Business Focus St Lucia 86

Issue No. 86

GROWINGWITH SAINT LUCIA!

www.stluciafocus.com

Apr/May 2016

BusinessFocus Apr / May

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Terms and conditions apply. Copyright Š 2016 Axcel Finance. All rights reserved.

No. 86

BF Apr/May 2016

CONTENTS FEATURE 29. Renwick & Company Limited 30. Renwick 50 Years in Service to the Nation; Time for a Transformation 34. Chris Renwick: The Man, the Entrepreneur, the Philanthropist!

38. Christopher Renwick Lifetime Achievement Award 42. At Renwick, the Future is in Guided Hands 48. Five Tiers to Guarantee Future Renwick Success 52. Restructuring for 50 More Years of Success 56. Preparing Renwick for the Future 58. The Importance of the Renwick Management Structure and Succession Plans 60. Management Team 62. Our People at Your Service

24. Grow OR Disappear

In The Know

26. ECCU Bankers Association Appoints New President

86. IMF Hails Economic Growth

66. Excellence Meets Confidence Beachcomber & Subaru 68. Now Offering Catering Services, Menu Diversity and Event Hosting 70. Vitara Make it Yours!

87. Saint Lucia Establishes Diplomatic Relations with Fiji 88. Marketing Edge: How to Keep the Doors Open in a Slow Economy!

90. Company Registries to Go Online

Environmental Focus

91. CIBC FirstCaribbean Partners with Small Business Development Centre to Host Small Business Workshop

72. SLNT Launches Adopt a Reef Programme

92. The Business Benefits of Online Reviews

73. Japan & UNDP Kick Start US$15M Caribbean Climate Change Project

93. Ten Caribbean and Latin American Nations Where Women are More Educated than Men

76. World Bank Provides US$30M Loan for Climate Change in Jamaica

94. 25 things You Should NEVER Say to Your Employer…

06. Business Briefs

74. Barbados and Japan Sign Agreement to Strengthen Disaster Preparedness

Tourism Focus

08. The “Minutes” Waltz

Economy & Trade

Technology

96. Landmark Agreement Between IDB and CARPHA to Address Tourism and Health

76. 350+ Call Centre Jobs for Jamaica

10. Cable and Wireless Upgrades Submarine Cables in Caribbean Sea

78. Saint Lucia Moves Ahead with Boosting its Export Capacity

12. Female Entrepreneurs Receive a Boost in Digital Marketing as Part of Women/Girls in ICT Camgaign

79. Venture Capital Ecosystem Gets US$3.5m Boost

04. Editor’s Focus

13. IDB, OAS Urge Latin America and the Caribbean to Strengthen Efforts on Cyber Security

80. Saint Lucia PM Upbeat on the Economy 81. TEPA Presents Standard Operating Procedures Manual to Customs Department

14. C&W Business Launches its Cloud Solutions Suite in St. Lucia

82. Farm Labour Support Programme Aims to Provide Employment in Agriculture

16. C&W and Whats App Sign Partnership

82. Baron Foods Limited Moves Into New Markets

Money Matters

83. Barbados Seeks to Strengthen Commercial Linkages with St. Lucia

20. Massy Group Records $919m Profit

84. IDB Launches 2016 Call for Proposals to Promote Regional Public Goods in Latin America and the Caribbean

21. Scotiabank Profits Up 17% 22. LIAT Removes Fuel Surcharges on New Tickets 22. CIBC First Caribbean Opens New Finance Centre

97. SLHTA Provides Wine Education 97. Sandals Resorts International Announces Sale of Grand Pineapple Resort in Antigua 98. Saint Lucia Resorts Make ‘25 Best all- Inclusive Resorts in the Caribbean’ List

Health & Wellness 100. Saint Lucia Resorts Make ‘25 Best all- Inclusive Resorts in the Caribbean’ List 101. PANCAP Partners Commit to High Impact Cost Effective Interventions for Sustaining HIV Response

102. Events 2016 103. MAJOR MOVES 106. New Company Registrations 108. Advertisers Index

85. Haiti and the Dominican Republic to Pool Resources to Attract Foreign Direct Investment BusinessFocus Apr / May

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Building a Brand, Strategic Planning, Change Management, and Succession Planning!

A Tribute to Chris Renwick In this issue we share the joy and challenges with Chris Renwick, his family and team as they celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Renwick & Company Ltd – a business built by the iconic Chris Renwick and nurtured over the years to become a household name in St Lucia and the wider Caribbean.

The growth and reach of this business driven by Chris and supported by his daughter Cheryl has spawned several divisions requiring skills beyond the Renwick family. In the process Chris has developed a cadre of young professionals into a leadership team ready to take the company into the next 50 years with his imminent departure and welcome retirement after the many years of hard work, success and accolades.

Lokesh Singh Editor / Managing Director

What can we learn from Chris Renwick - this great icon of enterprise as he transfers the reins of power and leadership whilst riding off into the sunset?

Vision and a passion for success – he has put in the hard work and seized the opportunity to grow his business and build the brand which has become a household name across the island.

Leadership – he has led from the front, being a great example and mentor to his team yet being highly acclaimed for his humility despite his success.

Challenges – he has faced them head on and made the bold and difficult decisions required to ensure his success.

Succession Planning – he has planned for the future and created a capable team of young leaders ready and excited to take the company into the future.

Change Management – he has been bold enough to recognize that we live in rapidly changing times and engaged specialists to dissect his company and chart the course for the future beyond him.

BUSINESSFOCUS Business Focus magazine is published every two months by Advertising & Marketing Services Limited (AMS), Saint Lucia.

Editor / Managing Director: Lokesh Singh lokesh@amsstlucia.com Graphic Designer: Cecil Sylvester Advertising Sales: Cennette Flavien - cennette@amsstlucia.com Hudson Myers - hudson@amsstlucia.com Webmaster: Advertising & Marketing Services Photography: Cecil Sylvester | TEPA | Renwick & Company Ltd. CMC | GIS | Trinidad Guardian | St. Lucia Times Jamaica Observer | Zaika | CIBC | Carib Export Contributors: Dr Chris Bart | Samuel Rosenberg | Lokesh Singh Alex Holder | Kezia Preville | Michelle Stephens Nahdia Bailey | Trudy O. Glasgow | TEPS | GIS Trinidad Guardian | CMC | Caribbean News Service Jamaica Observer | Caribbean News Now Editorial, Advertising, Design & Production: Advertising & Marketing Services P.O. Box 2003, Castries, Saint Lucia Tel: (758) 453-1149; Fax: (758) 453-1290 email: ams@candw.lc www.amsstlucia.com, www.stluciafocus.com Business Focus welcomes contributions from professionals or writers in specialized fields or areas of interest.

Reproduction of any material contained herein without written approval, constitutes a violation of copyright.

Business Focus reserves the right to determine the content of the publication.

Legacy – he is comfortable in his decision to step down confident that he is leaving the company in capable hands and his legacy will be preserved.

We wish Chris many happy years of retirement.

Issue No.

78

Mar/Apr 2016

There are many lessons to be learnt from people like Chris Renwick and we hope that his story will motivate many of our future business leaders to be the future stars of enterprise in St Lucia and beyond.

We hope that you will enjoy reading about the new initiatives and articles featured in the pages of this Issue of Business Focus and be inspired by the many stories affecting and influencing business in St Lucia and further afield.

GROWINGWITH !

SAINT LUCIA

Happy Reading!

s.co m focu us.co ucia iafoc .stl .stluc www www

m

On The Cover:

Renwick & Company Limited Celebrating 50 Years Growing with Saint Lucia BusinessFocus Apr / May

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DIGICEL ONLINE BACK UP

Back up your data automatically online

Organisations store enormous amounts of data. However, many organisations and users do not back up their data on a regular basis because they don’t have the time, back up processes are too time consuming, or they simply forget to do so. The ramifications of a major data loss are so great that most companies that have the misfortune to experience it, don’t survive for more than six months afterwards.

