COMBINET, the Commonwealth Business Network, goes on-line in the Caribbean

The Commonwealth Secretariat's newly-established Business Information Network, COMBINET, is to be launched at a workshop in Barbados 20-23 August. The workshop, to be held at the Dover Convention Centre, Christ Church, is aimed at Caribbean Commonwealth countries, and is the first in a series that will cover other  regions of the Commonwealth. The Barbados workshop takes place against the backdrop of the theme of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland, 24-27 October, 'Trade, Investment and Development: The Road to Commonwealth Prosperity'.

The Barbados workshop is being jointly organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat's Export and Industrial Development Division, the Barbados Manufacturers' Association and the International Bureau of Chambers of Commerce.

COMBINET will provide the opportunity for representatives of Caribbean chambers of commerce and industry to sign on to the electronic trade information system, and pave the way for them to develop global supplier networks for more efficient production. Among other things, the network will enable participants to obtain up-to-date market intelligence, identify key contacts, facilitate technology transfer from the more developed countries and exchange information on training opportunities.

Topics the workshop will focus on include: Methods of collecting, disseminating and managing the information system among chambers of commerce, the advantages of the internet for them and transforming them  into information brokers for business.

The COMBINET web site address is at: http://www.combinet.com/
 

97/39                  15 August 1997