Over 125 persons from across the Region are now better informed about the role of Incoterms® 2020.Participants can now apply Incoterms® 2020 in practical procurement and contracting situations, thanks to recent online training hosted by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB).

International Commercial Terms, also known as “Incoterms”, are published by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and have been in use since 1936. They are internationally recognised trade terms that establish the roles and responsibilities of the buyer and the seller in a transaction, in terms of the delivery of goods. They help users to avoid potentially costly misunderstandings by establishing the tasks, costs and risks of each party. 

Incoterms® 2020 was released in September 2019 and is expected to be used for the next ten years. 

The two-day online training was facilitated by Crown Agents and delivered by ICC accredited trainer, Jon Walden. Participants included those undertaking and/or supervising large goods procurements, including for environmental and quality standards type technical assistance projects, financed by CDB. 

Douglas Fraser, Head of Procurement, CDB noted, “The training supports the Bank’s continued efforts to expand the use of established international trading standards to further regional trade and development. Given the importance of having clear trade terms when procuring goods, we conceptualised the training to ensure both our staff and procurement staff in our Borrowing Member Countries (BMCs), which oversee national and CDB-financed projects, have the requisite understanding of Incoterms® 2020. In addition, the training was recorded for future use as a capacity development tool.”

Penny Gruber, Head of Training and Professional Development, Crown Agents noted, “We were delighted to work with the CDB to deliver this important and timely training on Intercoms. Like organisations around the world this year, we’ve had to rapidly pivot and develop our services during the pandemic; over the last few months we’ve been delivering our training remotely, working closely with clients to ensure we meet the same high standards of learning, interactivity and last impact online as we have in classrooms worldwide for more than 60 years.”

Facilitator, Jon Walden, Principal Adviser, Customs, Export Competitiveness and Trade Facilitation, Crown Agents said, “Incoterms provides the cement to link together the four elements of an international sale of goods – commercial, transport, regulatory and financial processes. Contracting parties need to be scientific in selecting the appropriate term for their transaction. Incoterms® 2020 provides a series of options, which reflect contemporary trading practice; but they are widely misused on a global basis. It was heartening and very encouraging to see such a high level of interest in the Caribbean. Participants were focused and they contributed and engaged extremely well on the critical points. I hope the participants enjoyed it as much as I did!!”

Participant, Winston Roseval, Evaluation Specialist, Fiscal Strengthening for Economic Growth Program, Suriname described the training as educative and informative. “As an organisation, we are quite involved in logistics through our system of procurement. The information shared on international logistic chain of goods and the use of coding was particularly of interest since it helped us to develop a better understanding of the intricacies of ordering, payment, transport, and delivery to determine our budget estimates, product security, risk and timelines,” he said.

Describing the training as “eye opening,” participant Marlon Stevenson, Communication Liaison Officer, Port Modernisation Project, St. Vincent and the Grenadines said, “The resource person was incredibly informative and shared the information in a manner which was both interesting and easy to understand. I now have a clearer understanding of the Incoterms® 2020, and why clear instructions are necessary when acquiring goods.”