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Government urges Yida to start golf course project

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Even as government continues to warn that the development of the Yida project will “take some while to complete”, Cabinet has asked the company to press forward with plans to develop a golf course and hotel on pristine Guiana Island.

During Thursday’s Cabinet press briefing, Minister of Information Melford Nicholas said that the company continues to work on the necessary infrastructure that would support development in the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) that governs the large expanse of land owned by the company headed by Chinese investor Yida Zhang.

“There are going to be some phased developments and one of the important developments that we have looked at – and we felt that it was probably the lowest hanging fruit – would be the development of the 18-hole facility with a five-star hotel on Guiana Island,” he said, noting that the government has asked the company to give the project their “optimum consideration” at this time.

A representative of the Yida project presented findings to Cabinet last week on behalf of the company following an 18-month examination of the development.

Nicholas said plans presented on Wednesday included proposals for a number of offshore universities, hotels, business districts to include manufacturing and logistics management for the exportation of manufactured goods.

“Once the master plan has been completed and they are ready to offer that to the public, hopefully they will be able to find the type of investors to say, yes, I will be able to operate one of the hotels that is being built…,” he said.

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Nicholas said the developer also expressed concern over “bad publicity” surrounding the project, stating further that Cabinet has advised the investor to improve the company’s public relations campaign.

He said one of the areas in which the company can boost its public image is through the provision of jobs for residents.

The Gaston Browne administration signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Chinese principals after winning the 2014 general election, promising hundreds of jobs in a matter of weeks.

On April 30 2015, after the ceremony, the Yida team and government officials travelled to Guiana Island via helicopter where they turned the sand to mark the official start of phase one of the 16-zone project.

Representatives from Hard Rock International were also on hand and were expected to be responsible for the first project that Yida had hoped to start in 2016 which included plans for a hotel, casino, cafe and water park. But the project did not materialise.

The group owns Guiana Island, Crump Island and surrounding areas, a total of more than 1,600 acres of pristine, peninsula lands.

At the time, Zhang had promised to spend US$2 billion over a 10-year period, develop the largest free trade zone in the country, an off-shore financial centre, five-star luxury resort, internationally branded villa communities, a casino and gaming complex, multi-purpose conference centre, 27-hole golf course, marina and landing facilities, commercial, retail, sports and other auxiliary facilities. However, the project has been slow to see progress.

The company has, however, invited journalists and government officials to tour a metal works and cement factory in recent years. SOURCE: Observer Media

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One response to “Government urges Yida to start golf course project”

  1. If people really buy this level of nonsense, then shame on us. After so many years we still cannot see anything tangible from this developer. They are talking about bad publicity. Of course they will get bad publicity if they can’t deliver anything they promised. After so long they still don’t have investors. I thought they had the money to do all of this great project. This is just another pie in the sky plan. I’m willing to bet that this plan will never see the light of day.

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]