PREMIER SELINGER JOINS MANITOBA BUSINESS, EDUCATION LEADERS ON TRADE MISSION TO INDIA

January 25, 2013

Premier Greg Selinger will depart Sunday for a 10-day trade mission to India where he will join members of the Business Council of Manitoba and representatives of Manitoba’s colleges and universities to promote the province as a great place to do business and study.

“Manitoba’s family and cultural connections to India run deep and, as one of the world’s fastest growing economies, India represents huge opportunities for Manitoba businesses,” said Selinger.  “Expanding our trade with India means helping Manitoba businesses take their products and expertise overseas, and it means creating jobs for Manitoba families.”
Manitoba businesses and professional organizations on the trade mission will include representatives from the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce, Westeel, Cubex, Magellan Aerospace, CentrePort Canada, Maxim Truck and Trailer, Johnson Waste Management, RBC, Innovate Manitoba, Yes! Winnipeg, Parenty Reitmeier, World Trade Centre Winnipeg and the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Manitoba.
“The Business Council of Manitoba is pleased to join the premier in promoting enhanced trade and investment between India and Manitoba,” said Jim Carr, president and CEO of the council.  “Business leaders believe that the Indian market offers impressive potential for our companies and, working together, we can attract investment and skilled people to our province.”
Manitoba educational and research-focused participants on the trade mission will include representatives from Red River College, Winnipeg Technical College, Brandon University, the University of Manitoba, the University of Winnipeg and the International Institute for Sustainable Development.
“Manitoba and India both place great importance on education and more and more Indian students are choosing to study in Manitoba,” said Dr. W. Dean Care, acting vice-president (academic and provost) at Brandon University.  “We’re reaching out to students in India to help attract them to Brandon and help meet the skilled labour needs of our economy.”
“Working with leaders in the business community and our post-secondary institutions, we’re strengthening our ties and increasing our exports to India and other growing economies,” said Selinger.  “And the world is taking notice of Manitoba, with more and more firms choosing to set up shop in our province.”
The trip will include stops in Delhi and Mumbai along with several smaller centres including Chandigarh, Bhanohar, Sawaddi, Ludhiana, Agra and Ahmadabad.

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September 7, 2012

PROVINCE APPOINTS FOREIGN TRADE REPRESENTATIVE IN BRAZIL

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James Mohr-Bell Brings Wealth of Experience, Connections as Executive Director of Brazil-Canada Chamber of Commerce: Premier

Premier Greg Selinger today announced that James Mohr-Bell has been appointed Manitoba’s foreign trade representative in Brazil, following a Manitoba trade mission to São Paulo in June. Mohr-Bell brings over 35 years of experience in the Brazilian market to his new role of promoting Manitoba investment opportunities to Brazilian companies while assisting Manitoba companies as they pursue business opportunities in Brazil.
“We have identified Brazil as a key trading partner and market for Manitoba,” said Selinger.  “Mr. Mohr-Bell is an experienced, well-known and respected business leader in Brazil who has worked for over three decades promoting trade between our countries.  I believe there is no better person to help meet Manitoba’s trade objectives in the region.”
Mohr-Bell is the current executive director of the Câmara de Comércio Brasil Canadá (CCBC) in São Paulo (the Brazil-Canada Chamber of Commerce).  He is also president of Mohr-Bell Business Planning, a business consulting firm based in São Paulo.
The premier noted that Manitoba Trade and Investment has been in contact with Mohr-Bell for the last year and will work with him in an official capacity going forward to expand trade and promote investment.
In 2011, Manitoba’s total trade with Brazil was $99.9 million.  Manitoba’s exports to Brazil have grown to $55.4 million in 2011 from $12.7 million in 2002.  Leading exports were copper, harvesting and threshing machinery, unwrought nickel, leguminous vegetables and cultivation machinery.  Manitoba’s imports from Brazil totalled $44.5 million in 2011.  Leading imports were self-propelled bulldozers, engine parts, leather, electric motors and generators, and monumental and building stone.
Manitoba Trade and Investment (MTI) is the province’s lead branch for trade development, draws on over 475 years of combined international business and trade experience, and is able to provide services in 17 languages.  In the last year, MTI worked with 465 companies and organizations worldwide.

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