Business data is only as good as the back up system that is in place. That’s why it’s so critical to have a modern and dependable system in place to safeguard valuable business information.

With Digicel Online Back Up, you can preserve and restore all of your files in a secure, offsite environment without a major capital investment.

We even manage the setup and the maintenance for you, so you can concentrate on your business. Our Online Back Up solution offers the crucial protection you need to ensure the continuity of your business. Don’t leave your most valuable business assets vulnerable for another day.

Why Digicel Online Back up Cost-effective with pay-as-you-go structure Ease of use Optimal business continuity Elimination of human error Scalability Largest private cloud in the region Data stored to Digicel’s Tier III data centre certified by the UpTime Institute 24/7 helpdesk provides continuous support

To get the technology you need to keep you ahead, Contact Digicel Business at 1 758 724 6001 or digicelbusinessslu@digicelgroup.com Complete solutions for your needs WWW.DIGICELBUSINESS.COM

BusinessFocus Apr / May

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BUSINESS BRIEFS LIAT CEO David Evans Has Resigned.

The British aviation executive’s resignation was accepted by the Board of Directors of LIAT on Wednesday 13 April 2016, the company announced in a statement.

“The Board of Directors thanks Mr. Evans for his service and wishes him every success in his future endeavours,” the company said.

Evans had joined the company in April 2014, succeeding former CEO Captain Ian Brunton. Brunton had joined the company as CEO in August 2012, following the resignation of former CEO Brian Challenger the previous June.

As a regional carrier in a part of the world with often stifling governmental air taxes, LIAT has been struggling for some time. It had been hoped that Evans, with decades of experience in the British aviation industry, could provide a boost. But it has become increasingly clear that LIAT’s entrenched corporate environment is not one in which CEOs can last very long.

Julie Reifer-Jones, Director of Finance and ICT for LIAT, will serve as the interim CEO. ¤

JETBLUE Delivers ‘MINT’ Service to St Lucia

Saint Lucia is one of two Caribbean routes that will receive the new Mint service out of JFK Airport, New York with the other being St. Maarten. Those routes start Nov. 5 2016 and will run through the spring.

JetBlue’s Executive Vice President Commercial and Planning, Marty St. BusinessFocus Apr / May

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George stated that “Mint’s curated offering and personalized service continues to win over customers who have grown weary of legacy carriers’ tired premium offering.” “Even better, these Airbus A321s with Mint offer a redesigned core cabin with enhanced entertainment features and more comfortable seating for every customer onboard.”

Saint Lucia is thrilled to be selected to have this premium service into our Hewanorra Airport, which speaks volumes for the type of demand that exists for Saint Lucia within the US. This new service will meet the needs of many Saint Lucian visitors who stay at luxury properties in Saint Lucia and are looking for premium air travel as well. ¤

Construction of East Coast Highway Imminent

Prime Minister Dr Kenny D. Anthony says government has plans to continue expanding and strengthening the country’s infrastructure, once feasibility studies are approved.

Dr Anthony said the East Coast highway project is likely to begin soon, especially since the fea-sibility study is completed and the report will soon be handed over to the government.

The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) approved a grant of approximately US$150,000 to undertake the feasibility study for the proposed highway.

The Prime Minister also said financing for this major project will also come from grant funding to be provided by the British government to support infrastructure development.

The planned highway will link Gros-Islet to the Dennery Highway, through the north-eastern regions of Monchy and Babonneau, along the East Coast.

The Prime Minister has also announced that one of the major infrastructure projects he wishes to see commence quickly is construction of the North-South highway from Gros Islet. ¤

Solar Lighting Approved for Pigeon Island

The Saint Lucia National Trust (SLNT) is imple¬menting a project funded by the CARICOM Development Fund (CDF) entitled “Reduc¬ing the Carbon Footprint of the Saint Lucia National Trust.”

The project seeks to provide solar lighting solutions at the Pigeon Island National Land¬mark, in keeping with the St Lucia National Trust’s theme of Environmental Preservation.

The main components of the project are to replace or re-align existing lighting poles to provide better lighting coverage, provide additional lighting in areas that have been identified as lacking security, and install solar ma¬rine lighting for the jetty.

This project will be achieved by ex¬panding the existing grid-con¬nected photo voltaic system with a five kilowatts peak (kwp) system.

The Saint Lucia National Trust has since invited tenders with de¬tailed proposals for the instal-lation of the Solar Lighting Project and will announce the successful bidder after reviewing the proposals submitted. ¤

FAO Gives Boost to Livestock Production The Ministry of Agricul¬ture, Food Production, Fisheries, Cooperatives and Rural Development is aim¬ing to increase livestock pro¬duction and reduce the island’s food import bill by giving the Beausejour Agricultural Station a boost.

The project will be implement¬ed by the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and funded through the India, Brazil, South Africa (IBSA) fund for poverty and hunger alleviation.

St Lucia’s Director of Agricultural Ser¬vices, Dr. Felix Jaria, said one of the objectives of the program is to make the Beausejour Agricul¬tural Station a centre of excel¬lence for livestock activities.

“Towards this end we are con¬sidering artificial insemination and also improving our breeds. We recently received a

BUSINESS BRIEFS Government Negotiates Contract Between Courts and Furniture Manufacturers

number of small ruminants to assist us in that vein so that we would increase reproduction of the animals and then supply them to farmers who can subsequently use them for breeding to improve their stock.”

The main objective of the IBSA fund is to benefit developing countries around the world. Projects have been funded in countries such as Sierra Leone, Cambodia, Haiti, Palestine and Vietnam and range from pro¬moting food security, health, and education, to capacity build¬ing and rural electrification. ¤

Sandals Corporate University Partners with New England Culinary Institute to Train 30 Chefs in Saint Lucia

The Sandals Corporate University in Saint Lucia has rolled out the first of a series of three culinary workshops in partnership with the New England Culinary Institute (NECI), based in Montpelier, Vermont USA. Under the stewardship of Instructor Chef Joey Buttendorf, 10 junior chefs and cooks from across all three Sandals Resorts in the island will benefit from a 5-day intense certificate program. Two additional training programs as expected to take place throughout the year, offering Higher Levels Sessions in planning stages.

They will gather in the spanking new state-of-the-art facility that caters to the island’s newest and most modern eateries available at Sandals Grande St. Lucian.

For more than three decades the NECI apprenticeship model has been a recipe for success, with more than 5000 alumni.

The program is delivered to small groups at a time, and continues with long internships, and unparalleled personal attention. These are said to be the raw ingredients of a NECI education. By the end of the program, some 30 Saint Lucians will have benefitted. ¤

Commerce Minister Emma Hippolyte and PS Allison Gajadhar with Local Furniture Suppliers and Courts Officials.

The Ministry of Commerce, Business Development, Investment and Consumer Affairs has successfully facilitated the signing of formal contracts between Courts Saint Lucia Limited trading as Unicomer Saint Lucia Limited, and a selected number of small and medium size furniture manufacturers.

The contracts will ensure a greater level of certainty and predictability of the supply of locally produced furniture.

Under the agreement, Courts will purchase a guaranteed quantity of furniture from the selected local suppliers and will ensure improved branding, advertising and marketing of local furniture products.

The agreement will assist local suppliers by allowing them to order in bulk, a certain quantity of raw materials without fear of overstocking. This bulk purchasing will allow manufacturers to benefit from greater economies of scale and should, in the long term, lead to increased competitiveness.

