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Sixth Meeting of the OECS Council of Ministers: Agriculture held in Dominica

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The Sixth (6th) Meeting of the OECS Council of Ministers: Agriculture (COMA) of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) was held at the Conference Room of the State House, Roseau, Commonwealth of Dominica on October 14, 2022 under the Chairmanship of the Honourable Fidel Grant, Minister for the Blue and Green, Economy, Agriculture and National Food Security.

The meeting was convened against a backdrop of escalating global food and nutrition risks, due to the cumulative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war and food and energy price shocks.

These shocks emphasised the OECS’ vulnerability to increased food insecurity as highlighted by Minister Grant: “The OECS is highly food dependent with our Member States importing some 55% to 95% of their food supply, with four of the Member States being more than 80%. There is at present insufficient space on the local supply (because of both volume and variability) side to buffer resulting in relatively common shortages in the imported food supply.”

As a result, Grant urged fellow Ministers of Agriculture, Development Partners and technical officers to change the modus operandi and take a proactive approach toward food security within the OECS. His call to action was for the region to prioritise food production and food import substitution to survive and build resilience,

“We must support farming households with inputs and tools to cultivate short‑cycle crop varieties and backyard gardening kits for rapid food production, and to reduce the pressure on our household incomes.  We must determine what our national and regional strategic food supply must be adequately supported at the national and local levels, through procurement, storage, and supply chain services.”

The Council of Ministers: Agriculture expressed support for the OECS Food and Agriculture Systems Transformation (FAST) strategy as a response to the call for increased food security, food self-reliance and agricultural development across the OECS. The FAST envisages establishing competitive and sustainable food and agriculture production, processing and distribution practices that will result in increased consumption of affordable, quality, and nutritious food, increased food self-reliance and increased social and economic development.

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The Ministers of Agriculture endorsed the recommendations to establish the governance and institutional framework to operationalise the FAST and for the OECS Commission to engage with the Member States on the alignment (and costing) of the FAST activities with their national agriculture agenda to maximise the allocation of financial and human resources.

The Council of Ministers: Agriculture supported the establishment of a Technical Working Group in both Agriculture and Fisheries to improve coordination across the Member States in addition to endorsing the ongoing knowledge work and partnerships in support of food system transformation. This included support to the pan-Caribbean project CambioNet, led by the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRAE) to strengthen Agriculture Research and Development, Extensions, and Agricultural Advisory in sustainable agriculture practices.

SOURCE: Press Release

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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]