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▪ The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago’s rating reaffirmed at CariAA+ ▪ Home Mortgage Bank’s rating reaffirmed at CariA ▪ NCB Cayman Limited’s rating reaffirmed at CariA ▪ NiQuan Energy Trinidad Limited’s initial rating assigned at CariA+ ▪ Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago’s rating reaffirmed at CariAA+ ▪ NCB Financial Group Limited’s rating reaffirmed at CariA- ▪ National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited’s rating reaffirmed at CariBBB+ ▪ Trinidad and Tobago Mortgage Finance Company Limited’s rating reaffirmed at CariAA- ▪ TRINRE Insurance Company Limited’s initial rating assigned at CariA- ▪ NCB Capital Markets Limited’s rating reaffirmed at CariBBB ▪ Government of Anguilla removed from rating watch and reaffirmed at CariBBB+ ▪ Colonial Fire & General Insurance Limited’s rating reaffirmed at CariA ▪ Mystic Mountain Limited’s initial rating assigned at CariBBB-
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REGIONAL
Trinidad and Tobago
Income Tax Bill a boost, says FIU chief THE Income Tax (Amendment) Bill 2018 as it stands now will allow the authorities to gain access to taxpayer information for a specific purpose when investigations are conducted.
Audit: T&T's gas reserves have grown According to the Ryder Scott 2017 audit, which was handed over to the Ministry of Energy in July this year, there was a 152 per cent replacement of the reserves produced in 2017.
NIF seeks two Republic directors THE GOVERNMENT has nominated two people to represent the interests of the National Investment Fund (NIF) on the board of Republic Financial Holdings Ltd, the largest commercial bank in T& T.
NCB up by 12.2% LAST week saw 2,113,145 shares traded on the first-tier market a decrease of 16.27 per cent on the previous week's total of 2,523,811 shares crossing the floor.
Excess liquidity up by $1.7b OMO maturities totalled $1,001 million last week compared to $530 million the previous week.
Diane Hadad: Businesses in Tobago suffering seabridge woes TOBAGO'S business community is now convinced there is no end to their suffering, as troubles have hit the inter-island ferry service just ahead of Christmas and one of the island's busiest nights, Old Year's.
Barbados
Virgin launches first-ever Departure Beach location in Barbados The Barbados tourism product got a major boost with the opening of the Virgin Holidays Departure Beach lounge at the Copacabana, Bay Street location on Saturday.
Barbados continued
IMF ‘Happy’ Barbados got an ‘A’ grade as an International Monetary Fund team wrapped up a visit here today, just two months after the multilateral lender approved a $600-million loan under its Extended Fund Facility.
Over 1000 gone so far JUST OVER 1 000 civil servants have been severed so far during Government’s retrenchment programme.
Drug nod Barbados is on the verge of having medicinal marijuana added to the formulary of the Barbados Drug Service.
Jamaica
Grace Acquiring 49% Stake in US Patty Company Grace Foods (USA), Inc. a company owned by GraceKennedy Limited, said it will be acquiring a 49 per cent equity stake in a new joint venture company, Majesty Foods, a Florida-based manufacturer of patty and empanada products.
Strategic plan for Scotia Ja in 2019 ...Buildout of multi-platform, 1 branch to go With eyes on the proposed sale of Scotiabank's banking asset in nine Caribbean countries, and plans to divest its life insurance business in Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago to Sagicor, Chief Executive Officer David Noel says Scotiabank's local operations will see market penetration strategies being rolled out in 2019.
Belize
UHS debt haunting GoB Yesterday morning, attorneys representing the Belize Bank (Eamon Courtenay, S.C.) and the Government of Belize’s Queen’s Counsel, Doctor Ben Juratowitch, along with their assistants, filed into the courtroom of Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin, where the bank submitted an application for an enforcement order that would allow it to collect over $95 million that the government of Belize was ordered to pay the bank in rulings by multiple high courts, which had ruled that a 2004 government guarantee for a $33.5 million loan to Universal Health Services (UHS) was a legal contract.
British Virgin Islands
Govt seeks contractors to redevelop ESHS The administration of the Virgin Islands (VI) is inviting tenders for the redevelopment of Elmore Stoutt High School, according to a press statement, issued by the Government Information Service (GIS), on Friday, December 7, 2018.
Two Charged in Panama Papers Investigations in the US Used the British Virgin Islands in their Scheme Four people have been charged in an indictment unsealed this week in the United States, with wire fraud, tax fraud, money laundering and other offences in connection with the so-called Panama Papers scandal.
Dominica
Major changes coming to telecoms sector in Dominica Telecommunications Minister, Kelver Darroux, has expressed confidence in the work that has been done by the ECTEL Council of Ministers in moving forward the telecommunications sector in ECTEL member states.
Dominica and Airbnb sign agreement to promote tourism and home sharing on the island The Discover Dominica Authority and Airbnb (a home sharing platform), have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to cooperate on areas of common interest. By promoting the destination to a wide range of travellers through the platform, the agreement will ensure home sharing continues to thrive as a healthy addition to the local tourism sector, helping support economic growth and benefit Dominicans.
First 38 homes handed over in Petite Savanne Resettlement Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit, has said that the resettlement project at Bellevue Chopin for Petite Savanne residents who were displaced by Tropical Storm Erika in 2015, was built with a sense of community in mind.
St. Kitts and Nevis
Healthy fiscal position leads to payment of unprecedented third consecutive “double salary” The strong fiscal position of the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis has led to the decision by the Team Unity administration to give an extra month’s pay, popularly known as a “double salary,” in December to all civil servants for an unprecedented third consecutive year.
With the first-time arrival of the MSC Preziosa, St. Kitts adds another ship to its packed cruise itinerary in the 2018/2019 cruise season The MSC Preziosa, today, December 06, made its inaugural visit to the shores of St. Kitts and Nevis, making this the 4th first-time call for the 2018/2019 cruise season, which started in October.
$500 monthly stipend for households earning less than $3,000 commences December 21, 2018 The payout of the $500 monthly stipend for households earning less than $3,000 per month in St. Kitts and Nevis, under the Team Unity Government’s historic Poverty Alleviation Programme commences on Friday, December 21, 2018.
NIA signs agreement with Northern Pointe Development Ltd for construction of Wyndham Grand resort Hon. Mark Brantley, Premier of Nevis, believes the people of Nevis are looking forward to the start of construction works with great anticipation for a major hotel development at Potworks in the Parish of St. James'.
230 Farmers and Fishers benefit from Agriculture Support Fund Two hundred and thirty farmers and fishers in St. Kitts and Nevis have benefited from the Government's Agriculture Support Fund, which made available $1.5 million in loan funds at a five percent interest rate and $1 million in grant funds through the Development Bank.
Other Regional
CARICOM to open up government procurement to regional companies Regional businesses will soon have the opportunity to bid on millions of dollars’ worth of government contracts across the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), according to minister in the ministry of foreign trade of Barbados, Sandra Husbands, who was speaking at an ISO 20700 Standard in Management Consultancy Services workshop on Tuesday.
INTERNATIONAL
United States
About 250,000 without power in U.S. southeast after storm About 250,000 people in the U.S. southeast were without power on Monday and hundreds of flights were cancelled after a storm dumped 20 inches of snow and left one motorist dead.
United Kingdom
May is said to withdraw parliamentary vote on her Brexit deal British Prime Minister Theresa May abruptly decided on Monday to pull a parliamentary vote on her Brexit deal, throwing Britain’s plan to leave the European Union up in the air on the eve of the vote, after repeated warnings from members of parliament she faced a rout.
China
China says it has never heard of any country having security problem with Huawei China’s foreign ministry on Monday said it had never heard of any country having a security problem with Huawei Technologies Co Ltd [HWT.UL], after a top executive of the telecoms giant was arrested in Canada.
Japan
Japan's top three telcos to exclude Huawei, ZTE network equipment: Kyodo Japan’s big three telecom operators plan not to use current equipment and upcoming fifth-generation (5G) gear from China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd [HWT.UL] and ZTE Corp (0763.HK) (000063.SZ), Kyodo News reported on Monday.
India
India Cen bank governor Patel resigns, stuns markets Reserve Bank of India Governor Urjit Patel resigned for “personal reasons” on Monday, a decision analysts linked to intense pressure on the central bank from the government to ease regulatory curbs.
Virgin launches first-ever Departure Beach location in Barbados Monday 10th December, 2018 – Barbados Today
The Barbados tourism product got a major boost with the opening of the Virgin Holidays Departure Beach lounge at the Copacabana, Bay Street location on Saturday.
The investment, which is upwards of $1 million, is a partnership between Virgin Holidays, Copacabana and the Sun Group.
Copacabana remains open for business.
The departure beach provides a new experience for Virgin travellers who want to eliminate the wait time at the airport.
It provides an avenue for travellers to check-in and collect their boarding passes before making their way to spend the last few hours of their vacation soaking up the sun and spending time on the beach.
Welcoming the investment, Minister of Tourism Kerrie Symmonds said Barbados was “blessed” to have the first-ever Virgin Holidays Departure Beach lounge.
“And we are also richly blessed because we have the association today with one of the most innovative and exciting companies on planet earth,” he added.
“The fact of the matter is, this is a glorious innovation and I am happy to be able to tell you that we already have 5,000 bookings for next year and this is day one. So it is this kind of partnership that is working for Barbados and it is because of this type of partnership we are now having 11 flights weekly,” said Symmonds.
He said Virgin Atlantic represented 42 per cent of the traffic coming to Barbados from the UK and he “suspect strongly that better will come”.
Pointing to the planned Virgin Galactic trips to space, Symmonds said he was proud that Barbados was working with a company that was on the cutting edge of travel and tourism.
“It is that kind of innovative thinking that allows us to be celebrating Departure Beach today, and I want to say to you all . . . that the value added to our tourism product is absolutely phenomenal,” he said.
Scores of local and international high flyers in the tourism industry turned up for the celebration at the picturesque location.
The swanky opening event also attracted a number of popular models and TV personalities from the UK.