Courts along with the Ministry of Commerce has over the past two decades assisted local furniture manufacturers with training opportunities to attend furniture trade shows in the United States and Asia. However, the signing of formal contracts is historic and will help reenergize the local furniture manufacturing industry. ¤

Antigua and Barbuda Abolishes Personal Income Tax Effective 1 April 2016.

The twin-island country’s government has officially abolished its personal income tax, a move that was first announced in January. The changes took effect April 1, 2016.

The move to remove all income tax had been a major campaign promise of the

country’s current government, led by Prime Minister Gaston Browne.

Prior to the changes, the country had levied an 8 percent tax on people earning an income above $3,500, and 15 percent on those earning an income above $25,000.

“Antigua and Barbuda will become a competitive location to attract the headquarters of companies and for professionals to relocate, thereby creating more jobs. Retirees will choose Antigua and Barbuda as their retirement home; CIP Investors will invest and choose Antigua and Barbuda over our competitors. The loss of $37 million from the elimination of the PIT will be partially substituted by an increase in the Revenue Recovery Charge (RRC) from 10 percent to 13 percent, which is expected to yield an additional $20 million in revenue. All food items in the ABST basket of goods will be exempt from this increase.” PM Browne said in a statement. ¤

Biofuel Manufacturer to Invest US$95 Million in Jamaica by 2017

As renewable energy demands increase globally, bio-fuel developer Benchmark Renewable Energy LLC has announced plans to develop a large-scale bio-ethanol operation in Jamaica.

The company has confirmed that the project will include the development of an advanced bio-ethanol plant with production capacity of ten million gallons of ethanol fuel per year and three Megawatts (MW) of excess electricity to be delivered to the local grid.

With projections of expanding production to 20 million gallons in the first few years of operations, Benchmark estimates that the project will require investments of approximately US$95 million.

The project, which is predicted to generate 140 direct and 500 indirect jobs, will utilize 3,000 hectares of tillable land to grow and harvest sweet sorghum.

The plant will also produce 500,000 gallons per year of drop-in aviation jet fuel and 60,000 gallons per day of fresh desalinated water. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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BUSINESSTECH TECH BUSINESS

The “Minutes”

Waltz

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by Dr. Chris Bart, FCPA Chairman, The Caribbean Governance Training Institute

f all the topics in corporate governance, the one that probably gets the least attention from directors is the subject of board and committee meeting minutes.

Yet, they are the official – and legal record of the activities of a board and its various committees. “Recollections” are unreliable. And the last thing you want is to have one or more directors with their own personal and, worse yet, conflicting notes of a meeting. Accordingly, minutes of meetings should serve as the only source of reliable information for those directors who were unable to attend a particular meeting. More importantly, they should also act as the official record and reminder of the decisions taken and “actions assigned” which will affect the future operations of the organization.

Once the minutes have been reviewed and accepted by the board, any personal meeting notes should be discarded. If not, they become “discoverable” in any legal proceedings and a virtual treasure trove for opposing counsel.

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Minutes therefore help to refresh memories. Recording meeting events gives assurance that the decisions stemming from a meeting aren’t forgotten or lost and that the energy and time that went into the meeting wasn’t wasted. So, if ever there is disagreement about what happened in a board/committee meeting, the minutes should serve to resolve any dispute or confusion.

Interestingly, if your meeting minutes are typical, they more than likely fall into one of two categories. Category One are short length, minimalist minutes describing as little as possible as to what actually occurred at the meeting and limiting the minutes’ contents to motions approved, or rejected. Category Two minutes, on the other hand, involve very long, highly detailed record keeping outlining in excruciating, mind numbing detail exactly what happened, who said what to whom, and everything in between. But is either one the right way to proceed or is there another more modernist approach which board members need to consider when approving the minutes of their previous gatherings?

Dr. Chris Bart, FCPA is a recognized global governance authority, the author of two best sellers, and Co-Founder of the Caribbean Governance Training Institute.

The Institute is currently providing throughout the Caribbean an intensive 3 day corporate governance program leading to the prestigious, internationally recognized, Chartered Director (C.Dir.) designation. For more information visit CGTI’s website: http://www. caribbeangovernancetraininginstitute. com/ or phone Lisa at 758 451 2500

So what should the “minutes” discuss and include?

At a very minimum, the minutes should reflect and follow the meeting agenda starting with: • the names of all those in attendance; and • all documents distributed with the agenda (or at the meeting)

But then What?

According to Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised Edition (i.e., the reference often used by not-for-profits and corporations to guide them in conducting their meetings) the body of board/ committee minutes should include only the exact wording of motions and the manner in which they were disposed of as well as the count recorded, if any was requested. Not to be included are “judgmental phrases” (e.g. “heated debate”, “valuable comment” or “dummy said”) and especially “discussion”. Minutes are a record of what was done at the meeting, not what was deliberated, debated and discussed.

However, this is now seen as “old school” and perhaps a dangerous approach to the taking of minutes which should instead summarize what was actually discussed in broad terms – but especially points of agreement/disagreement without attribution (unless requested) and eventually decided at the meeting.

Where there is an extensive deliberation before passing a motion, the minutes should summarize the major positions of each side. The minutes should also include a short explanation of the reasons for the decision.

Interestingly, there is also a legal reason for taking this approach called the “Business Judgement Rule” in which Courts generally will defer to the “business judgment” of a Board in determining whether it has discharged its fiduciary duties but especially the duty of care.

Where a Board has made a business decision “honestly, prudently, in good faith and on reasonable grounds”, a court will generally not second-guess the judgment of the Board. Decisions can be wrong but only so long as the decision was the product of a good, deliberate, independent process and diligent thinking. And this process MUST be documented in the minutes!

Of course, the minutes SHOULD NOT attempt to write everything down everything that was said and by whom.

But it is now also best practice to indicate the time spent (that’s why they are called “minutes”!), as well as the list the questions asked by directors on major issues to indicate the degree of diligence (duty of care) and “probing” of management’s recommendations that they exercised.

termination and compensation are recorded as discussed above and indicating the general tenor of the conversation held by the directors.

However, for any other matters, I usually tell my clients to chronicle only the questions that the directors asked during the in camera and concluding with them as “matters to be discussed with and resolved by the CEO before the next meeting”.

The minutes should also indicate when directors entered and left the meeting during the discussions to show their full, partial or non-existent participation in the various agenda items. They should also record any declarations of conflicts of interest and that the director/committee member then left the meeting for the agenda item where the conflict applied.

Distributing Meeting Minutes

A SPECIAL WORD ABOUT “IN CAMERA” SESSION MINUTES Questions often arise as to what the minutes of in camera board/ committee minutes should include.

(In camera sessions are those in which the management of the organization are excluded and only the directors participate.) For full board meetings, there are only a few reasons as to why an in camera session should be used.

The first is to fire the CEO. The second is to set the CEO’s compensation. And the third, and most frequent use of in camera sessions, is to give the more timid directors the opportunity to express views that they, for some reason, felt hesitant to state in the presence of the CEO. Great board chairs however seek to minimize these third situations by coaching their ‘shy-guy directors’ to be more brave as they go forward.

Amazingly, some boards incorrectly believe that in camera meetings should occur without any minutes at all! How crazy is that especially when you consider the importance of the first two matters (firing a CEO or setting the CEO’s salary) and that a director might be sued and called into court to “recall” what happened” with each of the other board members “recalling” events differently to cover their own backsides. Official minutes, on the other hand, will tell the official version of what happened.

But in camera minutes are slightly different from regular board/committee minutes. Decisions on the CEO’s

When it comes to approving the official minutes of a board/committee meeting, remembering what actually happened at the meeting fades with the passage of time and can result in wildly different recollections. Important details about the board’s deliberations or the processes it undertook can be left out, or misstated and sometimes even document activities that did not occur. That’s why it’s important to distribute to the meeting’s attendees a draft of the minutes as soon as possible, usually within two days of a meeting’s end and certainly no longer than seven. Proposed amendments should then be noted in a “trackedchanges” document and recirculated among attendees as often as needed until there is agreement.

