Grenada for Business

CULTURAL PROFILE
Grenada’s cultural heritage is largely the result of a mixture of African, East Indian, French and British influences and is seen in the folklore, dialect, music and general way of life Grenadians speak Standard English, Grenadian English and a French African patois. Grenadian dialect also has many French words. Grenada and especially Carriacou is full of folklore.
Festivals include Carnival (Grenada’s in August and Carriacou’s in Feb each year), Christmas, Easter and the majority of christian festivals, Rainbow City Festival, St Patrick’s Day Festival, Fisherman’s Day Festival, St Mark’s Day Festival, Carriacou Maroon & String Band Festival, Grenada Sailing Festival, Grenada Billfish Tournament, Carriacou Regatta and Carriacou Sailing Series.

DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
Total population is estimated at just under 106,000 (2008, est.) and comprises of: Blacks 90% Whites 1% East Indian 3% Other 6% Population (2008 106,000 Population Density 264 per Sq km Population growth rate 0.468% (2008) Adult Literacy Rate (2008) 96% Unemployment Rate 13% Life Expectancy 73.4 years Men 67 Years Women 70 Years Crude Birth Rate (per thousand) 15.1 Crude Death Rate (per thousand) 7.0

INDUSTRIAL PROFILE SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT
Small & Medium Enterprises can play a significant role in the development of the country by presenting a range of self employment opportunities to enterprising, independent persons, encouraging the utilization of local resources, stimulating personal savings, improving rural well being and facilitating a more equitable distribution of income.
Government envisage a modern small business sector capable of adapting readily to changes in technology and markets and utilizing current managerial and production techniques, competing effectively not only on the domestic market but also on the international market.
In this regard it is the policy of the Government (GOG) to provide the required impetus and allocate financial and technical resources to foster the creation of an enlightened and dynamic small enterprise sector.

TRADE POLICY
The trade policy has evolved over time as a result of Grenada’s participation in international, regional and bi-lateral trade agreements and also as a result of an evolution in the government basic economic policies toward a more free market, private enterprise system.
The change in trade policies reflects a shift from import substitution to a more liberalized trading system that is oriented toward the global economy. The ongoing process of liberalization and globalization, of the world’s economy has had a strong influence on Grenada’s trade policy.

HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (HRD)
It has been noted that the education system is too oriented toward classical academics and does not prepare its graduates with the skills needed in the private business sector job market.
Government recognizes that human resource development is vital to the development of Grenada’s economy, society, and culture. It has also been recognized that human resource development has multiple dimensions, covering educational attainment, workforce skills, population health and employment policies that connect people to business enterprises with appropriate skills and the ability to adapt quickly to new challenges. Recognizing that each of these areas is a key driver in creating a favorable environment for investment and cannot be framed in isolation, the HRD policy takes full account of these policy links and Grenada’s implementation capacity. Special emphasis has been attached to the flexibility of the policy framework to respond to new skill needs created by changing technologies and economic structures and in this regard government has fostered close cooperation between policy makers and the main stakeholders of investors and labor.