Canada, opening new doors for T&T businesses

By His Excellency Michael Ryan Callan

I'D LIKE to start with a personal reflection.

When I first arrived in Trinidad and Tobago as Canada's High Commissioner, I expected to spend my first few months introducing Canada to this country Instead, I quickly found out there was no need.

Everywhere I went, someone had a Canadian story. A son studying in Toronto. A daughter living in Calgary. A business partner in Mississauga. A favourite vacation they took in Nova Scotia. A cousin in Brampton. I learned of how St Catherines was twinned long ago with Port of Spain; how the Ontario Legislature is twinned with the Red House and its House of Representatives. I learned of the Canadian Presbyterians and their legacy of world-class schooling in the South. I learned of the lumber Canada traded for rum and sugar 200 years ago, and how some of that lumber still forms the foundations of Port of Spain's oldest buildings. I learned of the Merikins-former slaves in America who won their freedom fighting with Canada against the United States in 1812 and who settled in these islands.

Before long, I learned that our citizens and institutions weren't strangers at all. In fact, our countries have been intertwined for hundreds and hundreds of years. Canada and T&T have traded with one another for centuries-long before either of our countries gained independence and long before diplomatic relations were formally established in 1962. Commerce came first. Diplomacy followed. And that tells us something: this relationship was built not on politics, but on the mutual trust, confidence and sense of shared opportunity that is necessary for business to business trade to thrive.

That confidence was strengthened in 1938 when Canada appointed its first resident trade commissioner to Port of Spain, a position and an office that has only grown ever since. Trinidad and Tobago is Canada's largest merchandise trading partner in Caricom, with two-way merchandise trade reaching approximately Can$467 million in 2023; I believe that number represents not the ceiling of our relationship, but its foundation.

Canada offers something businesses value-perhaps more now than ever before.

Stability. Predictability. Transparency. The rule of law. Trusted partners that welcome foreign connections.

An ecosystem ranked third in the G20 for ease of doing business.

In a world where uncertainty increasingly challenges business decisions, those qualities are not simply advantages-they are priceless necessities.

Canada is also one of the world's most connected trading nations. Through CARIBCAN, the overwhelming majority of eligible Caribbean exports already enjoy duty-free access to the Canadian market. And Canada remains the only G7 country with comprehensive free trade agreements in force with every other G7 member. We have preferential trade access to 61% of global GDP and 1.5 billion consumers.

We are a safe, reliable, trusted platform for global expansion. That brings me to why we're here today. From August 27 through September 2, the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce will lead its Trade and Investment Mission to Toronto.

This isn't simply a business trip. It is one part of a more sophisticated market-entry strategy.

Delegates will showcase their products at the Toronto Trinbago Festival-the largest celebration of T&T anywhere in the world outside these islands. They'll meet importers, distributors and retailers. They'll present investment opportunities to Canada's vibrant Trini diaspora and to Canadian investors. And, just as importantly, they'll receive support before the mission begins and long after it ends, ensuring that introductions become contracts, and relationships become lasting partnerships.

That's exactly how successful trade should work.

The Chamber brings entrepreneurial leadership and operational private sector expertise. The Canadian High Commission negotiates trade agreements, connects government networks, and steers commercial partners. Together, we reduce barriers, open doors and create opportunities that neither of us could achieve alone.

Colleagues, I genuinely believe we are standing at an important moment.

Global supply chains are shifting. The norms and fundamentals of our trading system are in flux. In the face of such change, trusted partners matter more than ever.

Canada is ready. The question is whether more Trinidad and Tobago businesses are ready to seize that opportunity.

I'm confident the answer is yes. Because I have seen the ingenuity, resilience and entrepreneurial spirit that define this country. And I have also seen how wildly successful Trinis are when they put those qualities to work in Canada.

I look forward to accompanying many of you there this August, as together we write the next chapter in a commercial partnership that began centuries ago-and whose greatest opportunities still lie ahead.

His Excellency Michael Ryan Callan High Commissioner of Canada to the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

High Commissioner of Canada to Trinidad and Tobago Michael Callan.