In Conclusion Boards should view their board/ committee minutes as a pre-emptive call to protecting themselves in the event they are called upon to explain their previous actions and decisions. Yet many boards either fail to consider this thereby leaving their firms and themselves vulnerable. So here’s the big, uncomfortable question for Caribbean directors: to what extent does your board have the assurance it needs regarding the quality of its official minutes as a reliable record of past board/ committee decisions and events. If you think that there is room for improvement in the way your board carries out this important governance function, you might want to consider sending them to one of the corporate governance training programs currently available in the region – like the extraordinarily unique 3 day Chartered Director Program currently being offered by The Caribbean Governance Training Institute. After all, it’s not education which is expensive, but rather ignorance. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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BUSINESSTECH TECH BUSINESS

Cable and Wireless

Upgrades

Submarine Cables in Caribbean Sea

C

&W Networks part of Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC), one of the largest telecommunications service providers serving the Caribbean, Central America, Mexico, South America and United States with more than 48,000 miles of subsea fiber-optic network has selected Xtera Communications Inc NASDAQ: (XCOM), a leading provider of high-capacity, costeffective optical transport solutions, for upgrading its submarine cable systems in the western Atlantic ocean and the Caribbean Sea to 100G. By introducing Xtera’s 100G coherent solution, C&W Networks continues to offer robust services across 42 countries with superior reliability and scalability of international wholesale capacity.

C&W Networks has bolstered its subsea network capacity by upgrading several unrepeatered and repeatered segments to 100G, using Xtera’s Nu-Wave OptimaTM multi-purpose optical networking platform.

The submarine cable systems were upgraded with new 100G channels to include the 1,570 km Gemini – Bermuda cable system, the 1,700 km Caribbean – US (CBUS) cable system, the 1,700 km East West Cable (EWC) system, the 1,440 km festoon Eastern Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS), and part of the 8,700 km ARCOS-1 submarine ring.

“The global build-out of data centers, coupled with rapid deployment of cloud-based services, are driving renewed demand for even higher fixed and burst rate connections with emphasis on high availability through redundancy,” said Paul

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Scott, President of C&W Networks. “Our goal is to proactively prepare our networks with the right technology to efficiently address the evolving business needs of today and the future. We are very excited to enhance our network performance to100G and 100G+ and Xtera was a natural choice for us.”

The same optical networking platform was used over the unrepeatered and repeatered segments, enabling a unified, seamless network from an operational perspective. For the upgrade of unrepeatered segments, advanced 100G optical channel technology combined with Xtera’s Wise RamanTM solution raised the capacity to multi terabits per second level even on the longest unrepeatered segments (approaching 400 km spans).

This combination of technologies also enabled C&W Networks to bypass some intermediate sites when no local add/drop of 100G waves was needed, eliminating the need for back-to-back terminal equipment as found in the previous network design based on 10G optical channel technology.

“Strengthening our relationship with C&W Networks, these new upgrade projects are further evidence of the confidence network operators place in Xtera’s capabilities to improve subsea optical transmission infrastructure already deployed across the world,” said Jon Hopper, President and Chief Executive Officer of Xtera.

“Upgrading existing subsea cable systems to increase their capacity and extend their lifetime – from a capacity-cost perspective – is part of our subsea solution portfolio, which includes subsea cable recovery and re-lay, and as well as new build.” ¤

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A

BUSINESS TECH

Female Entrepreneurs Receive a Boost in Digital Marketing as Part of Women/Girls in ICT Camgaign

t least twenty female entrepreneurs will receive training in Digital Marketing under the Saint Lucian Women & Girls in ICT Campaign, which is a joint initiative of the Saint Lucia Coalition of Services & Industry (SLCSI) in collaboration with the Caribbean Regional Communications Infrastructure Programme (CARCIP).

The Women & Girls in ICT Campaign was developed as a means to dismantle barriers preventing equal opportunities for growth and development in ICT. The campaign will result in young girls and women receiving specific support and opportunities to be educated and engaged in ICT tools. The outcome of which is greater empowerment in ICT processes and tools, and the ability to pass on these skills and knowledge to a wider sector of our community.

Entrepreneurs at the training workshop will learn how to boost their ability to engage with customers through social media, increase sales and revenue through their enhanced ability to market their products and services. Digital Marketing involves the promotion of products or services via one or more forms of electronic media and has become one of the most impactful marketing tools for entrepreneurs. Direct Marketing allows entrepreneurs to not only reach a large number of their target audience efficiently but also cost effectively.

SLCSI, with its mandate to organise and create pathways to business competitiveness for service producers, seeks to improve the operating environment for that sector. One component of the SLCSI project focusses on deepening gender equity and increasing access by women and girls to employment and entrepreneurial opportunities in the ICT industry.

According to SLCSI Executive Director Yvonne Agard, training is an early component of the Women and Girls in ICT campaign, the official launch of which is deliberately set for April, the month dedicated to the international observance of Girls in ICT. “Two major highlights of the campaign will be an exhibition featuring the beneficiaries of the training and their work, and small grant initiative towards assisting female entrepreneurs to procure ICT tools to boost their business efficiency and ultimately, generate more sales.”

Another training workshop in Digital Marketing is scheduled to be held in Soufriere at the beginning of April. Other sessions scheduled for April include a workshop on Grant application, another on Effective PowerPoint Presentations and a Women in ICT Conference.

The Caribbean Regional Communications Infrastructure Programme (CARCIP) seeks to increase access to regional broadband networks and to advance the development of an ICT-enabled services industry in the Caribbean Region.

CARCIP is being implemented by the Ministry of Public Service, Information and Broadcasting. Component 2 namely, ICT Led Innovation focuses on St. Lucia’s strategy to position itself as a formidable destination for IT and IT-Enabled Services (ITES) through the provision of a Business Incubator Grant to SME(s) for technology based business development projects and a Training Grant for human capacity building and skills certification of which fifty percent of the direct project beneficiaries should be women. It is expected that this component will have impact at the micro-level in increased revenue from IT/ITES industry, job creation, improved skills; and increased productivity and competitiveness. ¤

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IDB, OAS Urge Latin America and the Caribbean to Strengthen Efforts on Cyber Security

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eaders of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Organisation of American States (OAS) have called on countries of Latin America and the Caribbean to step up their efforts on cyber security after releasing a new study, carried out by the two institutions with the support of Oxford University, that show the region is highly vulnerable to potentially devastating cyberattacks.

“This report is a call to action to protect our citizens and our critical infrastructure for the 21st century,” said IDR President Luis Alberto Moreno. “Our region arrived late to the Industrial Revolution. We cannot miss the opportunity that the Digital Revolution offers us,” he said. “Because of that, cyber security must be a priority.”

OAS Assistant Secretary General, Nestor Mendez, emphasised that cyberspace is increasingly becoming an integral part of the daily life of people in the Americas, and is indispensable to their total development. “That is why we have to regard cyber security like any other kind of security: an issue of the highest priority for our people, without which we expose ourselves to potentially catastrophic losses,” he said.

The risks of abuse increase as Latin America and the Caribbean join the digital revolution. The region is the fourth largest mobile market in the world. Half its population uses the Internet.

Sixteen countries in the region have no coordinated capacity to respond to incidents. Only four rank above the intermediate level of maturity in this respect.

The report also received the collaboration of the Centre for Strategic International Studies, the Getulio Vargas Foundation, the FIRST Organisation, the European Council, the Potomac Institute and the World Economic Forum. ¤ Courtesy: Citizens Report Guyana

The 2016 cyber security report, ‘Are we ready in Latin America and the Caribbean?,’ shows that four out of every five countries in the region do not have a cyber security strategy or plans for protecting critical infrastructure. Two out of three countries do not have a command and control center for cyber security.

