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Antigua and Barbuda government moving ahead with plans for new regional airline

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(CMC) — The Antigua and Barbuda government says it is going ahead with plans for establishing a new regional airline even as it acknowledged a move by other sub-regional countries to do so.

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Prime Minister Gaston Browne, responding to an opposition question regarding improved regional transportation, told legislators that it is well known that the government “has been struggling” with the cash-strapped LIAT (1974) Limited over the past three years.

“We would have gotten it right from the onset. We knew that if we were to allow the other shareholders of LIAT to collapse the airline that it would have created a significant problem to connect Caribbean people and you would recognise that not withstanding the fact that LIAT is still operating there’s still a problem in terms of meeting the demands of the Caribbean people, especially individuals within the OECS sub-region.”

LIAT (1974) is owned by the governments of Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica and St Vincent and the Grenadines. It entered into administration in July 2020 following increased debt and the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

“We have tried in the past to get all our OECS colleagues on board to start an OECS airline, but the problem we have had, and this is…a problem that existed for decades, is that to get a commitment for all of the countries to fund an airline has been a problem,” Browne said.

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“What would have happened over the years, you would have had four countries carrying the burden while the others benefiting from the services of LIAT. It is no different today, if anything it is probably worse”.

Browne told legislators that as a result of a lack of commitment, his administration decided to pursue a new partner for the proposed LIAT 2020 “which will be a new legal entity that will not assume any of the liabilities of LIAT (1974).

“Whatever assets it acquires from LIAT 1974, LIAT 2020 will pay for them in full,” he said, acknowledging that “we were unable to attract investors from within the region, we went extra-regionally and that is why we had to establish a partnership with Air Peace,” a private Nigerian airline founded in 2013.

“Air Peace is a billion-dollar company. In fact, just recently it would have ordered about US$300 million worth of aircraft. So it is substantial in terms of its asset base, it has the experience and the argument has always been within the region that whatever regional airline that is established that you should have a private sector component to ensure that we have the necessary efficiencies and to avoid the legacy issues that we have had with LIAT in the past.”

Browne said he believes that Air Peace would not only bring assets in terms of cash and aircraft but also expertise “to help us to manage LIAT to ensure it sustains viability”.

He said he is aware there are plans for a “supplementary OECS airline, there is talk so far but no firm commitment and we have to watch that space and see how it develops.”

The OECS leaders met earlier this month to discuss the issue of air transportation in the region and have appointed a technical team to further discuss the situation.

Dominica’s Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, speaking on the state-owned DBS Radio, said that each of the member countries of the OECS will have a representative on the technical team “and then we will be engaging some consultations to put into place the legal and corporate framework to advance the decisions that would have been taken on Sunday at that meeting of the OECS heads”.

The OECS groups the islands of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Kitts-Nevis, Montserrat, Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands.

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REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

(CONSULTING SERVICES – INDIVIDUAL SELECTION)

 

OECS MSME Guarantee Facility Project

Loan No.: IDA-62670, IDA-62660, IDA-62640, IBRD-88830, IDA-62650

Assignment Title: Senior Operating Officer (SOO)

Reference No. KN-ECPCGC-207852-CS-INDV

 

The Governments of Antigua and Barbuda, Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have received financing in the amount of US$10 million equivalent from the World Bank towards the cost of establishing a partial credit guarantee scheme, and they intend to apply part of the proceeds to payments for goods, and consulting services to be procured under this project. 

The consultant will serve as the “Senior Operating Officer (SOO)” for the ECPCGC and should possess extensive knowledge of MSME lending with some direct experience lending to Micro, small and medium-sized businesses, knowledge of the internal control processes necessary for a lending operation and the ability to design and implement risk mitigation procedures. The ideal candidate should possess an Undergraduate Degree from a reputable college or university, preferably in Business, Accounting, Banking or related field, with a minimum of 5 years’ experience in lending, inclusive of MSME lending. The initial employment period will be for two years on a contractual basis. Renewal of the contract will be subject to a performance evaluation at the end of the contractual period. The assignment is expected to begin on September 30th, 2021.  The consultant will report directly to the Chief Executive Officer of the ECPCGC.

The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment can be viewed by following the attached link below. 

 

https://bit.ly/3iVannm

 

The Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECPCGC) now invites eligible “Consultants” to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have:

  • An Undergraduate Degree from a reputable college or university, preferably in Business, Finance, Banking or related field; and
  • Minimum of 5 years’ experience in MSME lending. Applicants should also have:
  • The ability to design and implement risk management procedures 
  • Extensive knowledge of MSME lending with some direct experience lending to small and medium-sized businesses
  • Extensive knowledge of MSME banking operations
  • Knowledge of the internal controls necessary for a lending operation and the ability to design and implement risk management procedures
  • Experience developing and presenting information in public, including responding to questions in real-time
  • Experience lending to MSMEs located in the ECCU
  • Knowledge of marketing and communicating with the MSME sector
  • Ability to draft procedures to be used in a lending operation
  • Familiarity with the mechanics of a loan guarantee program
  • Exceptional written, oral, interpersonal, and presentation skills, and
  • Proficiency in the use of Microsoft Office suite.

The attention of interested Individual Consultants is drawn to Section III, Paragraphs 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers July 2016, [revised November 2017] (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest. A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Approved Selection Method for Individual Consultants set out in the clause 7.34 of the World Bank Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers. 

 

Further information can be obtained at the address below during office hours 0800 to 1700 hours:

Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation

Brid Rock, Basseterre,

St. Kitts.

Expressions of interest must be delivered in a written form by e-mail by August 11th, 2021, to [email protected]

 

For further information, please contact:

Carmen Gomez-Trigg                                                            Bernard Thomas

Chief Executive Officer                                                          Chief Financial Officer

Tel: 868-620-8144                                                                  Tel: 869-765-2385

Email: [email protected]                                          [email protected]