The BBC Radio 1 DJ Maya Jama was joined by local studio director Keven Talma, who provided modern energetic music to complete the party mood.
Founder of Virgin Group Ltd Sir Richard Branson said he was proud of the work of the Virgin Holidays company, which he said had managed to increase Virgin flights to Barbados since its introduction some two decades ago.
“I am really proud of what they have been able to achieve since they set up many years ago,” said Sir Richard.
“A place like this is just the kind of thing Virgin would do and should do all the time – always innovating and creating something extra special for the people who love the Virgin brand,” he added.
Officials said the “big investment” was Virgin Holidays’ commitment to Barbados and the region.
Welcoming the new investment from the Virgin Group, Prime Minister Mia Mottley called on all Barbadians to continue to play their part in making Barbados “the cleanest, most friendly and warmest it can be”.
She added that coupled with the retraining of people, “Barbados will continue to glisten among the stars and that today will not just be a singular event, by being the first departure beach, but that we will continue to do like those characters on Star Trek – to go where no man has gone before”.
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IMF ‘Happy’ Monday 7th December, 2018 – Barbados Today
Barbados got an ‘A’ grade as an International Monetary Fund team wrapped up a visit here today, just two months after the multilateral lender approved a $600-million loan under its Extended Fund Facility.
“Barbados has made an excellent start in implementing its ambitious and comprehensive economic reform programme, said IMF Head of Mission Bert Van Selm at the end of consultations with interest groups which began on Tuesday to assess implementation of the Barbados Economic Recovery and Transformation (BERT) plan.
The passing grade is joyful news for the woman spearheading BERT – Prime Minister Mia Mottley.
Welcoming the report, Mottley said she believed all Barbadians would feel proud that “we have made good progress”.
“So we are on track,” said Mottley.
She thanked Barbadians for their support, saying “we could not be here unless everybody agreed to this journey together.
“So I want to thank the people of Barbados – labour, private sector, civil society, businesses individually and households individually. It is not easy,” she said.
On the plus side, a highlight for the IMF team is the doubling of the country’s foreign exchange reserves, which had plummeted below benchmark standards to reach an all-time low, triggering fears for the stability of the Barbados Dollar.
“The country’s international reserves, which reached a low of US$220 million (5-6 weeks of import coverage) at end-May 2018, have more than doubled since then, amounting to more than US$500 million in early December. This has helped to rebuild confidence in the country’s macroeconomic framework,” the IMF team concluded.
Mottley also pointed out that the building back of the reserves, which reached a high of about $1 billion yesterday, was already serving as a catalyst for private sector investment, adding that proposals in the education and tourism sectors have already been coming in.
The Washington-based financial institution’s team also had high praise for the “rapid completion” of the local debt restructuring exercise which will see holders of Government paper taking a haircut in interest and accepting a longer repayment period.
“The rapid completion of the domestic part of the debt restructuring has been very helpful in reducing economic uncertainty, and the terms agreed with creditors will help put public debt on a clear downward trajectory. A much-reduced government interest bill will help create much-needed fiscal space for increased social spending and investment in infrastructure,” the IMF team noted.
But the Van Selm team also noted that negotiations with the external debt creditors were not completed, urging the Mia Mottley administration to continue open dialogue and share information with the group.
“Completion of the debt restructuring exercise would help to further reduce uncertainty,” the IMF officials stressed.
And amid criticism of the Government’s restructuring exercise which has led to painful layoffs in Central Government and at state enterprises, the IMF team gave its approval saying the move will not only improve efficiency and reduce the public sector’s wage bill but would help to “facilitate private sector-led growth” and “reduce central government transfers to state-owned enterprises, from a level that had become unsustainably high”.
Mottley, who described the past six months as “intense” and like being in The Matrix movie, said that once the targets were established the rest of the work for the economic road map fell into place.
She also pointed out that Government was now in a better position to manage its finances, after being able to know how much it was spending and how much it was earning on a daily basis.
“It means if things are looking a little slow this week or this month, we can say slow it down,” she said.
As at the end of November, Government revenue stood at $1.93 billion while spending was $1.87 billion.
But the IMF team was less optimistic about Government’s recent decision to slash corporation taxes for businesses, saying it viewed the move with the caution.
Last month, Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced a reduction in corporation taxes from 25 per cent to as low as between one and 5.5 per cent.
She explained that move would allow local businesses to operate on a level playing field with their international counterparts following Government’s decision to overhaul its tax regime to be compliant with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
The IMF however noted “There are some risks to this reform, including making corporate income tax revenues more dependent on maintaining international competitiveness.”
Van Selm however concluded that “Barbados has also made good progress towards meeting end-December 2018 structural benchmarks under the EFF.”
Immediately after taking control of the government back in May, Mottley had announced a suspension of all debt payments.
Two weeks later she announced a number of austerity measures, which are being introduced over time. The restructuring programme also includes a reform of state-owned entities.
Mottley, who pointed out that one of the last meetings she had on Friday was with a social services agency and the household mitigation unit, gave the assurance that Government “will not rest” until retrenched workers were “relocated”.
“That is what we are working towards,” she promised.
In reaction to the IMF’s report, the president of the Barbados Economic Society (BES), Shane Lowe, also pointed to the progress so far under the restructuring programme, but he maintained that there was still work to be done in order to grow the economy.
“The economic situation is still challenging but certainly improving, albeit slowly. There are a number of issues to tackle,” said Lowe
He argued that low economic growth remained one of the main challenges facing the country, while pointing out that consumption would not lead the kind of growth needed.
“Because of the ongoing austerity, that is not likely to ease up any time soon, there is going to be a need for something else to drive growth, and consumption is probably not going to be the driver over the next four or five years. So that is where investment comes in,” he said, while pointing out that there was also need for an improvement in the ease of doing business.
He also highlighted the need for more opportunities to be created for locals to invest overseas and bring more foreign exchange into Barbados.
“We have to find a way whether it be through diversification, to get our North America tourists stay a bit longer, to extract a bit more value-added in tourism because that sector is not contributing as much as it once did in terms of our economic growth,” he added.
Lowe also recommended that the excess liquidity in the banking system was likely to continue, and that needed to be “put to work”.
“A big part of this is going to be how do we find avenues to take the surplus funds we have in the banking system and allocate them to businesses . . . to further accelerate economic growth,” he said.
The economist also reiterated his call for a timely conclusion of negotiations with external creditors in order to improve the country’s access to international capital beyond the IMF-backed programme.
He was addressing the CIBC FirstCaribbean Barbados Client Economic Forum at Sandals Barbados, where he engaged the Prime Minister in a wide-ranging discussion on the economy.
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Over 1000 gone so far Monday 10th December, 2018 – Caribbean News Now
JUST OVER 1 000 civil servants have been severed so far during Government’s retrenchment programme.
So said Minister of Labour Colin Jordan, as he spoke on the Voice Of Barbados BrassTacks Sunday call-in programme.
“I don’t have an exact number, but I believe we are over 1 000 because the situation is a work in progress. As we move on, we get updates from the ministry responsible and from the Chief Personnel Officer and we are moving towards our target,” he added.
He, however, revealed that some statutory organisations were still to pare down their staff complement and that might take place in the next phase of the retrenchment programme (HLE).
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Drug nod Saturday 8th December, 2018 – Nation News
Barbados is on the verge of having medicinal marijuana added to the formulary of the Barbados Drug Service.
In a historic move, the Ministry of Health and Wellness, Ministry of Agriculture, Barbados Drug Service and the local medical fraternity will soon implement a joint programme that will give doctors here the green light to prescribe the drug once they complete training sanctioned by the Ministry of Health.
Importation of the range of drugs, known officially as cannabinoids, will be approved only as a last resort, if conventional methods of pain management have failed.
“The ministry [of Health] will be focused on the use of cannabinoids in very specific conditions,” the island’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr Kenneth George, revealed in an exclusive interview with THE NATION.
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Grace Acquiring 49% Stake In US Patty Company Friday 7th December, 2018 – Jamaica Gleaner
Grace Foods (USA), Inc. a company owned by GraceKennedy Limited, said it will be acquiring a 49 per cent equity stake in a new joint venture company, Majesty Foods, a Florida-based manufacturer of patty and empanada products.
The range of Majesty’s product portfolio is marketed under its own brands ‘Patty King” and “Latin Delights” as well as under other third-party brands, GraceKennedy said in a release.
The company has extensive and valuable co-packing relationships with leading companies in the United States and its products are sold through multiple retailers including Whole Foods and Publix.
Majesty Foods also sells to leading food services distributors including Sysco, Cheney Brothers and Jetro/Restaurant Depot, GraceKennedy said.
Grace Foods currently owns and operates a 23,000 square-foot cold storage and food processing facility in Florida.
As a part of the agreement, Grace Foods will outsource to Majesty Foods its current factory operations, which include the production of a wide portfolio of frozen Hispanic and Caribbean products for the retail and food service channels.
“Majesty Foods is the current manufacturer of Grace brand patties for the USA market which are available nationwide in leading retailers including Wal-Mart and Target,” said GraceKennedy’s CEO Don Wehby.
“Grace brand patties have been doing exceptionally well, experiencing double-digit growth in the market. The consolidation of these two entities will create a stronger and better capitalized business through various synergies, allowing Majesty Foods to provide an enhanced service offering to all its customers,” he added.
Wehby said GraceKennedy has been aggressively pursuing opportunities for mergers and acquisitions as a part its long-term strategy.
“This joint venture is a step in the right direction for our Foods Division as we strive to leverage our leading position in the USA-Caribbean market to become one of the top players in the USA-Hispanic market through our ‘La Fe’ brand,” Wehby said.
The principals of Majesty Foods, Gary Tie-Shue and Colin Chang, who are also of Jamaican descent, will continue to lead the manufacturing operation that they started 20 years ago.
The transaction was arranged by GK Capital Management Limited.