And a large majority of prosecutors lack the capacity to punish cybercrimes and face other problems as well.

The report analyses the state of preparedness of 32 countries based on 49 indicators. It is the first significant examination of the level of preparedness in Latin America and the Caribbean against the growing threat of cybercrime.

Uruguay, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, China, Colombia and Trinidad and Tobago have achieved an intermediate level of preparedness, but remain far from advanced countries like the United States, Israel, Estonia and the Republic of Korea.

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BUSINESSTECH TECH BUSINESS

C&W Business Launches its Cloud Solutions Suite in St. Lucia

C&W Business Awarded 2015 Mid-Market Partner of the Year Award by Avaya

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Company Recognized as Top Channel Partner Americas International

&W Business, part of Cable & Wireless Communications Plc (CWC), has been recognized by Avaya, a global leader in business communications software, systems and services, as the 2015 MidMarket Partner of the Year Americas International.

The company received the top channel partner award during Avaya’s annual Executive Partner Forum event held in San Diego, California in February, 2016.

C&W Business received the award for its innovative solutions in delivering comprehensive and unified communications to meet customer needs across the Caribbean and Latin American region.

C&W has been a recipient of a Mid-Market partnership award from Avaya for the past six years and has been Avaya’s platinum Partner during this time, the highest partner status level in Avaya’s Channel Relationship hierarchy.

C&W Business has a long tradition of bringing top-level services to customers and is the longest Platinum Certified Avaya Partner in the Caribbean and Latin American region. C&W Business currently has over 30,000 units installed and maintained in all segments and verticals in the region.

“We congratulate C&W Business for its well-deserved distinction as a 2015 Avaya Partner of the Year. We are pleased our channel partners not only see the value of Avaya’s technology, but are highly effective at communicating that value to their endcustomers. We celebrate our Partners of the Year for being true ambassadors of our technology and thank them for their continued support, dedication and laser focus on a customerfirst approach,” said Steve Biondi, vice president, Global Partner Organization, Avaya. ¤

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&W Business, the business-to-business unit of Cable & Wireless Communications, has officially unveiled a suite of its cloud-based technological solutions in St. Lucia.

The three-day event, which took the form of a Customer Roundtable, was held at the Almond Morgan Bay Beach Resort on January 27th, 2016 and was attended by dozens of business owners and corporate executives from St. Lucia’s business community.

A delegation of C&W Business executives and ICT product experts from across the region convened at the roundtable to present and discuss the company’s new suite of business solutions and products designed to help businesses cope in a fast-changing and competitive environment.

C&W Business offers a range of state-of-the-art solutions that include connectivity, managed network services, IaaS desktop as a service (DaaS) and co-location services, workspace solutions, small business solutions, IT solutions and Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) for businesses.

The topics discussed at the Customer Roundtable included disaster recovery and cloud continuity, IT as a service, developing an efficient mobile workforce, managed security, managed WAN/LAN services and unified communication technologies. It was all designed to help the participants better understand how IT can help make them more efficient and enhance the day-today running of their organisations. The C&W Business team also conducted a staff training session.

Vice President, C&W Ventures Business, Diane McAuliffe said, “We are launching a new portfolio of value based solutions on top of the world class and secure infrastructure services that we provide.” As a leading ICT provider globally, we look forward to serving St. Lucia’s business community and helping it become more competitive using the enhanced services offered by C&W Business.”

C&W Business was recently placed above international counterparts engaged in the business of technology by the Gartner Magic Quadrant report. It outranked companies such as IBM, Amazon, AT&T, Fujitsu, Microsoft, Verizon and Hewlett Packard for providing disaster recovery as a service (DRAAS). ¤

FAST CASH

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BUSINESSTECH TECH BUSINESS

Free ICT Training and Certification for Saint Lucia’s Unemployed Youth

C&W and Whats App Sign Partnership

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Cable & Wireless’s brands—Flow, BTC, and LIME—are currently the only officially authorised providers of WhatsApp data bundles in the Caribbean region.

The IAU offered regional and international certification in six (6) different ICT courses namely: Database Management, Multimedia Production, Information Communication Technology, Computer Maintenance and Repair, Systems Analysis and Design, and Internet Security.

able & Wireless (C&W) and WhatsApp have entered into a strategic marketing partnership. A first for the Caribbean, this exciting deal offers C&W customers access to the full range of WhatsApp features across the company’s networks. As a result of this partnership, C&W will introduce a suite of innovative packages with additional benefits for customers, which will be unveiled across all its markets in the coming months.

The agreement between Cable & Wireless with the world’s leading mobile messenger application, WhatsApp, highlights C&W’s commitment to bring the best value to customers through strategic partnerships. “Since the emergence of Over The Top (OTT) Communication services, Cable & Wireless has maintained our commitment to work with authorised service providers to ensure customers have access to world-leading services on their devices, running on the region’s best networks,” said John Reid, C&W’s consumer group president.

“We are excited to work with Cable & Wireless to help people across the Caribbean stay better connected with friends and family,” said Brian Acton, co-founder of WhatsApp. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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he Caribbean Regional Communications Infrastructure Programme commenced FREE training in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the south of the island in February.

The training was undertaken in collaboration with the International American University (IAU) located in Vieux-Fort.

The CARCIP ICT Skills Development Programme forms part of the government’s overall strategy to increase economic growth, through the enhancement of productivity and technical expertise within the local ICT sector. The programme is currently being implemented by the Ministry of Public Service, Information & Broadcasting in collaboration with the TVET Unit of the Ministry of Education, Human Resource Development and Labour.

Under its ICT Skills Development Programme, CARCIP commenced ICT training and certification in October 2015.

Currently, there are over 200 students being trained under the programme. ¤

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DIGICEL BUSINESS INSTALLS CLOUD BASED CAMERA MONITORING SYSTEM AT DUTY FREE POINTE SERAPHINE

DAWN LAMBERT - Operations Manager Duty Free Pointe Seraphine PHILBERT LUBRIN - Digicel Corporate Sales Manager

Invest Saint Lucia has partnered with Digicel Business by introducing Digicel Eye, A Cloud-Based video monitoring system that has been designed to cover the Duty Free Pointe Seraphine Shopping Complex providing 24/7 surveillance.

Digicel Eye makes it easier for Invest Saint Lucia to keep track of their business operations via a fully managed CCTV service without the expense and hassle of hardware purchase, installation and maintenance, thereby providing huge savings to Invest Saint Lucia.

Digicel Eye comes with round the clock customer support as well as “storage in the cloud” – eliminating the possibility of data loss or manipulation when customers need it most – in the event of a natural disaster, physical damage or theft and providing access to from any location on any device.

Lyndon Samuel, IT Systems Manager of Invest St Lucia commented, ‘The IT team can rest assured that the cloud-based Digicel Eye will ensure guaranteed 99.9% uptime and always available BusinessFocus Apr / May | 18 access.’

Digicel Eye is powered by the latest Stratocast technology which offers a number of unique features that can be accessed from multiple devices (smartphone, tablet, laptop, desktop etc.) – allowing customers to monitor, tag, share and export their video clips wherever they are in the world. The system uses the latest technology in cloud-computing platforms to eliminate the need for on-premise servers and storage, making it easier, cheaper and more reliable than traditional offerings. The solution comes with a wide range of high definition video surveillance equipment tailored to individual needs.

Digicel Eye allows you to monitor your property at anytime and anywhere. View live and recorded video that is safely stored in the cloud from your laptop, tablet or smartphone.

