finance Minister Karen
Nunez-Tesheira, dealt with the application
conditions and procedures governing the
approval for licences for acquisition of
land in Tobago. She said, “The application
instructions which had previously
contained twenty-three requirements
have been reduced to a total of eleven. In
addition, foreign investors will be granted
conditional licences on satisfaction of
predetermined criteria while awaiting
regulatory approvals, which will enable
them to commence construction. The
objective is to reduce the processing
time for the grant of the licences. The full
list of application documentation will be
available to the public shortly.”
Ministry of Tourism Estimates of Expenditure
TT$
Ministry of Tourism
2008 2009 2009 2010 Variance
Actual Estimates Revised Estimate Estimates
Capital Programme 16,684,431 23,015,000 17,000,000 15,000,000 (2,000,000)
Transfer to TDC 30,000,000 155,640,025 155,640,000 48,000,000 (107,640,000)
Total Recurrent
Expenditure 130,667,727 277,500,108 257,364,700 170,868,150 (86,496,550)
THA Development
Programme (total budget) 407,451,000 400,000,000 400,000,000 301,000,000 nil
Tourism allocation
within total budget 13,050,000 17,050,000 17,050,000 12,050,000 nil
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The Ins & Outs of Trinidad and Tobago