Minister Hippolyte explained that government officials must be on-site at headquarters to gain a greater understanding for businesses’ needs. This, she says, allows the government to provide more adequate opportunities for businesses to expand their operations.

“When we get a request for incentives from a manufacturer, we then have a better appreciation of what is happening - the plan for expansion, the investment level. I can speak to the cabinet of ministers to say, look, we need to support this,” she said.

Export Saint Lucia manages all major exportation of business products to overseas markets.

The Minister says business owners must be in constant dialogue with Export Saint Lucia to better lobby for them on the regional market.

“It's also important for us to have a direct conversation with the manufacturers, so that when our team attends CARICOM meetings, we need to be able to present cases on behalf of our manufacturers.”

While the government has stated its intention to increase the manufacturing capacity in Saint Lucia, one major challenge is the cost of energy generation. 

Presently, most of Saint Lucia’s energy is generated from crude oil. Minister Hippolyte says tapping into renewable energy sources is a top priority of the government.

“One of the challenges that we need to address is the whole issue of energy and the high cost of energy and how we are working to move to alternative energy sources.”