Contact Digicel Business today at: 1-(758) -724-6001 Or digicelbusinessslu@digicelgroup.com BusinessFocus Apr / May

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MONEY MATTERS

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Massy Group Records $919m Profit

Gervase Warner President and CEO of the Massy Group

ervase Warner, President and CEO of the Massy Group, said the conglomerate has embarked on a combination of defensive and offensive strategies to grow in the current challenging economic situation.

In his contribution to the group’s annual report, which was posted on the T&T Stock Exchange yesterday, Warner acknowledged that recent developments, such as the fall in oil prices, economic instability in Europe and unrest caused by radical, fundamentalist groups in some parts of the world, contributed to challenging times for businesses.

He maintained, however, that in these times “companies have to work even harder and be even more creative to rise to the challenge to grow.”

He said: “Massy in fact was birthed in such an environment.

In the global depression of the 1930s most import/export and distribution businesses were in difficulty. It was as a result of this recessionary pressure that Harry Neal and Charles Massy decided to merge their companies—an engineering company and a motor company to form Neal & Massy Engineering in 1932.

“As it was then, our commitment over the past year was about being smarter about how we operate, finding and building strategic partnerships and seeking out opportunities for growth because we will not allow pessimism to re-define our purpose,” he said.

Warner said Massy’s cost reduction strategy is aimed at operational efficiency rather than cost cutting.

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“We are pursuing opportunities by finding new market segments, exploring strategic investments with long term payoffs and acquiring talent and assets of businesses which become available during a downturn. In some instances we have had to make some difficult decisions, such as divesting businesses which were not a strategic fit for the organisation,” he said His comments came against the backdrop of the release of the Massy’s Group audited results for the 2015 financial year which show a 10.4 per cent increase in the group’s profit before tax to $919 million.

Contributing to these impressive results were Massy’s Automotive & Industrial Equipment Business Unit with a 13 per cent increase over 2014, as well as the Energy & Industrial Gases Business Unit and the Integrated Retail Business Unit, both showing a six per cent increase over 2014.

Warner said Massy’s acquisition strategy contributed $1 billion to a $1.2 billion increase in group revenue, with the recent acquisitions of the majority stake in Consolidated Foods Limited (St. Lucia), Massy Energy Colombia and Massy Delima Grupo Automotriz S.A.S. (Colombia) accounting for $80 million of the profit before tax in 2015 compared to $38 million in 2014.

He said construction of the Methanol and DME plant at Union Industrial Estate, La Brea, which the group is pursuing along with partners Mitsubishi Corporation and Mitsubishi Gas Corporation, is an important part of a diversification strategy that will provide much needed foreign direct investment to T&T and foreign exchange earnings for the group. ¤ Courtesy: Trinidad Guardian

Profits Up

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n February, First Citizens reported profit after tax of $179.9 million for the three months ending December 31, 2015, which represents an increase of 1.2 per cent compared with the previous year, according to the bank’s chairman Anthony Smart.

First Citizens’ non-interest income increased by 33.7 per cent, compared with its first quarter in 2014, which was “in keeping with our income diversification strategy, due to increased contributions from fee-based business lines.”

The bank said that the impact of lower oil prices on the domestic economy makes proactive asset management critical, and it is continuing to redeploy asset to achieve higher yields.

According to the bank, the impact of that strategy was evident in the reduction of its loan notes and increases in loans to customers. The bank reduced its loan notes by 60 per cent, while its loans to customers increased by 12.7 per cent to $13.48 billion. Loans to customers comprised just under one-third of the bank’s total asset in its first quarter.

Chairman Smart said the board of the majority state-owned bank continued to be proud of the strength of the banking group, stating: “Our balance sheet is well capitalised and shows strong liquidity buffers and a diversified funding base.”

In an Initial Public Offering in 2013, the State sold 20 per cent of its 96 per cent stake in the holding company for the bank. ¤ Courtesy: Trinidad Guardian

Scotia bank Profits Up 17%

S Spain.

Scotiabank Managing Director Anya Schnoor

cotiabank Trinidad and Tobago Ltd has reported net income after taxation of $157 million for the quarter ended January 31.

This is an increase of $22 million or 17 per cent over the prior year, Scotiabank managing director Anya Schnoor told shareholders in Early March, at the bank’s annual general meeting at the Hyatt Regency (Trinidad) in Port of

Assets grew three per cent to $22.3 billion, the bank said in a statement. Return on equity (ROE) and return on assets (ROA) in the first quarter of 2016 improved to 17.12 per cent and 2.81 per cent respectively when compared to the same quarter last year.

A slide in Schnoor’s presentation said ROA and ROE made Scotiabank “the leader in (these) key profitability measures” in 2015, with a 2.64 per cent ROA and 15.59 per cent ROE. Competitors Republic Bank had an ROA of 1.97 per cent and ROE of 13.62 per cent. First Citizens followed with an ROA of 1.74 per cent and ROE of 10.03 per cent. RBC had an ROA of 0.91 per cent and ROE of 4.54 per cent, according to the slide.

“Based on our solid performance this quarter, the board of directors approved an interim dividend payment of 40 cents per ordinary share payable on April 9 to shareholders on record as at March 11,” Scotiabank said.

The Toronto-headquartered bank has not been stingy with dividends for stockholders on the T&T Stock Exchange (TTSE), something for which the local board was praised by shareholders from the floor during the question and answer session of the meeting. Prior to this dividend payout, Scotiabank had paid 70 cents per ordinary share on January 8 and another 110 cents per share one-off dividend the same day to shareholders on record as at December 11, 2015.

A chart at the AGM showed “increasing cash returns to shareholders” since 2005.

“Total loans grew by $830 million or seven per cent year-over-year (y-o-y) and our depositors grew by an impressive $1 billion or six per cent over the same period,” Schnoor said.

In its annual report for fiscal year ended October 31, 2015 also released at the AGM, Scotiabank’s “provisions to cater for the inherent risks within the loan portfolio” increased by $10 million (in loan loss expense) compared to the prior year.

Non-performing loans as a percentage of gross loans in 2015 fell to 1.75 per cent, an improvement over the 2014 ratio of 2.15 per cent. In 2015, non-performing loans were $320 million, a reduction of $25 million or ten per cent versus 2014.

Bank chairman Brendan King said: “While Trinidad and Tobago is in a recessionary period, the fundamentals of the economy continue to be strong and we will continue to work with our clients as they achieve their right to be better off.” ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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MONEY MATTERS BUSINESS TECH

LIAT Removes Fuel Surcharges on New Tickets

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ffective March 1, 2016, LIAT, The Caribbean Airline, will complete removal of fuel surcharges on all new tickets booked.

Chief Executive Officer David Evans said oil is now trading at a 12-year low, ending a decade of high jet fuel costs, which has impacted the price of tickets.

“We are committed to offering our customers the most affordable fares so our Finance team regularly reviews the fuel surcharge levels and whenever changes are decided upon we announce them to the market, Mr. Evans said.

CIBC First Caribbean Opens New Finance Centre

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IBC FirstCaribbean has opened a new Finance Centre in Barbados. The new Finance Centre caters to the bank’s platinum, and business banking clients and retail clients applying for a mortgage or consumer loan.

Mark St. Hill, Managing Director, Retail, Small Business and International Banking, Barbados, says the new facility will not only give customers access to superior customer services but position the bank at the fore-front of the market in 2016.

“We continue to listen and respond to the needs of the market.

Our customers continue to seek efficient access to loan financing and other financial solutions. The finance center will also provide dedicated Relationship Management services to our Platinum & Business Banking clients. Our financial advisors will be in a setting that facilitates ease of access and responsiveness to the needs of clients in a professional environment and ensuring we provide timely responses to the most important financial decisions of our clients such as Land and Home ownership, education, auto financing, financing for small businesses etc.”

