Category: Health

  • PM touts the benefits of ‘practically free health care in Antigua and Barbuda

    PM touts the benefits of ‘practically free health care in Antigua and Barbuda

    Antigua and Barbuda is one of the best places to live right now, especially for people in need of health care during the COVID-19  pandemic. It’s something Prime Minister Gaston Browne is hoping residents will come to appreciate. “Let us not forget, here in Antigua and Barbuda, unlike other countries, for about 11 different ailments,…

  • Vitamin D from direct sunlight can help the body to fight COVID-19

    Vitamin D from direct sunlight can help the body to fight COVID-19

    Health professionals in St. Kitts and Nevis are touting the benefits of the sun in the fight against COVID-19. Get Some Sun! At least twice per day recommends Chief Medical Officer, Dr Hazel Laws. The reason is simple. Vitamin Dɜ is made in the skin when exposed to the sun’s energy. It is then carried…

  • The implicit danger of suspending HIV testing in Antigua and Barbuda in the era of COVID-19

    The implicit danger of suspending HIV testing in Antigua and Barbuda in the era of COVID-19

    By Eleanor Frederick MSc. MPH In order to adhere to social distancing requirements, the AIDS Programme Manager Delcora Williams says “no HIV tests are being conducted by the HIV clinic until further notice.” She states further that: “An HIV test is a very intimate thing — the counsellor sits on one end of the table…

  • US Embassy Barbados provides funding for PPEs to assist with the COVID-19 response in the region

    US Embassy Barbados provides funding for PPEs to assist with the COVID-19 response in the region

    In response to the high demand for personal protective equipment (PPEs) and other medical supplies due to COVID-19, the United States has donated more than US $104,000 worth of PPE and other medical supplies for seven Eastern Caribbean countries: Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent &…

  • Antigua cancels HIV tests due to COVID-19

    Antigua cancels HIV tests due to COVID-19

    Antigua has halted testing people for HIV and this decision is being blamed on the COVID-19 pandemic. HIV AIDS Programme Manager  Delcora Williams says in order to adhere to social distancing requirements, no HIV tests are being conducted by the HIV clinic until further notice. “An HIV test is a very intimate thing,” Williams said. …

  • PAHO Director asks countries to address health, social and economic emergencies together, as COVID-19 expands in the Americas

    PAHO Director asks countries to address health, social and economic emergencies together, as COVID-19 expands in the Americas

    The Director of the Pan American Health Organization, Carissa F. Etienne, called on countries to address health, social and economic emergencies, saying she is “deeply concerned” by the rapid expansion of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic in the Americas. “The pandemic has forced us to address three emergencies at the same time: health, social and…

  • COVID-19: Antigua positioned to export health-care services

    COVID-19: Antigua positioned to export health-care services

    Despite the economic damage and upheaval inflicted on Antigua and Barbuda by the COVID-19 pandemic, the country’s response to it will ensure that it emerges from the crisis with a significant advantage in at least one critically important sector, according to the nation’s leader. Prime Minister Gaston Browne believes the heavy investments that his government…

  • Coronavirus detected in the semen of COVID-19 patients

    Coronavirus detected in the semen of COVID-19 patients

    By Eleanor Frederick, MSc. MPH COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-Cov-2, was declared a global pandemic in February 2020. COVID-19 is a respiratory tract infection that affect your upper respiratory tract (sinuses, nose and throat) or the lower respiratory tract (trachea and lungs). SARS-Cov-2 is transmitted from person-to-person by respiratory droplets from…

  • Here’s why this week is most important in Antigua and Barbuda’s COVID-19 fight

    Here’s why this week is most important in Antigua and Barbuda’s COVID-19 fight

    If there are no new COVID-19 cases this week, local authorities may be able to declare Antigua and Barbuda COVID-free, Prime Minister Gaston Browne has declared. “I say may, because sufficient time would have passed for [the two known individuals with COVID-19] to literally shred the virus,” Browne said Saturday on Pointe FM’s Browne &…

  • Caribbean has achieved COVID-19 containment, says researcher

    Caribbean has achieved COVID-19 containment, says researcher

    The coronavirus (COVID-19) has been contained in the English-speaking Caribbean and Haiti, according to a leading researcher and academic. However, Dr. Clive Landis, pro-vice-chancellor for undergraduate studies and research, and professor of cardiovascular research at the University of the West Indies (UWI) Cave Hill campus in Barbados, and the chairman of the UWI COVID-19 task…

  • Member of Cuban Medical Brigade dies in Dominica

    Member of Cuban Medical Brigade dies in Dominica

    Dominica’s Health Minister Dr. Irving McIntyre has confirmed the death of a member of the “Henry Reeve” Cuban Medical Brigade, which arrived on the island on March 29 to help in the fight against the COVID-19 disease. Dr. McIntyre announced, on Wednesday evening, at a COVID-19 press briefing that the 42-year-old male collapsed and died…

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]