VZCZCXRO8406
PP RUEHGR
DE RUEHWN #0095/01 0451657
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 141657Z FEB 08
FM AMEMBASSY BRIDGETOWN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6090
INFO RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 1870

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRIDGETOWN 000095 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
EB/CBA FOR DENNIS WINSTEAD 
DS FOR DS/DSS/OSAC 
COMMERCE FOR FCS SANTO DOMINGO 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: BEXP ETRD EINV AMCHAM ASEC BB XL
SUBJECT: Commercial Outreach Efforts in Eastern Caribbean 
 
Ref: Bridgetown 49 
 
¶1. SUMMARY: The Ambassador hosted a lunch on February 11 for the 
newly formed American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) for Barbados. The 
board, drawn from ten of the larger American companies in Barbados, 
will hold an organizational meeting in the last week of February and 
will begin operations shortly after that.  Post plans commercial 
outreach efforts in St Kitts, and St Lucia the week of February 18, 
following on two outreach events with the American business 
community in Dominica. Ultimately, we hope to generate a critical 
mass of interest in each of the countries of the EC to create a 
network of AmChams that can help wave the flag, advocate for U.S. 
commercial priorities, and spark new trade and investments in the EC 
market.  End Summary 
 
Launching of AmCham Starts Our Commercial Outreach Campaign 
 
¶2.  At a February 11th luncheon, the Ambassador welcomed the 
creation of the board of directors for a new AmCham and engaged in a 
spirited discussion on the business environment in Barbados. She 
expressed the Embassy's strong desire to help American companies 
expand their operations in Barbados and stressed that American firms 
are the face of America to many people in Barbados and the Eastern 
Caribbean. 
 
¶3.  The initial board of AmCham consists of representatives from Air 
Jamaica, Citicorp, Windward Agencies, American Airlines, ADM 
Barbados Mills, KFC Barbados, TGI Fridays, Tele Barbados, and 
American Life.  Several other large corporations have expressed 
interest in joining the board, and some 60 American-affiliated firms 
have expressed some interest in participating in an AmCham. 
 
¶4. Embassy Bridgetown originally launched a regional AmCham for the 
Eastern Caribbean in 2000.  It was active until 2003 when it quit 
functioning due to change in leadership of the organization and a 
lack of commitment by the membership to make it a viable 
organization.  The AmCham formed in 2000 did not register with or 
seek accreditation with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, 
DC and thus was not an official AmCham.  As a result of this 
neglect, the Eastern Caribbean is the only significant economic 
space in the region without an AmCham presence.  Now that we have 
formed an AmCham we hope to see the AmCham become a viable 
organization and a vital partner in post's commercial diplomacy. 
 
¶5. There are some 60 American-owned companies in Barbados.   These 
firms run the entire gamut of industries, with banks, financial 
service providers, accounting firms and the like being the most 
common firm represented here.  There are a number of American-owned 
hotel chains in Barbados and several large scale American-owned 
resorts are being developed.  There are also a number of smaller, 
niche manufacturers active in Barbados. There are a number of other 
companies that would qualify for potential AmCham membership as they 
are either managed by an American citizen or do a significant amount 
of business with the United States, including significant U.S. 
sourcing of their equipment. 
 
Surprising Number of American Firms in the Islands 
 
¶6.  Moreover, in each of our other countries there is a surprising 
number of American-owned or affiliated companies that we hope will 
form the nucleus of "mini-AmChams". Most, if not the majority of 
American owned companies in our other islands are in the 
tourism-hotel sector, although there are a number of larger other 
companies, including the Hess Oil refinery in St Lucia.  Recent 
experience in Dominica (septel), the least developed of the EC 
countries, revealed some two dozen American-affiliated companies, 
some more than 40 years old and some in their infancy, and running 
the gamut from tourism to mining and from well-known multinationals 
Coca Cola and Proctor and Gamble to small entrepreneurial firms. 
 
KFC Everywhere But No Micky D's 
 
¶7. Many of our other islands also have some of the American owned 
fast food chains, but marquee stalwarts like McDonald's and 
Starbucks are not present in Barbados, or most of our islands.  Of 
the big restaurant chains, KFC is present and popular throughout the 
region as people in the region tend to favor chicken.  Subway has 
been trying for several years to open in Barbados but has faced 
opposition from the local fast food chains.  We heard at the AmCham 
lunch, that Subway is in the final stages of getting approval to 
enter into Barbados (they already have franchises in many of the 
other EC countries). 
 
¶8.  Although the majority of foreign owned firms in the region are 
UK, Canadian or Trinidad owned, there is a strong market penetration 
of American consumer goods, particularly food products, as the 
region imports most of their daily necessities, many from U.S. 
distributors.  Thus many American corporations may not be aware of 
 
BRIDGETOWN 00000095  002 OF 002 
 
 
how widely distributed their products are in the Eastern Caribbean. 
The U.S. is also a favored source for machinery and other related 
goods, and both locally-owned and U.S.-affiliated companies have 
expressed significant interest in U.S. trade shows. 
 
¶9.  Through the assistance of BFIF funding, we have been able to 
conduct much more extensive outreach to the other EC countries. 
This unprecedented (we are told) interest from the U.S. Embassy has 
yielded surprisingly positive results from a U.S. business community 
hungry for information and networking opportunities and eager to 
partner with the Embassy on advocacy, outreach, and Public Diplomacy 
issues.  As travel funding allows, we will be working diligently to 
broaden and deepen our contacts with this heretofore underserved 
community, with the ultimate goal of creating, at a minimum, 
"mini-AmChams" that can link into the Barbados AmCham.  Creating 
such a network will enable U.S. companies in the region access to 
information on a market that, combined, includes over a million 
permanent residents and up to five times as many visitors annually. 
 
OURISMAN