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Strategic plan for Scotia Ja in 2019 ...Buildout of multi-platform, 1 branch to go Sunday 9th December, 2018 – Jamaica Observer
With eyes on the proposed sale of Scotiabank's banking asset in nine Caribbean countries, and plans to divest its life insurance business in Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago to Sagicor, Chief Executive Officer David Noel says Scotiabank's local operations will see market penetration strategies being rolled out in 2019.
In reasoning that the restructuring will better position the company to support its customers, Noel announced plans to invest $450 million in the revamp of the Scotia Centre branch in anticipation of the closure of its King Street branch. The branch is expected to be shuttered next October.
Noel, who was speaking at a press conference on Friday at the bank's headquarters at the corner of Duke and Port Royal Streets, Kingston, noted that the decision to shutter the King street location comes amid a 30 per cent reduction in the number of transactions at both the Duke Street and King Street branches over the past three years.
“The reduction is for a number of reasons: online, mobile and ATMs becoming more prevalent. We want to make a significant investment in our branches but we want to start with our head office location which is downtown Kingston.
“It would not have made sense to renovate both those branches which is a five minutes’ walk away. It's not just changing the interiors, it's extending the walls to accommodate a premium banking centre and areas in which we can have discussion with our customers,” Noel told journalists.
According to Noel, the expansion of the Scotia Centre will allow for staff from the King Street operation to be reintegrated into its system, even as the company works to reorganise its operation across the Caribbean.
“Given the fact that we are having more and more in sales roles, more and more people serving customers, we are confident that those employees at the King Street branch we will be able to be accommodated it at the Scotiabank centre location or multiple other branches across Kingston. We don't expect any material job losses from that closure, and what we expect is to find employment for those who would like employment in other areas; we will provide retraining,” the CEO said.
And in line with the restructuring, Scotia also disclosed plans to invest in up to 15 Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) across the island later this month in time for the busy Christmas period. The bank has also committed to rolling out a new platform to provide customers with banking transactions, in an attempt to greater educate its customers on how fees are applied along with fees that have been waived.
Scotia is taking its customer experience a step further and is offering customers using Digicel network unlimited access to its Scotia banking app, with or without data service. The company is now working to provide Flow customers with access to convenient banking free of data charges.
“Banking is changing. We are excited about this. We are seeing a change in the way customers do business. Thirteen per cent of our customers do business in the branch, versus 21 per online. Two years ago, that would have been the reverse.
“We are also taking the time to ensure that customers who aren't as technologically savvy know how to use our digital products. We've had seminars on how to use the technology in branch. We have rolled out wifi, just doing things to ensure that we can help our customers to move along on this journey,” Noel explained.
But in spite of the plans highlighted by Scotia to improve its customer experience, some trade unionists are still uneasy about the bank's plan to sell its banking asset in nine Caribbean countries. The background noise is that the company is moving its operation in regions which have little to no union representatives.
In addressing the issue, Noel reasoned that Scotiabank currently has Centres of Excellence in multiple Caribbean countries, including Jamaica. The bank's contact centre in Jamaica serves all of the countries in the English-speaking Caribbean, while in the Dominican Republic, Scotia's Centre of Excellence is focused on processing.
As for Trinidad and Tobago, Scotiabank currently operates a centre of excellence which focuses on collections.
“So each of those centres of excellence provides our business with the ability to more efficiently meet our operating needs and ultimately deliver benefits to our customers. I appreciate the concerns that the union raised and rightly raised; that's their role to protect workers. But we have always resolved our issues with the unions and we are confident that we will come to a mutually accepted solution on this particular issue,” Noel argued, adding that the concern with a country saying everything should be owned in the country could meet inefficiencies and hurt Jamaica.
“If we were to say jobs should only exist in the country where the work is being done, it would be that Jamaica's Contact Centre should not be serving multiple countries as we are doing now. Our contact centre serves Trinidad; Trinidad serves us from a collections perspective.”
He noted that if the bank tries to replicate a contact centre or administrative processing centre in every country it will lose efficiency, lose the advantage to scale and will not be able to apply technology to help the business become more efficient.
“One of our strengths as a regional player is we need to leverage operations in different markets to support the business. So we always ensure that we engage our union in appropriate dialogue when we are making decisions. There are times when we are going to have disagreements and I respect the right of the union to disagree, but with consultation, discussion and compromise, we have always been able to find a solution and I expect that to be the case here,” Noel said.
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India Cen bank governor Patel resigns, stuns markets Monday 10th December, 2018 – Reuters
Reserve Bank of India Governor Urjit Patel resigned for “personal reasons” on Monday, a decision analysts linked to intense pressure on the central bank from the government to ease regulatory curbs.
“On account of personal reasons, I have decided to step down from my current position effective immediately,” Patel said in a statement on the RBI website after financial markets had closed.
Analysts said the dispute between the RBI and the government could have been a major factor in Patel’s decision to resign.
“Quite clearly the resignation of Urjit Patel shows that nothing has changed,” Yashwant Sinha, a former finance minister and member of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, told CNBC-TV18.
“The resignation is a clear sign of the government trying to interfere with the working of the RBI,” he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has put pressure on the RBI to ease its regulatory curbs on some banks, increase liquidity and relax capital norms as it faces a slowing economy ahead of general elections due by May.
RBI Deputy Governor Viral Acharya said in a speech in October that undermining a central bank’s autonomy could be “catastrophic”, prompting a public dispute that added to the rift between the bank and government.
The Modi government has stacked the RBI’s 18-member board with its own nominees, in what critics say is a move to exert greater control over the central bank’s regulatory powers.
On Twitter, Modi praised Patel as a “thorough professional with impeccable integrity”.
“He steered the banking system from chaos to order and ensured discipline. Under his leadership, the RBI brought financial stability,” Modi tweeted.
“He leaves behind a great legacy. We will miss him immensely.”
TIMING SHOCK
There was speculation a month ago that Patel might quit over the government pressure, but the rumours eased after the government and central bank reached an uneasy truce ahead of an RBI board meeting last month.
Prosecutors indict Nissan, Ghosn Patel resigned before results from crucial state elections are declared on Tuesday and ahead of an RBI board meeting on Friday.
“The timing just before this week’s board meeting suggests that there’s still a huge gap between the government and RBI positions on key issues,” said A. Prasanna, head of research at ICICI Securities Primary Dealership in Mumbai.
“Markets will now hope that the government has a plan of action ready so as to restore calm.”
Patel’s resignation is expected to roil financial markets on Tuesday. Investors will want to know who is Patel’s replacement and how that will affect the direction of financial and monetary policy, analysts said.
“Markets certainly will be concerned unless there is further clarification that comes through tonight,” said R. Sivakumar, head of fixed income at Axis Mutual Fund.
“I think tomorrow and over the next few days we can expect heightened volatility in the markets,” he added.
Additional reporting by Abhirup Roy and Rajendra Jadhav in MUMBAI, Krishna V Kurup in BENGALURU; Editing by Malini Menon and Darren Schuettler
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May is said to withdraw parliamentary vote on her Brexit deal Monday 10th December, 2018 – Reuters
British Prime Minister Theresa May abruptly decided on Monday to pull a parliamentary vote on her Brexit deal, throwing Britain’s plan to leave the European Union up in the air on the eve of the vote, after repeated warnings from members of parliament she faced a rout.
While there was no immediate official announcement, the decision to halt the vote set for Tuesday was widely reported and not denied. Two sources told BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg the vote was being pulled. A Financial Times reporter said an official close to the cabinet had confirmed it.
The move thrusts the United Kingdom’s divorce from the European Union into chaos, with possible options including a disorderly Brexit with no deal, another referendum on EU membership or a last-minute renegotiation of May’s deal.
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About 250,000 without power in U.S. southeast after storm Monday 10th December, 2018 – Reuters
About 250,000 people in the U.S. southeast were without power on Monday and hundreds of flights were cancelled after a storm dumped 20 inches of snow and left one motorist dead.
The storm headed out to sea but the region will stay cold this week, the National Weather Service’s (NWS) Weather Prediction Centre said.
“This remains a dangerous system even as it moves off the coast,” said lead NWS forecaster Michael Schichtel. “It’s slow to move off the Carolinas but a saving grace is that it won’t hit New England.”
One motorist died outside Charlotte, North Carolina, on Sunday, and divers searched for a driver whose 18-wheeler was found in a river in Kinston, North Carolina, an NBC affiliate in Raleigh reported.
Motorists in north Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia can expect snow and ice on Monday.
More than 300,000 customers were without power in the Carolinas, Tennessee and Virginia, Poweroutage.us reported.
The storm prompted more than 1,000 flight cancellations at Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, the sixth-busiest airport in the country, and other airports across the region, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware, early Monday.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said on Sunday a state of emergency would remain in effect and the North Carolina National Guard had been activated to help with the response.
Additional reporting by Maria Caspani and Brendan O'Brien; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Big
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China says it has never heard of any country having security problem with Huawei Monday 10th December, 2018 – Reuters
China’s foreign ministry on Monday said it had never heard of any country having a security problem with Huawei Technologies Co Ltd [HWT.UL], after a top executive of the telecoms giant was arrested in Canada.
Ministry spokesman Lu Kang made the comment at a daily news briefing in Beijing.
Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou is fighting to be released on bail after she was arrested on Dec. 1 in Vancouver at the request of the United States.
Meng argued that she should be released on bail while awaiting an extradition hearing, citing fears for her health while incarcerated in Canada along with other factors, court documents have shown.
Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Writing by Christian Shepherd
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Japan's top three telcos to exclude Huawei, ZTE network equipment: Kyodo Monday 10th December, 2018 – Reuters
Japan’s big three telecom operators plan not to use current equipment and upcoming fifth-generation (5G) gear from China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd [HWT.UL] and ZTE Corp (0763.HK) (000063.SZ), Kyodo News reported on Monday.
The news, for which Kyodo did not cite sources, comes at a time of heightened scrutiny of Chinese tech firms by Washington and some prominent allies over ties to the Chinese government, driven by concerns they could be used by Beijing for spying. Last week sources told Reuters that Japan planned to ban government purchases of equipment from Huawei and ZTE to ensure strength in its defences against intelligence leaks and cyber-attacks.
A SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) spokesman said Japan’s third-largest telco was closely watching government policy and is continuing to consider its options. The amount of equipment in use from Chinese makers “is relatively small”, he said.
Japan’s top two telecommunications operators, NTT Docomo Inc (9437.T) and KDDI Corp (9433.T), said the firms had not made any decision yet.
Docomo does not use Huawei or ZTE network equipment, but it has partnered with Huawei on 5G trials. KDDI also does not use Huawei equipment in its “core” network, a spokeswoman said, adding it does not use any ZTE network equipment.
Asked to comment on the report, Huawei referred to a Japanese government policy document issued on Monday concerning cybersecurity during procurement. That document states the aim of a “free, fair and secure cyberspace”.
“These are ambitions Huawei shares and we look forward to continuing to work closely with customers in the Japanese market,” a Huawei spokesman said.
ZTE declined to comment on the report.
LOCKED OUT
Huawei has already been locked out of the U.S. market, and Australia and New Zealand have blocked it from building 5G networks amid concerns of its possible links with China’s government. Huawei has said Beijing has no influence over it.
Japan’s decision to keep it out would be another setback for Huawei, whose chief financial officer was recently arrested by Canadian officials for extradition to the United States.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said China has already had “communication” with Japan about the issue.
China has all along been asking Japan to provide an open, fair and non- discriminatory environment for Chinese companies operating in the country, and Beijing will continue to pay close attention to this issue, Lu told a daily news briefing.
“We believe that Chinese companies’ normal operating activities should not be treated in a discriminatory way,” he added.
World financial markets have been roiled since news of the arrest, on worries it could reignite a Sino-U.S. trade row that was only just showing signs of easing. Shares of SoftBank, which has the deepest relationship with Huawei among the big Japanese telcos, fell the most among the three top Japanese telcos on Monday, ending down 3.5 percent.
Industry sources said SoftBank would find it difficult to replace pre-existing Huawei network equipment that is designed for the company and not easily interchangeable. Docomo and KDDI shares fell around 1 percent, in a wider market .N225 that closed down 2 percent.
Earlier, SoftBank’s Japanese telecoms unit priced its IPO at an indicated 1,500 yen ($13.31) per share and said it will sell an extra 160 million shares to meet solid demand, raising about $23.5 billion in Japan’s biggest-ever IPO.
Reporting by Sam Nussey, Makiko Yamazaki and Yoshiyasu Shida; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Christopher Cushing, Himani Sarkar and Gareth Jones
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Income Tax Bill a boost, says FIU chief Monday 10th December, 2018 – Trinidad Express Newspapers
THE Income Tax (Amendment) Bill 2018 as it stands now will allow the authorities to gain access to taxpayer information for a specific purpose when investigations are conducted.
However, the effectiveness of any law can only be measured at the point of implementation, says Susan Francois, Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit of Trinidad and Tobago (FIU).
The FIU responded to questions from the Express on the effectiveness of the bill following the Government's move to remove the clauses which had required Opposition support. The bill, which had initially required a three fifths majority, was passed in the House of Representatives on November 30 after the changes were made. The Opposition voted against the bill.
Last week, the bill was debated and passed in the Senate with the support of the nine Independent senators and non-support of the six Opposition senators. Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar had indicated that the Opposition would consider the legality of the bill after the legislative process is completed.
The FIU stated that the bill was geared towards addressing obligations identified in Trinidad and Tobago's fourth Round Mutual Evaluation Report of the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF) 40 recommendations and tax information exchange agreement relative to the Global Forum. 'The bill as it stands does allow access to taxpayer information for a specific purpose when investigations are conducted by the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) and analysis by the Financial Intelligence Unit of taxpayer information to be more effective. The veracity/ effectiveness of any law can only be measured at the point of implementation,' stated the FIU.
T& T on a grey list
The Opposition had argued that Trinidad and Tobago was already blacklisted and other pieces of legislation were needed to also be examined along with the Income Tax Amendment Bill. Questioned on this, the FIU stated: 'Trinidad and Tobago is on what is referred to as a grey list. The FATF has identified Trinidad and Tobago as one of the jurisdictions with strategic Anti-Money Laundering (AML)/Counter Financing of Terrorism (CFT) deficiencies, but which have developed an action plan with the FATF and has made a high-level political commitment to work with the FATF and CFATF to strengthen the effectiveness of its AML/ CFT regime and address any related shortcomings.'
It noted that there has already been some fallout as mentioned during the special Joint Select Committee (JSC) meeting.
'Trinidad and Tobago is working assiduously to complete the expeditious implementation of action plans within the proposed time frame. This is in an effort to avoid additional counter-measures being taken against Trinidad and Tobago which could see us being placed on what is referred to as the 'blacklist', said the FIU.
Asked whether the 'watered down' bill makes it weaker in the pursuit of fraud or any financial crimes, the FIU responded: 'It is noted that after several amendments, the bill that has been passed is different from the initial bill. The provisions of the bill that required a special majority were deleted from the bill and the remainder which required a simple majority was passed.
'The FIU's mandate is to follow the money from the source and identify where it came from and its ultimate destination in order to determine whether it is legitimate earnings or whether it was derived from criminal conduct or whether it is intended for use by terrorists. Tax evasion is a form of criminal conduct that can lead to ML (money laundering) offences.
'In accordance with the bill that has been passed, the FIU is now able to request taxpayer information from the Board of Inland Revenue (BIR) for the purpose of conducting its analysis of the source of funds. This exchange of information would assist the FIU in producing more effective intelligence reports for law enforcement criminal conduct investigations.'
The FIU stated that money laundering and the financing of terrorism have been identified as global threats to the security of citizens and the economic integrity of the international financial system.
Combating money laundering
It said that FATF was formed to set international standards and promote effective implementation of measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and related threats. The FATF has issued 40 mandatory recommendations which must be implemented by each country. The FIU said that Recommendation 29 of the FATF's 40 recommendations requires each country to establish an FIU as an autonomous independent body to serve as a national centre for the collection, analysis and dissemination of financial intelligence and information.
Therefore, the role of an FIU is of central importance in the fight against money laundering and financing of terrorism.
Trinidad and Tobago has complied with Recommendation 29 through the establishment of the Financial Intelligence Unit of T& T.
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Audit: T&T's gas reserves have grown Sunday 9th December, 2018 – Trinidad Express Newspapers
According to the Ryder Scott 2017 audit, which was handed over to the Ministry of Energy in July this year, there was a 152 per cent replacement of the reserves produced in 2017.
The country's proved reserves moved from 9,917 billion cubic feet (bcf) in 2016 to 10,515 bcf in 2017; its probable reserves moved from 5,379 bcf in 2016 to 6,127 bcf in 2017; and its possible reserves moved from 4,722 bcf to 5,391 bcf.
The Ryder Scott audit looked at reserves and resources of energy companies which operate in T& T-bpTT, Shell, BHP, EOG, DeNovo, Perenco and open areas. The major change occurred in proved reserves.
'The production between the 2015 and 2016 evaluations was estimated at 1,214 bcf (includes production corrections), and the production between the 2016 and 2017 evaluations was estimated at 1,140 bcf. In 2016, the field extensions and discoveries and upward revisions of 530 bcf achieved 44 per cent proved reserves replacement. In 2017, the field extensions and discoveries and upward revisions of 1,738 bcf achieved 152 per cent proved reserves replacement,' the audit noted.
It noted in 2017, bpTT-operated assets had both upward and downward revisions, but the overall impact was a net upward revision.
According to the audit, here's how the revision happened: • The Trinidad Region Onshore Compression (TROC) Project became operational in the second quarter of 2017, and it resulted in reserve adjustments for fields located in the Mahogany and Amherstia hubs.
• The Cassia field reserves increased by 584 bcf, which was mainly due to the successful drilling and completion of the Banyan-2 well located in the TP61 western fault block area of mutual interest to bpTT and EOG.
• In September 2017, the Juniper field came on production and 73 bcf was added due to remapping. In March 2017, the Macadamia- 1 explorational well was successfully drilled and the results of this well added 135 bcf to the SEQB/Macadamia field.
• bpTT also had success with the Savannah exploration well and the results of this well added 348 bcf of proved reserves to bpTT's reserves.
The audit noted for EOG-operated assets, four new wells were put in production on the Osprey field, and these wells added 120 bcf.
'Also, five new wells were drilled in the Sercan field area and the Toucan-8 volumes were moved to Sercan field. The net impact of changes in the Toucan and Sercan field was an addition of 123 bcf to EOG's resources,' it said.
In other developments, it noted in 2017, Shell acquired the Manatee field, Chevron's only asset in Trinidad.
'Shell also acquired Centrica's assets in Block 22 and NCMA-22. In 2016, De Novo acquired Centrica's assets in Blocks 1a and 1b. Perenco also acquired the assets which were operated by Repsol. Besides these acquisitions, there were no other changes that impacted proved reserves,' it said.
In his contribution to the budget debate in October, Energy Minister Franklin Khan said for the first time since 2004, the country's gas reserves had grown according to the Ryder Scott report.
Khan had said every year since 2004, the country was finding less than it was consuming, but he credited the changing figures to the gas initiatives championed by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley.
The country's gas production is expected to move from 3.8 billion cubic feet (bcf) in 2018 to 4.09 bcf by 2022.
One of those initiatives was the securing of a deal to tap into Venezuela's Dragon gas field.
Khan noted that Venezuela has the sixth largest gas reserves in the world, but had an undeveloped gas infrastructure.
He said the 'symbiotic' relationship would be realised by tapping into T& T's modern gas infrastructure.
'The natural gas sector has turned around in a big way,' he had said.
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NIF seeks two Republic directors Sunday 9th December, 2018 – Trinidad Express Newspapers
THE GOVERNMENT has nominated two people to represent the interests of the National Investment Fund (NIF) on the board of Republic Financial Holdings Ltd, the largest commercial bank in T& T.
