Prince Edward Island and Cuba have a lot more in common than meets the naked eye. Despite thousands of kilometres of separation, different climates and huge contrasts in populations, a PEI trade mission team spent a week discussing areas of common interest with representatives of the Cuba government.
Wes MacAleer, Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, and Eric Hammill, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, led a team of 27 people from 16 Island companies from February 7-14, 1998, on the province's largest trade mission ever to Havana, Cuba. The ministers met on separate occasions with Cuban ministers of tourism, economy and planning, foreign trade, fisheries and agriculture. In addition, a session was held with the Cuban Chamber of Commerce and the National Bank of Cuba.
"Tourism is a fast growing industry for Cuba; and like PEI, the development of the tourism industry is a priority for the country," said Minister MacAleer. "It was very interesting to be able to observe first hand a country which places as much emphasis as we do on tourism."
The Island companies offering tourism related products and services had the opportunity to meet with several key contacts and received a high level of interest from Cuban participants in the mission.
The aquaculture industry has become another priority for the Cuban government as the marine fishery is declining and at the upper limit of exploitation. This opens the door to an export market for Island companies specializing in aquaculture products and services. With shrimp and lobster as primary export products, the Cuban industry was looking for equipment and special skills to maximize this potential market. "I was extremely pleased with the outcome of the trade mission," said Minister Hammill. "It was indeed a learning experience that allowed both countries to learn and gain valuable information about the practices of the other country."
The trade team was given the chance to visit the Mariel Free Zone, one of the duty free zones in Cuba. Although this zone is still in development, it will house bays for warehouses and industrial activity, facilities for water supply and other basic services and buildings for meetings. It will operate with a policy that permits no duty or restriction on goods imported by companies located in this zone.
The highlight of the trip was a tour of tobacco and potato plantations on the outskirts of Havana. These tours allowed the ministers and the agricultural companies a first hand view of Cuban farming practices. In addition, the PEI potato industry representatives met with the Cuban government agency responsible for importing seed potatoes and visited trial plots of PEI seed potatoes being evaluated in Cuba this year. The import agency will be sending representatives to PEI in the near future to discuss potential sales of seed potatoes to Cuba.
"The trade mission to Cuba was a very positive experience for the potato representatives participating in the mission," says Ivan Noonan, General Manager of the PEI Potato Board and member of the PEI trade mission team. "Doing business in Cuba is based on personal relationships, and having the ministers involved provided credibility and opened doors for our delegation."
Meetings were arranged for the ministers and the companies by the Canadian Embassy in Cuba, the Cuban Chamber of Commerce and the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Trade through the Canada/PEI Trade Development Centre. Island companies provided the Embassy with profiles in advance of the mission to ensure the appropriate meetings were arranged.