“In this vein, we reduced the fuel surcharge by 50 percent at the beginning of 2015 and it will now be completely removed from March 2016. This will mean that fares will fall by an average of 5 percent. So, beginning 1st March, customers will only have to pay the airfare and any applicable airport and government taxes when they book a flight.”

While the price of oil has been trending downwards, Mr. Evans explained that the effects of crude oil price reductions take some time to impact on the cost of aviation fuel.

“The jet fuel price to LIAT is on average 90 percent higher than the crude price and it takes on average three to six months for the crude oil price reductions to be applied in the region,” he said.

Mr. Evans said the surge in oil prices since 2003 had turned fuel into one of LIAT’s largest costs. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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The ultra-modern Centre, developed at US$1.5m, offers multiline services that include the latest digital technology, ABM services and an expanded Loan and Mortgage Centre specialising in loan sales and solutions. Clients who visit the office will be greeted upon arrival courtesy of a concierge service and attended to in convenient and confidential client meeting spaces where they will enjoy a personalized banking experience that will be offered by the Bank’s dedicated teams of financial services advisors.

St. Hill explained that the new Centre demonstrates the Bank’s commitment to transforming the banking experience of its customers across its broad footprint not only on the island of Barbados but throughout the wider Caribbean region.

“We have embraced the evolving needs of our customers and will continue to re-position our network for the future. In the coming months, we will be rolling out exciting products in response to our customer’s requests and remain focused on providing an enhanced level of service, convenience and value.” ¤

DEDICATED TO MAKING YOU THE PERFECT HOST, WE PROVIDE OUTSTANDING FOOD AND SUPREME SERVICE Social Catering Services • Corporate Catering Services • Weddings Product Launches • Holiday Celebrations • Bar Services Personalized Menus • Private Chef Phone: 758- 459-6400 • Fax: 758 454 6206 • Web: www.goddard-catering.com

Goddard Catering Group (St. Lucia) Ltd. Hewanora Int'l Airport, P.O. Box #363, Vieux Fort, St. Lucia Phone: 758- 459-6400 • Fax: 758 454 6206 BusinessFocus Apr / May | 23 Website: www.goddard-catering.com or www.goddardenterprisesltd.com • www.paradisewaterstlucia.com

MONEY MATTERS

Grow

OR Disappear

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By Samuel Rosenberg

usiness must consistently grow if it is able to sustain itself over the longer term.

Inflation will eat away at your profits if your sales remain stagnant as any stock you purchase will gradually increase in price, in time, to further reduce your profits. Where your turnover remains stationary, you will need to devise new strategies to boost your business to fight its way into the future.

To push your business forward, you will be required to assess your marketing strategy and expenditure to find ways to increase your turnover and profit levels to boost the returns on your investment.

There are also the psychological factors to take into account when you assess how your business is going to grow. It is very important that you consider the future of your business; otherwise it may gradually slow down and die.

Many people are struck with fear when they start running a business because they wonder that they might stumble, which may bring dangerous anxieties when they consider any sort of failure.

Individuals need to change their habits and their mind-set. This is not a time for guessing or wishing. You must know your business and your industry so well that you can trust your instincts and push forwards.

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Nevertheless, the right type of growth for your business needs to be carefully planned as bigger and better can also cause your business to collapse if you have not prepared for too much growth, too soon. You may outstrip your own personal capacity and be unable to manage your working processes, quality and financial controls.

There are many examples, like Starbucks and Toyota, who have grown too quickly which resulted in a loss of control of their core business and in the car manufacturer’s example, in too many recalls for problems with their models.

Growth in your business means changing your business and it is better that you understand the limits to the individual and your business when you consider the ability to process change for the benefit of all. Successful growth must be sustainable and that will be achieved by combining the best leadership with the finest culture and first-class processes.

Tough decisions may need to be taken for business growth and this will affect your management team, your employees as well as your customers. The evolution of this cycle is continuous which is why you will plan for any changes in the future, however difficult they are.

A high level of focus and discipline is required for your business to continue to grow, instead of wilting and dying away.

There must be sufficient cash flow within

your business to be able to cope with the levels of growth that are anticipated. You will be setting a list of priorities that must be dealt with as your business continues to grow. This will mean thinking ahead about the education and skills that will be required in the future.

You can minimise your problems by planning ahead and preparing for all eventualities. You can never know exactly how much your business will grow as you will be consistently re-evaluating all of your marketing and strategies, but without preparation, the future of your business may look bleak. This is good news because it keeps you on your toes and helps you think about how you can provide better service to your customers and continue to grow. ¤

Samuel Rosenberg is the founder and CEO of Axcel Finance Ltd., the leading regional microfinance institution. Share your thoughts and email your questions to srosenberg@axcelfinance.com

Let Us Build Your Financial Future Together Manage your wealth with First Citizens Investment Services.

With our in depth knowledge of the ďŹ nancial markets and our unparalleled personalised service, we make meeting your investment goals our top priority.

Call or visit today.

Trinidad & Tobago 1 (868) 622 3247 | 1 (868) 657 2662 St. Lucia 1 (758) 450 2662 Barbados 1 (246) 417 6810 St. Vincent 1 (784) 453 2662

First Citizens Investment Services Limited is a licensed broker/dealer in the Eastern Caribbean Securities Market and is also incorporated in Barbados as First Citizens Investment Services (Barbados) Limited.

1 (868) 62-FIRST (623-4778) | www.ďŹ rstcitizenstt.com

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Issue date: July 2nd, 2015

MONEY MATTERS

ECCU

Bankers Association Appoints

New

President

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resident of the St. Lucia Bankers Association, Mr. Andy Delmar has been appointed President of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) Bankers Association.

The ECCU Bankers Association was established in 2004 to promote, foster and advocate for the common interests of banking institutions and the banking industry generally in the countries of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union.

The banking industry is a strong driver of regional economies and contributes annually hundreds of millions of dollars towards their Gross Domestic Product. The banking system facilitates financing for consumers and businesses; assists families in purchasing homes, financing their children’s education, and saving for retirement. It also helps small businesses to grow and thrive, thus providing economic benefits to all citizens in the ECCU region.

According to the newly appointed president “The region faces many challenges such as lack of key legislation to make the industry attractive to potential investors and credit easily available to businesses and individuals. Our goal as an Association is to work with stakeholders to prioritize and support the initiatives which will make the region a world class jurisdiction for financial service providers while delivering greater value to customers and the communities that we serve” A Fellow of the Institute of Canadian Bankers, Mr. Delmar firmly believes that a well-functioning banking system is of paramount importance to the region. Mr. Delmar is currently the Managing Director of 1st National Bank St. Lucia Limited. ¤

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HYDRATION

the key to skin that glows from within Introducing Neutrogena@ Hydro Boost Water Gel. Has your skin started to lose its get up and glow? Dehydration is a common culprit. Formulated with hyaluronic acid, new Hydro Boost is clinically proven to quench skin instantly and release continuous hydration all day. Skin is plump, deeply hydrated, and back to its glowing self.

• Lightweight gel texture WHAT IS

• Oil free

HYALURONIC ACID?

Hyaluronic acid (HA), naturally found in skin, is a powerful hydrator that holds up to 1,000 times its weight in water. It plays a critical role in keeping skin cells* hydrated and “plumped,” resulting in supple, youthful-looking skin. We lose Hyaluronic acid over time, but the added HA in Hydro Boost works to help keep skin hydrated and smooth, with a healthy-looking glow.

neutrogena.com/hydroboost

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*stratum corneum layer Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. 2016

FEATURE

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Renwick 50 Years in Service to the Nation; Time for a

Transformation

It’s the golden jubilee year for one of Saint Lucia’s most outstanding businesses – one that underlines the essence of commitment, adaptation and molding with equal resulting success.

Founded as a pesticide import company in 1966, Renwick has since grown into the island’s most reliable commercial import company with hundreds of popular and growing brands under its management.

