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LETTER: Complete closure of beaches for holidays is Asinine

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It appals me greatly whenever our presiding cabinet of leaders randomly decide to put this nation in further distress and frustration.

Repeatedly, since the advent of covid-19, our lovely therapeutic beaches in this beautiful island have been closed to the populace.

The cabinet met a day ago and these so called medical experts have arbitrarily mandated that the citizens of Antigua and Barbuda cannot enjoy the freedom to be on the beach.

This is a loathsome and totalitarian order!!! No Government has the right to prevent any citizen from visiting the public beach which is theirs to enjoy. The universe belongs to us…to everyone and not an authoritarian few.! This is an absurd and insensitive decision.

I can understand, for the sake of covid-19 protocols which dictate social distancing, that no excessive congregation on these beaches must be encouraged. I Understand that people must still be aware and desist from crowding. But alas! Why the hell must you close the beaches totally?

Antigua and Barbuda has more than 367 beaches. You do not wish more than 10 – 25 ppl within a certain radius of space is understandable. But people are so stressed, emotionally and mentally fatigued, and you deny their God-given right to being free? From being on the beach? How dare these unthinkable aristocrats!!

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The Government wants to control large gatherings? No problem! Send out the over fed, idle and lethargic military and underutilized police force, who live on taxpayers money anyways, to do their job! Let them go out to the various beaches and enforce the social distancing policies. Let them for a change earn their salaries. But please, do not push your citizens to the brink of insanity!

We need to relax, to release and of course receive the therapeutic caresses of our beautiful blue waters.

Mr. Prime Minister and cabinet, for once, please think constructively, innovatively before making these silly decisions.

Stop hyperbolizing this Covid-19 pandemic! Let people have a choice. Let us have some semblance of freedom if not all.

Revoke this asinine decision of closing down beaches! No one has this right!!!

Mark Caesar

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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]