The nominees of the NIF to serve on the Republic board are tax consultant and recently appointed Angostura director Michal Andrews and Waltnel Sosa, a member of the Cabinet- appointed Sandals negotiating team, whose Linkedin profile describes him as an independent advisor.
The request by NIF to Republic Bank came in a December 4 letter from NIF chairman Vishnu Dhanpaul to the corporate secretary of the RFHL, Kimberly Erriah-Ali.
Dhanpaul is the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Finance.
In the letter, Dhanpaul noted that NIF holds 42,475,362 RFHL shares, equal to 26.1 per cent of the bank and he pointed out that section 118 of the Companies Act allows a shareholder representing not less than five per cent of the shares of a company to nominate a director to that company's board. 'In this regard, the board of NIF nominates Mr Waltnel Sosa and Mrs Michal Andrews, whose curriculum vitae are attached, as directors to the board of Republic Financial Holdings Ltd,' wrote Dhanpaul.
In a newspaper advertisement published yesterday, RFHL said that it had revised its management proxy circular and proxy form to include the nominations of Andrews and Sosa. The shareholders of RFHL are due to vote on the appointment of directors at the bank's annual general meeting on December 17.
If elected, Andrews and Sosa will serve for three years, according to the notice, which is dated December 7. The revised proxy form, which is on the RFHL website, indicates that the two nominees for directors would be elected 'for a term expiring at the close of the first annual meeting following this appointment.'
Among other Republic directors who are up for re-election at the upcoming annual meeting are the bank's long-serving chairman, Ronald Harford, Petrotrin consultant Robert Riley, Dawn Callender and attorney Ian Benjamin, who was recently appointed as senior counsel.
NIF is not the first state entity to seek representation on the Republic Bank board.
The Sunday Express reported in June that the National Insurance Board of Trinidad and Tobago (NIB) had been trying to get a seat on the Republic Bank board since 2006. When the NIB made its first request for a Republic director in 2006, the public pension manager held 10.58 per cent of the bank. In 2009, when it made its second request, NIB held 15.15 per cent of Republic. At its third request in 2011, NIB owned 18.12 per cent of the bank. As at September 30, 2018, which is the end of the RFHL financial year, NIB owned 29,944,942 shares in the bank representing an 18.42 per cent stake in the financial holding company.
Apart the NIF's 26.1 per cent stake in RFHL, the Government owns another 40,072,299 Republic Bank shares, representing a 24.66 per cent stake in the bank, through the CLICO Investment Fund.
In 2012, the former People's Partnership government used that block of Republic Bank shares to capitalise the Clico Trust Corporation, which established the CIF, a publicly traded closed-end mutual fund that was distributed to CLICO policyholders who had assigned their policies to the Government.
The former administration, however, waived the Government's voting rights to the 24.66 per cent block of RBL shares.
In the CIF's deed of trust, under the rubric, Rights Attached to Deposited Property, at section 11.1: 'Except for a Special Transaction which requires an Extraordinary Resolution, all rights of voting conferred by the RBL shares in so far as it related to any business at annual or special meetings of the shareholders of RBL, shall be exercised by RBL via a proxy granted by the Trustee to RBL or its representative. The Trustee shall have no discretion in this regard.'
NIF's attempt to gain seats on the Republic Bank board comes as the financial institution is in the middle of the most ambitious and potentially transformational growth- through- acquisition phase in its 181-year history.
On November 27, Republic announced that it was acquiring Scotiabank operations in nine Caribbean countries for US$123 million. That acquisition, if completed, is expected to add US$2.5 billion in assets and US$34 million in net income to the Port of Spain-based bank. Republic is also in the middle of acquiring Cayman National Bank for about US$200 million. If both transactions are completed, Republic's assets would automatically increase by 43 per cent to US$15 million.
For the financial year ending September 30, 2018, the bank declared profit after tax of $1.32 billion (US$198 million).
In an exclusive interview on Business Edge tonight at 7.30pm, RFHL's president, Nigel Baptiste, said if both transactions are approved T& T will go from contributing 70 per cent of the bank's revenue to about 50 per cent.
The Business Edge episode also has comments from five Caribbean prime ministers on the acquisition by RFHL.
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NCB up by 12.2% Sunday 9th December, 2018 – Trinidad Express Newspapers
LAST week saw 2,113,145 shares traded on the first-tier market a decrease of 16.27 per cent on the previous week's total of 2,523,811 shares crossing the floor.
The value of shares traded was down by 65.55 per cent to $19,605,704.51 from the previous week's value of $56,911,919.46.
JMMB Group Ltd (JMMB) was the volume leader for the week capturing 33.55 per cent of the market activity or 708,877 shares traded. JMMB has been in the top three for the past four weeks. For the second consecutive week, Sagicor Financial Corporation Limited (SFC) was in second place with 20.16 per cent or 425,914 shares traded followed by FirstCaribbean International Bank Limited (FCI) with 14.10 per cent or 297,857 shares traded.
12 stocks advancing
The indices ended the week in a positive territory. The Composite Index increased by 2.15 per cent or 27.43 points to close at 1,305.52. The All Trinidad and Tobago Index rose by 0.35 per cent or 5.94 points to end at 1,697.04. The Cross Listed Index closed at 123.56, up by 5.80 per cent or 6.77 points and the Small and Medium Enterprise Index closed at 100.00. This week there were 12 stocks advancing and six stocks declining, while two stocks are at their 52-week high and six stocks at their 52-week low.
The major advance was NCB Financial Group Ltd (NCB), up 12.20 per cent or $0.95 to close the week at $8.74. In second place was Massy Holdings Limited (MASSY) with an increase of 4.21 per cent or $1.86 to end at $46.00, followed by FCI up 3.11 per cent or $0.25 to close at $8.30.
Major decline
SFC was the major decline, down 12.00 per cent or $1.26 to end at $9.24. For the third consecutive week One Caribbean Media Limited (OCM) was in second place, down by 4.46 per cent or $0.49 to close at $10.50, its 52- week low. In third place was National Flour Mills Ltd (NFM), down by 1.79 per cent or $0.03 to end at $1.65. There was no activity on the second-tier market this week.
On the TTD mutual fund market, 196,460 CLICO Investment Fund (CIF) units traded with a value of $3,962,614.00. CIF's unit price closed at $20.18, a decrease of 0.10 per cent or $0.02. Also, 200 units in Calypso Macro Index Fund (CALYP) traded with a value of $3.162.00. CALYP's unit price ended at $15.81, down by 0.25 per cent or $0.04.
CinemaOne Ltd (CINE 1) on the Small and Medium Enterprise Market, closed at $10.00 with no shares traded this week.
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Excess liquidity up by $1.7b Sunday 9th December, 2018 – Trinidad Express Newspapers
OMO's and Treasury Bills
• OMO maturities totalled $1,001 million last week compared to $530 million the previous week.
• OMO maturities for this week total $300 million. • Treasury Bill Issue Number 1588, amounting to $50 million with a tenor of 91 days, will be issued on December 12, 2018, will mature on March 13, 2019.
• Treasury Bill Issue Number 1589, amounting to $75 million with a tenor of 91 days, will be issued on December 27, 2018, will mature on February 27, 2019.
Liquidity
• The commercial banks closed last week with an excess reserve of $4.8 billion compared to $3.1 billion last week, up by $1.7 billion.
United States Treasury Bills
• The yield on ten-year notes opened at 2.97 per cent and closed last week at 2.85 per cent, down 12 basis points (bps).
• The yield on two-year notes opened at 2.82 per cent and closed last week at 2.71 per cent, down 11 basis points (bps).
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Diane Hadad: Businesses in Tobago suffering seabridge woes Saturday 8th December, 2018 – Trinidad Express Newspapers
TOBAGO'S business community is now convinced there is no end to their suffering, as troubles have hit the inter-island ferry service just ahead of Christmas and one of the island's busiest nights, Old Year's.
President of the Inter isle Transportation Committee of Tobago Chamber of Commerce, Diane Hadad, is now seeking 'pro bono' legal services for business owners who have exhausted resources-and taken major hits to profits-in trying to cope with unpredictable sea transportation between Tobago and Trinidad for the past two years.
Some businesses have closed and their owners are facing eviction, even from their homes, and 'have no money' to seek redress via the courts for Government's failure to secure a reliable seabridge, Hadad said.
Speaking on TV6's Morning Edition yesterday, Hadad addressed the breakdown on Sunday of the T& T Spirit passenger ferry, which resulted in the Galleons Passage, also a passenger ferry, having to take on displaced passengers, goods and small vehicles.
Concern was also expressed about a report yesterday that falling aluminium panels on the Galleons Passage had caused damage to several vehicles, which was confirmed yesterday by Works and Transport minister, Rohan Sinanan.
Hadad has also again voiced concern as to the suitability of the Passage for the T& T seabridge, saying the vessel was clearly not equipped for the sometimes-rough waters between the islands.
Hadad said it was difficult to label the root of the ongoing transportation problems, and wondered aloud whether at this stage it was due to incompetence.
She had earlier stated on the programme that it was felt by the Tobago business community that the seabridge troubles were, at one point, deliberate.
Tobago business owners are now running on proverbial fumes, however, while the banks are doing what they can to accommodate but are also sticking to their formulae, Hadad noted.
As a result, Tobago is seeing a lot of bounced cheques, goods on credit and foreclosures, she said.
She also dismissed any suggestion by Government that Tobagonians were not suffering, saying, 'It is not true.'
Hadad said the situation was now being viewed as almost 'unfixable', and inter-island travel via the seabridge was now being treated as an emergency option. This has had a hugely negative impact on domestic holidaying on the island, she said.
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UHS debt haunting GoB Saturday 8th December, 2018 – Amandala
Yesterday morning, attorneys representing the Belize Bank (Eamon Courtenay, S.C.) and the Government of Belize’s Queen’s Counsel, Doctor Ben Juratowitch, along with their assistants, filed into the courtroom of Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin, where the bank submitted an application for an enforcement order that would allow it to collect over $95 million that the government of Belize was ordered to pay the bank in rulings by multiple high courts, which had ruled that a 2004 government guarantee for a $33.5 million loan to Universal Health Services (UHS) was a legal contract.
