STATEMENT OF PATRICK MANNING, PRIME MINISTER OF TRINIDAD AND TODAGO

摘要

When this Administration assumed office in 2001, we began work on the trans-formation of Trinidad and Tobago into a developed nation in the shortest time possible but certainly by the year 2020. The vision that emerged-VISION 2020 - was founded on five developmental pillars: Developing Innovative People; Nurturing a Caring Society; Enabling Competitive Business; Investing in Sound Infrastructure and the Environment; and Promoting Effective Government. Official data shows a halving of the poverty rate from 35 percent in 1990 to 16.7 percent by 2006. Direct foreign investment was close to US$6 billion over the past five years. Our external debt, which was 17 percent of GDP in 2001, is now at 5 percent of GDP. We have unified Corporation and Individual Taxes at a flat rate of 25 percent (down from 35 percent and 28 to 35 percent, respectively, in 2001) and raised the level of personal allowances.