Borough of Arima Local Area Economic Profile (Final Report) Borough of Arima Local Area Economic Profile (Final Report) Submitted to: Permanent Secretary Ministry of Rural Development and Local Government Kent House, Maraval, Trinidad and Tobago Submitted by: Kairi Consultants Limited 14 Cochrane Street, Tunapuna, TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO Tel: 1 868 663 2677; Fax: 1 868 663 1442 Email: [email protected] Eco-Cultural City of Trinidad and Tobago Table of Contents List of Figures ......................................................................................................................................... v List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................ vii Acronyms and Abbreviations................................................................................................................. ix Chapter 1 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 12 1.1 Limitations of the Study ........................................................................................................ 13 1.2 Content of the Arima Local Area Economic Profile .............................................................. 13 Chapter 2 Area Information and Demography ..................................................................................... 14 2.1 Location ................................................................................................................................ 14 2.2 Geography ............................................................................................................................ 14 2.3 Population and Demography ................................................................................................ 16 2.3.1 Population and Household Size ..................................................................................... 16 2.3.2 Population Density .......................................................................................................... 16 2.3.3 Age Profile and Dependency .......................................................................................... 17 2.3.4 Ethnicity .......................................................................................................................... 18 2.3.5 Religious Affiliation ......................................................................................................... 19 2.4 Educational Attainment ......................................................................................................... 20 2.5 Living Conditions in Arima .................................................................................................... 22 2.6 Crime ..................................................................................................................................... 26 Chapter 3 Arima’s Natural Resources ................................................................................................. 28 3.1 Land Use and Resources ..................................................................................................... 28 3.2 Fresh Water Resources ........................................................................................................ 29 Chapter 4 Arima’s Physical and Local Assets ..................................................................................... 30 4.1 Physical Infrastructure .......................................................................................................... 30 4.1.1 Transportation................................................................................................................. 30 4.1.2 Water Supply Distribution ............................................................................................... 30 4.1.3 Wastewater and Solid Waste Management ................................................................... 30 4.1.4 Information and Communications Technology ............................................................... 30 ii 4.2 Social/Cultural Infrastructure ................................................................................................ 31 4.3 Industrial Development ......................................................................................................... 31 4.4 Social Facilities ..................................................................................................................... 31 4.4.1 Health ............................................................................................................................. 31 4.4.2 Education ........................................................................................................................ 31 4.4.3 Disaster Management .................................................................................................... 31 4.4.4 Social Services and Community Development .............................................................. 31 4.4.5 Recreation, Sports and Entertainment ........................................................................... 31 Chapter 5 The Municipal Economy ...................................................................................................... 32 5.1 Gross Domestic Product of Trinidad and Tobago ................................................................ 32 5.2 The Area Economy ............................................................................................................... 33 5.2.1 Key Economic Drivers (Activities) .................................................................................. 33 5.2.2 Employment and Unemployment Trends ....................................................................... 35 5.2.3 Occupational Groups ...................................................................................................... 36 5.2.4 Income ............................................................................................................................ 37 Chapter 6 Profiling the Borough of Arima’s MSME Sector .................................................................. 38 6.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 38 6.2 Legislative, Policy and Institutional Framework for MSME Development ............................ 40 6.2.1 Legislative and Policy Framework .................................................................................. 40 6.2.2 Institutions and Public Programmes ............................................................................... 42 6.3 Entrepreneurial Development in Trinidad and Tobago ........................................................ 47 6.4 The Arima MSME Sector (MSMEs Survey, 2015) ............................................................... 49 6.4.1 General Characteristics .................................................................................................. 49 6.4.2 Size of Enterprise ........................................................................................................... 50 6.4.3 Legal Status .................................................................................................................... 52 6.4.4 Primary Business Activities ............................................................................................ 55 6.4.5 Employment .................................................................................................................... 58 6.4.6 Markets and Annual Sales ............................................................................................. 58 6.4.7 Financing and Investment .............................................................................................. 59 6.4.8 Use of Internet ................................................................................................................ 60 6.4.9 Technical Support ........................................................................................................... 61 6.4.10 Key Issues Faced by MSMEs ........................................................................................ 62 6.5 Challenges and Opportunities Facing MSMEs .................................................................... 63 Chapter 7 Local Governance in the Borough of Arima ........................................................................ 67 7.1 The Prevailing Local Government System ........................................................................... 67 iii 7.2 Local Government Reform.................................................................................................... 68 7.3 Local Economic Development and Local Government ........................................................ 70 7.4 Caribbean Local Economic Development Programme ........................................................ 71 Chapter 8 Recommendations for Local Economic Development ........................................................ 73 8.1 Targeted Sectors .................................................................................................................. 73 8.1.1 Food Sustainability ......................................................................................................... 74 8.1.2 Eco-culltural Tourism ...................................................................................................... 74 8.1.3 Cultural Expression .......................................................................................................