Submissions by both sides continued all day yesterday and today, Thursday, and when the hearing concluded shortly before 5:00 p.m. today, Courtenay spoke to reporters outside of the courtroom. “I think it’s a very simple and straightforward case. The Caribbean Court of Justice has issued a certificate and the Caribbean Court of Justice has said it is a judgment and the Crown Proceedings Act makes provision for us to enforce where the government refuses to pay, and the government has refused to pay,” he said.
Courtenay explained that Chief Justice Benjamin wanted to know what the government’s response to the bank’s proposal to settle the debt was. “The government came with what I would describe was a disingenuous position, and I told the court the government was not respectful of the court. It was not frank with the court,” Courtenay said. “It was not honest with the court and I hope the Chief Justice treats their answers with the contempt that it deserves,” he remarked.
Courtenay said that the bank has used monies of depositors. “Whatever politics the government wants to play with this, it is depositors’ money that has been lent, and where the court says pay back this money, the government must pay it back,” he said.
Courtenay said the litigation is at an end, and the government should be honourable, be respectful and perform their duty.
“I hope that between now and the 11 January when the decision is given, that the government will take what I would describe as a refined and enlightened view, and do the right and proper thing and not force the Chief Justice to have to decide whether he’s going to have to make an order against the Minister of Finance. It is unnecessary,” Courtenay said.
The attorney for the Belize Bank explained that his clients “have said that they are prepared to sit down and accept payment in treasury notes, to accept payment over time.”
Courtenay was asked if the bank’s offer was formally made at the executive level or if it was only made in court.
“I was a little taken aback to hear the government saying that this is something that is new. We wrote them about that coming up to a year, saying that we are prepared to do that a long time ago,” Courtenay said.
Courtenay said that Financial Secretary, Joseph Waight, gave evidence yesterday saying that “we can receive payment by treasury notes in a way that would not affect government finances. I think government was taken aback by his candour and his honesty with the court, so that this matter can be settled. Mr. Waight’s evidence is very clear; it can be settled in a way without being prejudicial to the commitment that government has made to the bondholders and others.”
It was suggested to Courtenay that the bank cannot seize the assets of the country nor imprison the Prime Minister.
Courtenay replied that the Prime Minister “is not above the law.”
Courtenay said whatever personal feelings exist between Mr. Barrow and Mr. Ashcroft, when a matter goes to the court, which is independent and impartial and hears both sides and “you lose, you lose”. Courtenay said that the laws of the country dictate that the decisions of the court must be honoured. He said that the decision was made by the CCJ—that the Belize Bank must be paid. “The courts have spoken and we must honour the decision of the court. If not, the heavens will fall,” Courtenay said.
Courtenay was asked what the quantum of the debt is at the present time.
“That is a very good question. I don’t know, but it’s close to 100 million. Interest continues to accrue at 6 percent. How does the people of Belize benefit from a debt that interest continues to accrue on, which everybody knows has to be paid. Is that in the public interest? Clearly not,” Mr. Ashcroft’s attorney said.
On Friday, August 31, 2018, the members of the governing United Democratic Party (UDP) voted down a money bill that was introduced to the House in January by Prime Minister Dean Barrow to satisfy the Universal Health Services loan guarantee to the Belize Bank, which government was ordered by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in November 2017 to pay.
The Opposition People’s United (PUP) Party’s members of the House walked out of the sitting, before the vote was cast.
In June 2018, the bank had applied to the CCJ for an enforcement order, but the CCJ did not rule on the bank’s enforcement application because the matter had not yet been taken to the House of Representatives and voted on.
During yesterday’s hearing, Courtenay questioned Financial Secretary Joseph Waight. One of the questions that Courtenay asked Waight had to do with a proposal advanced by the bank that it was prepared to work out a payment schedule with government to settle the debt.
Waight did not immediately answer the question before he left the witness stand. Chief Justice Benjamin told him the court required that he answer the question.
When he left the hearing, Waight told reporters, “The Chief Justice asked me to consult with my authorities. That is what I will do. I can’t speculate, predict what the outcome of that discussion will be.”
Waight was asked if it was his understanding that no discussion has taken place in consideration of the offer made by the bank.
Waight explained: “The offer was made some months ago to the AG, who is the government’s legal representative. I am sure it was discussed in Cabinet but nothing came my way to say that the offer was either accepted or not.”
Waight then added, “Obviously, it was not accepted because we have not made the payment.”
Would it be prudent for the Government to accept this offer, Waight was asked.
“I can’t answer that,” Waight said. “I mean, basically what you try to do is try to settle all your obligations. It is a constitutional matter. I can’t really talk.”
Waight was also asked if settling the debt by instalment or treasury notes would affect the country’s surplus, as the Central Bank had previously said.
“The Central Bank recorded a stock, treating the award as a debt. We look at the flow side of things. We classify the debt when we actually have to pay it. It’s like a loan agreement. We passed a loan agreement for seven million dollars. That doesn’t mean we have incurred seven million dollars in debt. What we do is when we disburse it our debt goes up. In our classification, when we make a payment we fund the debt. We may have to borrow money. From our point of view, we don’t incur the debt until we actually fund it,” Waight disclosed.
While the court instructed Financial Secretary Waight to discuss the bank’s offer with his superior, the Prime Minister, the Attorney General, Michael Peyrefitte, is of the view that the government has already decided on the UHS debt and this decision will be communicated to the court tomorrow, Thursday.
AG Peyrefitte told reporters, “We have an answer, but I would not want to tell the media before the lawyers have gotten a chance to tell the Chief Justice, out of respect. As per usual, I don’t want to discuss the merits of a case that is in process. I think it is very disrespectful to the court. I understand your need to ask the question but I beg of you to understand the position that I can’t discuss it at this point.”
Peyrefitte confirmed, however, that the matter was discussed by Cabinet.
“It was discussed there and like I said, we have an answer. We believe that our position was made clear a long time ago,” Peyrefitte insisted.
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Govt seeks contractors to redevelop ESHS Saturday 8th December, 2018 – Virgin Islands News Online
The administration of the Virgin Islands (VI) is inviting tenders for the redevelopment of Elmore Stoutt High School, according to a press statement, issued by the Government Information Service (GIS), on Friday, December 7, 2018.
The released noted Procurement Coordinator, Ms Ishma Rhymer, pointing out that interested persons must submit Certificates of Gooding in respect to social security and taxes including payroll taxes and property taxes, trade licence and National Health Insurance.
She added that consideration will be limited to firms or joint ventures of firms which are legally incorporated in eligible countries which are member countries of the Caribbean Development Bank.
Ms Rhymer also encouraged tenderers to review the Tender Notice in detail to ensure that they comply with all guidelines and deadlines outlined in the notice.
She said bidding documents are available electronically upon request at procurement @gov.vg from Monday, December 10, 2018, while the pre- tender meeting is scheduled for Friday, December 21, 2018.
Interested tenderers should submit one original and two copies and a flash drive containing the bidder’s documents in the original bid.
The original bid should be placed in another sealed envelope and marked “Original” and the additional copies placed in another sealed envelope and marked “Copies”.
Both envelopes should be placed in an outer envelope marked “Tender for the School Redevelopment Works of Elmore Stoutt High School in BVI” and addressed to The Chairman, Central Tenders Board, Ministry of Finance, Procurement Unit, Qwomar Trading Building #2, 2nd Floor.
All tenders must be deposited in the Tender Box no later than 10:00 AM on Tuesday, January 22, 2019. Tenders will be publicly opened at the Procurement Unit on Tuesday, January 22, 2019 at noon.
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Two Charged in Panama Papers Investigations in the US Used the British Virgin Islands in their Scheme Friday 7th December, 2018 – Caribbean 360
Four people have been charged in an indictment unsealed this week in the United States, with wire fraud, tax fraud, money laundering and other offences in connection with the so-called Panama Papers scandal.
And two of them – Ramses Owens and Dirk Brauer –, according to the US Justice Department, used the British Virgin Islands in their scheme.
Owens, 50, a Panamanian citizen; Brauer, 54, a German citizen; Richard Gaffey, 74, an American; and Harald Joachim Von Der Goltz, an 81-year- old German, have all been charged for their alleged roles in the decades-long criminal scheme perpetrated by Mossack Fonseca & Co., a Panamanian-based global law firm, and related entities.
According to the indictment, from at least in or about 2000 through in or about 2017, Owens and Brauer conspired with others to help US taxpayer clients of Mossack Fonseca conceal assets and investments, and the income generated by those assets and investments, from the IRS through fraudulent, deceitful, and dishonest means. To conceal their clients’ assets and income from the IRS, they allegedly worked to establish and manage opaque offshore trusts and undeclared bank accounts on behalf of US taxpayers who were clients of Mossack Fonseca.
It is alleged that Owens and Brauer marketed, created, and serviced sham foundations and shell companies formed under the laws of countries such as Panama, Hong Kong, and the British Virgin Islands, to conceal from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and others the ownership by US taxpayers of accounts established at overseas banks, as well as the income generated in those accounts.
As structured by Mossack Fonseca, the sham foundations typically “owned” the shell companies that nominally held the undeclared assets on behalf of the US taxpayer clients of Mossack Fonseca. The names of Mossack Fonseca’s clients generally did not appear anywhere on the incorporation paperwork for the sham foundations or related shell companies, although the clients in fact beneficially owned, and had complete access to, the assets of those sham entities and accounts.
In furtherance of the scheme, and in exchange for additional fees, Owens and Brauer allegedly provided support to clients who had purchased the sham foundations and related shell companies by providing corporate meeting minutes, resolutions, mail forwarding, and signature services. Moreover, they are alleged to have purposefully established the bank accounts in locations with strict bank secrecy laws, which impeded the ability of the United States to obtain bank records for the accounts.
