Pan fund to take national instrument global
Recognising the importance of the country’s national instrument, Government has approved TT$5 million for the establishment of a Steelpan Manufacturing Grant Fund Facility.
Speaking at a media conference on Tuesday, Trade and Industry Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon said the financial support will provide steelpan manufacturers with the means to acquire machinery, equipment, software, tools, raw material and training.
The funding will be made available in tranches of up to $250,000, but no more than $1,000,000 per entity.
Gopee-Scoon said Government was intent on seeing the country’s national instrument flourish at the global level with input from industry experts, tapping into the industry’s potential for job creation, increased foreign exchange earnings and economic diversification.
She urged manufacturers and tuners interested in stepping up their operations to take advantage of the initiative.
The Minister noted that the funding would assist in this regard, encouraging the modernisation and the improvement of the quality of steelpan manufacturing operations, ultimately bolstering the export product.
“We are confident that the successful implementation of the Steelpan Manufacturing Grant Fund Facility will lead to improvements in the production and tuning processes and enhance adherence to global quality standards. It will also be an important platform towards sustainable employment and expansion of exports of the only acoustic musical instrument developed in the twentieth century,” she said.
Gopee-Scoon revealed that the MIC Institute of Technology (MIC-IT) will be responsible for administering this Facility due to its experience in technical and vocational training in steelpan manufacturing.
By Darlisa Ghouralal
