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WTTC says it’s time for a regional airline

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Julia Simpson, the president of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), believes it’s time for the Caribbean to have its own airline.

“I know it’s been discussed for many many years but the Caribbean needs to act as an entity to build capacity (that will) benefit everyone. Demand is there and I believe investors are there too,” said Simpson, while delivering a special message to attendees of the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Caribbean Aviation Day in the Cayman Islands last week.

Simpson also called for lower air taxes to drive business and investment. “We know that this stimulates customer demand while making it more commercially viable for the airlines to operate,” said Simpson as she showered praise on the Government of Antigua and Barbuda for announcing a 50 percent reduction in taxes on airline tickets for travel within several Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries.

“More countries need to follow in these footsteps. In fact, by the Caribbean adopting some common policies, it will make the whole of the region much more powerful,” she stated.

Senator Lisa Cummins, Barbados’ Minister of Tourism and International Transport, brought energy and optimism to the recent Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) meetings in the Cayman Islands, where she updated the media on the island’s tourism progress following a difficult pandemic period.

The minister reported that despite global airlift challenges, Barbados is forecast to return to 80 percent of 2019 visitation levels by the end of this year, a conservative estimate, she explained.

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While all of Barbados’ source markets have shown a relatively consistent recovery pattern since traffic began returning in mid-2021, the U.K. has been the strongest performer this year.

Ensuring that resilience is built into the destination’s recovery strategy, Barbados is making a push into emerging markets such as Latin America, while continuing to strengthen lift from traditional markets in Europe and North America.

The minister reported that Wyndham Sam Lord’s Castle will open this December and spoke of the impressive performance of the Sandals Barbados and Sandals Royal Barbados properties.

The Barbados tourism minister announced the cruise sector was returning in a meaningful way, with a promising winter season on the horizon.

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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]