Owens and Brauer also allegedly instructed US taxpayer clients of Mossack Fonseca about how to repatriate funds to the United States from their offshore bank accounts in a manner designed to keep the undeclared bank accounts concealed. Among other things, they instructed clients to use debit cards and fictitious sales to repatriate their funds covertly, the indictment alleges.
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Major changes coming to telecoms sector in Dominica Friday 7th December, 2018 – Dominica News Online
Telecommunications Minister, Kelver Darroux, has expressed confidence in the work that has been done by the ECTEL Council of Ministers in moving forward the telecommunications sector in ECTEL member states.
Darroux, who is the current chairman of ECTEL recently chaired the 38th meeting of the ECTEL Council of Ministers meeting which took place in St. Vincent & the Grenadines.
According to him, a number of decisions were taken to advance the work being done in the telecoms sector including the approval of a budget for 2018/19, in excess of 11 million dollars, which will be provided to ECTEL and the National Telecommunication Regulatory Commissions (NTRC’s) in the respective jurisdictions of ECTEL. These are Dominica, St. Kitts, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, St. Lucia and Grenada.
Darroux explained that the ECTEL Treaty which was signed by Roosevelt Douglas, the then Prime Minister of Dominica in 2000, makes provision for changes to be made to the Treaty.
“The Council of Ministers at the 38th meeting took a decision to move ahead to make amendments to that Treaty and all the Prime Ministers of the ECTEL member states have signed on so as to have the necessary amendments made and to go before parliament in the first quarter of 2019,” he said.
He continued, “So once it gets the necessary parliamentary approval as is required by law, then it will take its legislative effect in the member states. One of the changes that will be taking place in that amendment is to ensure that the service providers will continue to allow for open entry market and competition in the various jurisdictions as well as to change the language in the treaty.”
“We are now moving ahead to deal with the number portability which deals with consumers having to keep same numbers even if they change service provider from FLOW to DIGCEL or vice versa,” he stated.
He said there will be a “soft launch” on Monday December 17, 2018, followed by the official launch with the new measure taking effect on Monday, 14th January, 2019. He said ECTEL and the NTRC’s will now fine tune the proposed legislation to first deal with mobile and then fixed line.
“The roaming rates will also be dealt with by the ECTEL Council of Ministers at its meeting in Dominica on March 14th, 2019,” Darroux remarked.
“The forecast for the telecommunications sector is bright, particularly in Dominica, where we will see some major infrastructural upgrade and rebuilding of the network,” the ECTEL Chairman declared. “The government of Dominica has entered into a 15 year contract for providing telecommunications services with DIGICEL which will see a complete overhaul and rebuilding of the current network and infrastructure. That contract is expected to be signed later this month or early next year, 2019.”
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Dominica and Airbnb sign agreement to promote tourism and home sharing on the island Friday 7th December, 2018 – Dominica News Online
The Discover Dominica Authority and Airbnb (a home sharing platform), have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to cooperate on areas of common interest. By promoting the destination to a wide range of travellers through the platform, the agreement will ensure home sharing continues to thrive as a healthy addition to the local tourism sector, helping support economic growth and benefit Dominicans.
“Discover Dominica Authority is pleased to partner with Airbnb to couple the Nature Island experience with home sharing as an accommodation option in the destination,” stated Colin Piper, Director of Tourism and CEO of the Discover Dominica Authority. “The shared economy space allows hundreds of Dominicans to supplement their income while providing diversification in the Dominica experience to visiting guests. Many lasting memories are forged by travel, and home sharing allows visitors to experience the destination like a local while staying within safe communities. We look forward to a mutually beneficial relationship with Airbnb moving forward.”
Hundreds of locals list their homes on Airbnb, with a typical Dominican host earning approximately $1,500 USD annually. This modest but important source of income helps support families on the island. Over 2,000 guests stayed in Airbnb listings in Dominica between July 2017 and July 2018, with guests staying an average of 4 days, longer than average for Caribbean visitors. This activity has allowed local hosts to earn supplemental income and offer guests an authentic Dominican experience.
The mystique of the mountainous island nation draws both curious adventure seekers and those desiring a relaxing respite. Natural hot springs and tropical rainforests create the backdrop for unforgettable experiences such as river tubing, whale and dolphin watching and even volcano snorkelling.
“Airbnb is proud to partner with Dominica, we look forward to working with the Discover Dominica Authority to help drive tourism to this stunning destination brimming with unique, memorable experiences,” said Carlos Munoz, Airbnb Campaign Manager, Public Policy and Communications for The Caribbean and Central America. “Our platform helps to increase the number of tourists who visit Dominica, and diversify Dominica’s tourism sector; bringing guests to areas that have not traditionally benefited from tourism and empowering hundreds of Dominicans through the economic gains home sharing provides.”
The new partnership between Airbnb and Dominica comes on the heels of the news that Airbnb and the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) have strengthened their regional partnership, and is yet another pillar in Airbnb’s architecture aiming to drive tourism in the Caribbean. In recent years, Airbnb has signed collaboration or voluntary tax collection agreements with 14 countries in the region.
Airbnb will continue to work with governments to help stimulate inclusive, sustainable tourism throughout the Caribbean. As the tourism industry in Dominica grows, Airbnb, through its healthy tourism initiatives, aims to encourage environmental sustainability while empowering local people and their communities to be the primary beneficiaries of this economic growth.
About Airbnb
Founded in 2008, Airbnb’s mission is to create a world where people can belong through healthy travel that is local, authentic, diverse, inclusive and sustainable. Airbnb uniquely leverages technology to economically empower millions of people around the world to unlock and monetize their spaces, passions and talents to become hospitality entrepreneurs. Airbnb’s accommodation marketplace provides access to 5+ million unique places to stay in more than 81,000 cities and 191 countries. With Experiences, Airbnb offers unprecedented access to local communities and interests through 15,000 unique, handcrafted activities run by hosts across 1,000+ markets around the world. Airbnb’s people-to-people platform benefits all its stakeholders, including hosts, guests, employees and the communities in which it operates.
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First 38 homes handed over in Petite Savanne Resettlement Sunday 9th December, 2018 – Dominica News Online
Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit, has said that the resettlement project at Bellevue Chopin for Petite Savanne residents who were displaced by Tropical Storm Erika in 2015, was built with a sense of community in mind.
The prime minister was speaking at the handing over of the first 38 residential units on Friday, December 7, 2018.
“We did not want to just build buildings, homes, what we call homes. We wanted to build a community, to make you feel part of a community. Now, we didn’t just take you from Petite Savanne and put you somewhere in a house; you can’t turn left, you can’t right,” Skerrit said.
He said a number of factors were taken into consideration in designing the homes.
“Recognizing that in Petite Savanne, there are children who are taking care of their parents. So, we built duplexes, so, the children upstairs, the parents downstairs. You see what I’m talking about and to do this, you have to know your people because we were building for people who we know,” the prime minister explained.
He continued, “A brand new health centre will be constructed with nurses quarters, a basketball court, a playground for the children, a brand new playing field, a market for the sale of fresh produce, agricultural produce and a massive commercial plaza where the barber and the coiffeurs, you know, the hair stylists, the supermarkets, all can have their businesses and take advantage of the economy and the opportunities here.”
Skerrit disclosed that an additional 130 residential units are expected to be handed over in January 2019 with another 34 in February and 81 more in April. He said the final 80 will be handed over in June bringing the total to 353 housing units in the Petite Savanne Resettlement Project.
The project, which will cost in excess of $100 million dollars, is being constructed by Montreal Management Consultants Est. (MMCE) Ltd of Canada.
Skerrit said the project is being financed entirely by The Citizenship by Investment Programme (CBI), however, the developer provided the funding upfront to start the project.
“He assisted us in paying for the lands and he signed contracts and started work and we did not pay him one dollar not until after about 10 months after the project started,” Skerrit revealed.
He thanked Dr. Haiden and MMCE for their “great partnership.”
Dr. Haiden had said in a release issued by MMCE in June 2017, that MMCE was developing the community without the use of any of CBI money prior to completion, describing it as a “calculated risk”.
“Our plan is to recover the costs via our own direct sales of citizen by investment cases via our firms. We were the only company that had the initiative, guts and resolve to front the money for this project,” he said.
He gave the assurance that MMCE “will continue and complete the project irrelevant of any sales secured.”
Haiden also said then that the government of Dominica carries no risks “as it would render CBI concession upon the full completion of phases of the project.”
Prime Minister Skerrit exhorted the beneficiaries of the residential units to care for them.
“It is not because you are not paying for them, you must not appreciate them like you went to the bank and get a loan to do so. I want you to care for them.”
He revealed that the government intends to build a similar project for Grand Bay residents, comprising 68 residential units, on state lands located close to the Pierre Charles Secondary School.
“That housing development that will commence very soon opposite the Pierre Charles Secondary School, will be called the Nurse Charles Housing Development,” Skerrit declared.
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Healthy fiscal position leads to payment of unprecedented third consecutive “double salary” Friday 7th December, 2018 – SKN Vibes
The strong fiscal position of the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis has led to the decision by the Team Unity administration to give an extra month’s pay, popularly known as a “double salary,” in December to all civil servants for an unprecedented third consecutive year.
Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris, made the announcement during a national address on ZIZ Television today, Thursday, December 6, 2018.
“The Cabinet of Ministers, of which I have the privilege of being the Chairman, has considered and determined, based on the excellent assessment of our fiscal health, that Government employees will receive, for a third year in a row, a double salary on December 14th,” Prime Minister Harris said.
The “double salary” payment will apply to all employees of the Federal Government, including the Government Auxiliary Employees (GAE) or non-establishment workers, persons on STEP, pensioners, faculty of the Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College (CFBC) and employees of the Nevis Island Administration (NIA).
“Statutory Corporations such as SKELEC, SCASPA, NHC, the Tourism Authority, etc. have also been encouraged to make payments to their employees,” Prime Minister Harris added.
In his address, the Prime Minister indicated that the economic and fiscal house of the country “is at its all-time best” and that “the prospects for our economy in 2019, and the medium term, are for continued positive above-average economic growth.”
