Category: Commentary

  • The Commonwealth at a time of threat to the international legal order

    The Commonwealth at a time of threat to the international legal order

    By Sir Ronald Sanders The Commonwealth, made up of 54 nations of which 32 are small states, should be deeply concerned at the grave threat to the international legal order caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and should act together to show strong disapproval. This was the theme of a lecture I delivered at the…

  • Village tourism in the Caribbean

    Village tourism in the Caribbean

    By Basil Springer “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” – Psalm 133:1 One of the enjoyable experiences in writing my weekly column is the feedback from readers which leads to content for another column. Last week was no exception. “Thank you Basil for this great article…

  • The Eastern Caribbean should invest more in higher education

    The Eastern Caribbean should invest more in higher education

    By Diego F. Angel-Urdinola and Cynthia Marchioni Until 2019, Eastern Caribbean states successfully kept tourism at the heart of their economic models. With almost two-thirds of the workforce comfortably absorbed by the industry, most governments delayed the diversification of their economies away from tourism.  Under this approach, the demand on the education system was focused…

  • Democracy in Barbados fully entrusted to new Mia Mottley government

    Democracy in Barbados fully entrusted to new Mia Mottley government

    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) Rejecting the accusations of bullying and despotism that were…

  • Wake up and smell the Chow Mein

    Wake up and smell the Chow Mein

    By Sir Ronald Sanders (The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the U.S. and the OAS.  He is also a senior fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and at Massey College in the University of Toronto.   The view expressed are entirely his own) A television interviewer asked…

  • On the heels of COVID, Climate Change swings a wrecking ball

    On the heels of COVID, Climate Change swings a wrecking ball

    By Sir Ronald Sanders (The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and the Organization of American States.   He is also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto.  The views expressed are entirely his own)  The public health and…

  • Kenya’s President wants ‘steadfast leadership’ by Commonwealth Secretariat

    Kenya’s President wants ‘steadfast leadership’ by Commonwealth Secretariat

    By Sir Ronald Sanders (The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and the Organization of American States.   He is also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto.  The views expressed are entirely his own) It…

  • Sir Lester Bird – Not too big to right a wrong

    Sir Lester Bird – Not too big to right a wrong

    By Makeda Mikael As a business owner operating at V. C. Bird International Airport in General Aviation, my company Ports Services Ltd. was granted permission to establish a Fixed Base Operation on the Dis-Used Runway 10, namely, FBO 2000 Antigua Ltd. After only three months of operation, on March 3rd, 2003 investor Allen Stanford was…

  • Afghanistan Where God only comes to Weep

    Afghanistan Where God only comes to Weep

    There is a book, ‘Afghanistan where God only comes to Weep’ where the many years of turmoil have reduced the people of Afghanistan to terror and tears. And when one realizes that the US was the one who entered the war, training and arming the Taliban and Osama Bin Laden to chase out the Russians,…

  • Are people in the Caribbean becoming architects of their own destruction?

    Are people in the Caribbean becoming architects of their own destruction?

    By Sir Ronald Sanders (The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and the Organization of American States.   He is also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto.  The views expressed are entirely his own) The…

  • Hon. Sir Lester Bryant Bird, National Hero, Antigua & Barbuda

    Hon. Sir Lester Bryant Bird, National Hero, Antigua & Barbuda

    By Makeda Mikael And as he moved Antigua on to our Economic Development and our freedom into the world, our National Hero, Hon. Sir Lester Bryant Bird clearly deserves the fond nickname lovingly given to him by his constituents and the island at large, Giant Malt! A giant in his athletic 6’4″ frame he towered…

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]