Antigua Breaking News

Category: Regional News

  • 10 Cheers to the Barbadian Prime Minister, God Save their New President and Long live the former Queen

    10 Cheers to the Barbadian Prime Minister, God Save their New President and Long live the former Queen

    By Arvel Grant, Political and current Affairs Analyst As the Caribbean (cautiously) take its place in 2022, I have given much thought to the political and current affairs headliners of 2021, which could claim top spot. COVID (II) has taken its permanent place as an important backdrop to everything else (at least) for the foreseeable…

  • High Surf Advisory

    High Surf Advisory

    High surf advisory in effect for the British Virgin Islands High surf advisory goes into effect this afternoon for Barbuda and Anguilla High surf advisory goes into effect tonight for Antigua, St Kitts and Nevis High surf advisory goes into effect Monday morning for Montserrat… Locations to be affected: Reefs and exposed mainly northern and…

  • Commonwealth Caribbean countries – all Republics by 2030?

    Commonwealth Caribbean countries – all Republics by 2030?

    By Sir Ronald Sanders (The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and the OAS.  He is a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto.  The views expressed are his own) By 2030, it is more than likely that the…

  • Study sheds light on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in six Caribbean countries

    Study sheds light on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in six Caribbean countries

    A new study on vaccine hesitancy in six Caribbean Community countries has found that those out of formal work and those who are educated to secondary level, fits the typical profile of the person refusing the vaccine to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The study commissioned by the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and…

  • InterCaribbean Airways replaces LIAT in Caribbean Skies

    InterCaribbean Airways replaces LIAT in Caribbean Skies

    InterCaribbean Airways looks set to replace its bankrupt rival LIAT, as the Caribbean aviation industry limps back to normalcy. The Turks and Caicos Islands-based InterCaribbean hit the headlines throughout the region last month when it launched weekly flights between Barbados and Guyana, a route traditionally served by LIAT. Not just Guyana, InterCaribbean now operates twice-weekly…

  • Barbados passport still highest ranked in region; Antigua shares 30th spot with T&T

    Barbados passport still highest ranked in region; Antigua shares 30th spot with T&T

    The Barbados passport has inched up one spot on the ranking of the world’s passports, remaining the highest-ranked in the Caribbean. With a visa-free score of 161 – the number of destinations that holders of a Barbados passport can enter without a visa – the latest Henley Passport Index Report puts Barbados at 23rd globally,…

  • 4 government Ministers test positive for COVID in St Vincent

    4 government Ministers test positive for COVID in St Vincent

    Debate on the EC$1.3 billion budget was suspended on Tuesday after several government legislators, including Finance Minister, Camillo Gonsalves, tested positive for the coronavirus (COVID-19). Apart from Gonsalves, the other government legislators who have tested positive are Urban Development Minister, Julian Francis, the Minister of Agriculture, Saboto Caesar and Education Minister Curtis King. Prime Minister…

  • US expands interview waivers for certain nonimmigrant Caribbean visa applicants

    US expands interview waivers for certain nonimmigrant Caribbean visa applicants

    The United States Department of State has announced that consular officers in the Caribbean and other places are now temporarily authorised, through December 31, 2022, to waive in-person interviews for certain individual petition-based nonimmigrant work visas and their qualifying derivatives. The categories for the qualifying derivatives include Persons in Specialty Occupations (H-1B visas); Trainee or…

  • Airport operating hours in BVI cut as COVID affect staff

    Airport operating hours in BVI cut as COVID affect staff

    The operating hours at the Terrence B Lettsome International Airport in the British Virgin Islands has been reduced due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on some members of staff. The British Virgin Islands Airports Authority (BVIAA) implemented the changes in an announcement earlier this week and shared that they will remain in effect…

  • Montserrat schools to remain closed until Tuesday, Jan. 18

    Montserrat schools to remain closed until Tuesday, Jan. 18

    The Ministry of Education announced Friday that all schools on Montserrat will remain closed until Tuesday, Jan. 18. In a statement, the Ministry said the decision was taken after a review of the latest reports by the Ministry of Health on the status of COVID-19 cases on the island. As of 12 noon Friday January…

  • Barbados accepts 1-day Rapid PCR tests until further notice

    Barbados accepts 1-day Rapid PCR tests until further notice

    The Government of Barbados continues to review and update its travel protocols for entry into the country. In the latest update, effective January 7, 2022, travellers are permitted to travel to Barbados with a valid negative Rapid COVID-19 PCR test result done within 1 day prior to arrival in Barbados, OR a negative RT-PCR COVID-19 test result…

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]