“This will be the 4th year in a row under our administration that the country would have recorded positive growth,” Dr. Harris said. “The healthy fiscal position of the Government indicates that we have achieved the best ever debt-to-GDP ratio over the past twenty-five (25) years,” Prime Minister Harris added.
St. Kitts and Nevis achieved the milestone of becoming the very first independent state in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) to bring its debt-to-GDP ratio in line with the international benchmark of 60 percent – 12 years ahead of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) target date of 2030.
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With the first-time arrival of the MSC Preziosa, St. Kitts adds another ship to its packed cruise itinerary in the 2018/2019 cruise season Friday 7th December, 2018 – SKN Vibes
The MSC Preziosa, today, December 06, made its inaugural visit to the shores of St. Kitts and Nevis, making this the 4th first-time call for the 2018/2019 cruise season, which started in October.
During a brief ceremony to welcome the cruise liner, Minister of Tourism, the Honourable Lindsay Grant told the ship’s captain, Corrado Iaconis, that the country is appreciative of its first-time visit.
The cruise line has been expanding rapidly. Fifteen ships are currently in its fleet and an additional 10 are set to be launched shortly. The ship can accommodate 4,345 passengers and around 1,388 crew members. This is one of the biggest ships that the MSC has christened.
Minister Grant said that, with the installation of the second cruise pier at Port Zante, other MSC ships are welcome to visit and experience the island.
“We are building a brand-new berthing facility that will take two of the largest ships in the world side-by-side. So we are trying to improve our facilities to ensure that when the MSC docks in the shores of our wonderful island, its ships will not only dock at a fantastic port, but St. Kitts will welcome them generally to our fantastic island,” said the minister.
The tourism minister said that St. Kitts will be welcoming this cruise year (2018/2019) 1.2 million cruise passengers with about 447 calls. He said that he hopes that the passengers from the MSC Preziosa will enjoy the island.
“So we are really growing and we have a lot to offer,” he said. “Really, we have three main things: our history, our culture and our people. We hope that your guests are able to interact with them in order for you to understand the beauty of the country is in the heart of the people.”
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$500 monthly stipend for households earning less than $3,000 commences December 21, 2018 Friday 7th December, 2018 – SKN Vibes
The payout of the $500 monthly stipend for households earning less than $3,000 per month in St. Kitts and Nevis, under the Team Unity Government’s historic Poverty Alleviation Programme commences on Friday, December 21, 2018.
“This is a major development – one of the best social development initiatives to be implemented over the past 30 years, and fulfils a promise made by our Team Unity Administration in the campaign leading up to the historic General Elections in 2015,” said Prime Minister and Minister responsible for Sustainable Development, Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris in an address to the nation today, Thursday, December 6, 2018.
The Poverty Alleviation Programme is designed to help disadvantaged households meet some of their essential living expenses and, in so doing, improve their standard of living.
Prime Minister Harris has on several occasions encouraged persons who will benefit from the social assistance initiative to use the $500 monthly stipend wisely.
Furthermore, Dr. Harris expressed great appreciation to the staff of the Ministries of Sustainable Development and Social Development in the Federal Government, the Nevis Island Administration, and the Caribbean Credit Card Corporation (4Cs) “on the work they have done together to implement this most significant safety net for the poor and disadvantaged in our communities.”
The Poverty Alleviation Programme was implemented in three phases, starting with the data collection drive in August. This was followed by an investigative and assessment stage during which the data collected was verified to determine whether individuals who applied for the assistance were genuinely eligible.
The last phase – the commencement of the monthly stipend to qualifying households – begins on December 21, 2018.
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NIA signs agreement with Northern Pointe Development Ltd for construction of Wyndham Grand resort Friday 7th December, 2018 – SKN Vibes
Hon. Mark Brantley, Premier of Nevis, believes the people of Nevis are looking forward to the start of construction works with great anticipation for a major hotel development at Potworks in the Parish of St. James'.
His comment came moments after an agreement was signed between the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) and Northern Pointe Development Ltd. at Cabinet Room on December 05, 2018, paving the way for the construction of a proposed Wyndham Grand resort at Long Haul Bay on Nevis.
“This has been a very long process. It has been, I think, a lot of back and forth as we have tried to come to an agreement as to concessions and the like that both parties can live with. I feel that we have tried to negotiate in good faith, perhaps it has taken longer than it should have but nevertheless we are here today, and we are happy that we are able to sign this.
“It’s a good, if you will, advance Christmas present that the people of Nevis can see some forward movement in relation to this very significant project…I think the people of Nevis are looking forward with great anticipation to the start of this project,” he said.
The Premier also expressed hope that the project would come to fruition.
“I hope I’m not presumptuous because I have been told that by the first quarter of next year we should see some movement. We have signed a lot of these agreements and so it is important for us to move it off the table and on to the ground at Potworks so that is why we are investing.
“We are willing to be flexible in terms of various concessions that have been sought but the objective really is to get the project moving,” he said.
Mr. Brantley registered his gratitude to all those involved in the project including Dr. Cardell “Bal” Rawlins and Mr. Morrice Tyrell, the local representatives of Northern Pointe Development Ltd.
Mr. Vishal Khann, President and Chief Executive Officer of Northern Pointe Development Ltd., who signed the agreement stated that they are confident moving forward with the project.
“We have been eager to begin this project for many months now and it’s been a long road…We feel very confident that moving forward this project is going to be a great success and we would be able to provide to the island as we have promised and look forward to working and growing with you guys for the next few years and beyond during operations,” he said.
The Wyndham Grand Nevis, will be constructed on a 30-acre beachfront property owned by Northern Pointe Development Ltd. and managed by the Wyndham Hotel Group.
On completion, the five-star luxury resort will comprise of 170 two- and three-bedroom suites, condominiums and villas, a private beach club, five dining areas, infinity pools, meeting spaces and more.
Also present at the signing ceremony were Mr. Colin Dore, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance who signed the agreement with Premier Brantley; Area Representative for St. James' Parish Hon. Alexis Jeffers; Hon. Eric Evelyn; Hon. Spencer Brand; Hon. Hazel Brandy-Williams; Hon. Troy Liburd; Mr. Stedmond Tross, Cabinet Secretary; Mrs. Hélène Anne Lewis, Legal Advisor in the NIA; Dr. Cardell “Bal” Rawlins and Mr. Morrice Tyrell, Directors of Northern Pointe Ltd.; Ms. Krysta Liburd, Attorney at Liburd and Dash LP; and Mr. Daniel Freeman, Marketing Director of Northern Pointe Ltd.
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230 Farmers and Fishers benefit from Agriculture Support Fund Friday 7th December, 2018 – SKN Vibes
Two hundred and thirty farmers and fishers in St. Kitts and Nevis have benefited from the Government's Agriculture Support Fund, which made available $1.5 million in loan funds at a five percent interest rate and $1 million in grant funds through the Development Bank.
To qualify for the grant, persons had to be registered fishers or farmers with the Department of Agriculture and active during the 2017 passage of Hurricanes Irma and Maria. Everyone who applied was approved once they fit the criteria.
The grant committee included representatives from the Agriculture Department and the agriculture industry, Constituency Empowerment, the Ministry of Finance and the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis.
The maximum grant amount which was given to each of the 230 beneficiaries was $7,000 and the minimum was $2,500.
During a significant ceremony on December 06 to distribute the funds, Minister of Agriculture, the Honourable Eugene Hamilton, said that, due to climate change, it is imperative that the government steps in to ensure food security.
The minister thanked Prime Minister Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris for including the project in the 2018 Budget.
“The prime minister is an astute financial person and understands that even though in 2018 we were talking about giving $500 to households earning under $3000, which will start this month and even though he has announced this morning a double salary for public servants in three consecutive years, he is still here today to say there will be a grant and a loan component for those in agriculture; [he is] managing the money of the country properly and ensuring every sector, every facet of our society, benefits from the stewardship of the Team Unity administration,” Minister Hamilton said.
The prime minister stated that this fund will help to advance agriculture in St. Kitts and Nevis. He said that as a former Minister of Agriculture, he was delighted to see the many farmers and fishers who have benefited from the fund. Prime Minister Harris added that farmers and fishers play an important role in the federation.
The Agriculture Support Fund was launched alongside the Government Employee Mortgage (GEMS) Programme on June 1st, 2018.
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CARICOM to open up government procurement to regional companies Friday 7th December, 2018 – Caribbean News Now
Regional businesses will soon have the opportunity to bid on millions of dollars’ worth of government contracts across the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), according to minister in the ministry of foreign trade of Barbados, Sandra Husbands, who was speaking at an ISO 20700 Standard in Management Consultancy Services workshop on Tuesday.
Husbands stated that prior to a decision taken at the recently concluded 47th meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) only domestic companies had access to local government procurement opportunities. However, some CARICOM nations have extended this to regional businesses.
She added that a portal called CIMSuPro – the CARICOM Interactive Marketplace and Suspension Procedure – will be established as a managed market place for CARICOM companies to post their raw material, goods and services. It would be made available to regional and global purchasers.
“Government procurement hitherto was kept at a national level, where only the domestic providers had access to government procurement opportunities, this was for goods and services and works programmes. The total value of that business within the region is nine billion dollars.
“What was achieved at COTED is that a number of nations were willing to state that they are willing now to use that government procurement portal to put on to that website, all of the business that exceeds US$150,000 and in terms of work, what exceeds US$3 million,” the minister explained.
Urging the management consultants to use the CIMSuPro portal to attract business, she stressed that the CICMC group will be key to helping CARICOM companies take advantage of the emerging opportunities.
The minister then referenced a meeting she had with local private sector bodies.
“In discussing the way forward given that CARICOM will now allow for government procurement and the advent of CIMSuPro, we said the businesses of the region need to be made ready to be able to secure those contracts. So, where there is a contract for goods and a business is interested in fulfilling it, but it represents a major step for them to do so, this is where the management consultant comes in to help that company build their systems and processes … so they can execute that contract really well,” Husbands said.
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