And as with any successful business or entity, after 50 years, there needs to be a reassessment of the overall operation and the moving and shaking of its management structure to accommodate another 50 years of sustained growth.

On that note, Renwick & Company is now moving forward with a system of strategic realignment in its bid to guarantee a future that is equally or more successful than the past 50 years. This is where the renowned expertise of organizational transformation and leadership development expert Robert Wynter comes in.

Wynter has joined hands with the Renwick family, Christopher and Cheryl, and together they are continuing to build on a foundation that would guarantee the excellence of Renwick & Company for decades to come.

In an interview with Business Focus, Wynter said, “Being around for 50 years it must mean that Christopher was doing something right, especially to maintain the level of success the company has been known for. But the environment has really changed over these past five decades and they have recognized that the time has come to transform themselves.”

He said this recognition is the first step in the future of Renwick & Company maintaining its standing as a major organization in Saint Lucia and across the Caribbean.

So, Renwick & Company is charting a new way forward – one that will see renewed dedication from management and team talents across all departments of the company.

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While the company has managed to stay ahead of the competition, it has recognized that there is indeed competition and with it more informed and exposed consumers.

“A lot of conglomerates have come together and have made it testing for Renwick & Company as it relates to the business environment. But they have favored well and will continue to do so with its new approach,” Wynter said.

He added, “We are now engaging everyone – senior management and all staff members in understanding where they are now and seeking their thoughts on the future of the company.”

This engagement has resulted in a strategic thinking-like process, which had the overall Renwick & Company team make a series of choices as part of efforts to ensure that new opportunities for the company are exploited, threats are dealt with and other areas are addressed to ensure that we are not negatively affected by the environment. ¤

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Chris Renwick: The Man, the Entrepreneur, the Philanthropist!

At an early age Christopher Renwick made the arduous decision of forfeiting his schooling to take care of his family with the untimely passing of his father. Unfortunately for most, even in today’s society such decisions are not farfetched. But Renwick, sought, although unconsciously, to prove the exception.

This remarkable lad, at the tender age of 16, found himself in the working arena, but even with limited schooling, his intellect would be recognized and embraced at Barclay’s Bank in St. George’s Grenada where he stayed for five years.

Most are not aware that Christopher Renwick was born in Grenada.

At the point of what was supposed to be a rewarding career with Barclay’s, Renwick received a proposition he could not refuse – an offer with an accounting firm in Saint Lucia, headed by Willie Rapier, a family friend.

Christopher jumped at the opportunity and with his wife, Marjorie, along with their daughter Cheryl, relocated to the Helen of the West Indies.

It wasn’t until six years later that Renwick realized that he had developed a keen interest in the marketing aspect of business.

There began the evolution of Christopher Renwick – the Entrepreneur, who began his focus in the marketing of agricultural chemicals. It was these same chemicals that would set the foundation of the formidable Renwick and Company that we know today.

Throughout the years, even from the time of his seemingly untimely need to forfeit his standard education, Renwick’s motto has always been to make a fair profit and to remain a good corporate citizen.

On top of being a model entrepreneur, Renwick is thought of by his staff as well as outsiders, as a model employer.

His aim has consistently been to provide a good working environment for his employees and to reward them fairly for their efforts. To re-emphasize just how dedicated he is to his staff, the company added a human resource department after recognising that a staff compliment nearing 50 at the time, was just too much for one man to manage on his own.

For Renwick, the hallmarks for the success of any company is seen through hard, dedicated work, honesty and integrity; qualities that he certainly possesses. He forges this stance with the proverb “you must give if you want to receive.”

Over the past 50 years Renwick, both the man and entrepreneur, has contributed considerably in the area of corporate community investment, and personally through his dedicated service as a member of the Rotary organisation since the early 1970s.

And while he is no longer as physically active in the community projects, his support in all forms are felt throughout the Saint Lucian community.

It is not surprising that after 50 years, Christopher still maintains the same level of vigour and approach with which he began his company in 1966 – often boasting of being the first at work even after all this time and holding the same level of intensity and passion for the success and growth of the operation.

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Image of Renwick Building Renwick & Company Corporate Offices In 2006, he revealed the source of his discipline in a sit-down with Business Focus. Then, he cited Barclay’s – the bank and organisation that first entrusted him at the tender at age of 16.

There he said one of his most primary of principles was recognised – and that is not to put aside what can be done today, for tomorrow.

Now in 2016, that principle still stands as firmly as it did in 1966 and in 2006. Christopher recognises the daunting fact that the Saint Lucian consuming public – a largely travelling one – are as aware of the concept of competition and options and are not afraid to exercise it. And his job is to meet and in most cases, exceed these expectations. ¤

Chris Renwick Addressing Staff at Launch of 50th Anniversary Celebrations BusinessFocus Apr / May

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CHRISTOPHER RENWICK

Lifetime Achievement Award

A Citation for Presentation of a Lifetime Achievement Award by the St Lucia Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture to Mr Christopher Renwick at the 2014 St Lucia Business Awards.

By Nahdjla Bailey

Chris Renwick & Dr. Charmaine Gardner BusinessFocus Apr / May

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Chris & Marjorie Renwick and their extended family

QUOTE #1: “The two most important requirements for major success are: first, being in the right place at the right time, and second, doing something about it!”

(Ray Kroc) Renwick & Company Ltd began as a small operation at #19 Bridge Street, Castries in January 1966 founded by Mr. Christopher Renwick.

QUOTE #2: Lead with your own participation in a way that you believe will create value and will invite others to do the same. (Suzanne Mayo Frindt) The year 1968 witnessed the advent of T Geddes Grant (Trinidad) into St Lucia and the establishment of what would become a healthy and lucrative association which consolidated and advanced the growth of the newly renamed Company – Renwick & Geddes Grant.

Chris Renwick with former PM King and H.E. Dame Pearlette Louisy after receiving his OBE

QUOTE #3: Successful people are simply those with successful habits. When I meet successful people I ask 100 questions as to what they attribute their success to. It is usually the same: persistence, hard work and hiring good people. (Kiana Tom)

Four Generations of Renwick men

Chris Renwick’s son Stephen Renwick and family BusinessFocus Apr / May

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Family is also very dear to his heart. He describes himself as a “family man” who is committed to maintaining the tradition of a close knit family.

A quiet, admittedly reserved and conservative man, Chris Renwick seeks neither publicity nor fame. Simple and modest, he prefers to go quietly about his business of working hard, and helping others do well wherever he can.

QUOTE # 5 – HIS very OWN: “Work hard and do good by others.” (Christopher Renwick) Over the years Mr. Renwick has been very involved in volunteerism through Rotary fundraising functions across the whole island and giving back through Rotary community projects. For the years Rotary organized the Treasure Hunt, Mr. Renwick personally encouraged most of the Company’s large overseas suppliers to support this worthy cause resulting in the largest number of cars participating from any one company Mr Renwick was President of the Rotary Club of St Lucia at the time the Club twinned with the Rotary Club of Guelph, Canada and he was instrumental in getting support from the Canadian Rotarians to build laundries in many of the rural communities to get the citizens in those districts to use the laundries instead of the rivers which were infested with bilharzia.

Through Renwick & Co and with the assistance of suppliers, Mr. Renwick has been personally involved in numerous community projects, especially benefiting farmers, as recently as Hurricane Tomas.

Also through Renwick & Co, Mr. Renwick participated in the annual clean-up campaign along the highway between his office at Vide Bouteille and north to Marisule, as well as south to the Vigie Playing field.

Mr. Renwick was recognized with the award of an OBE in the Queen’s birthday honours in 2008 for his contribution in the field of business.

Chris & Marjorie Renwick

The Company has since grown from strength to strength which Chris Renwick attributes to long hours of hard work, discipline and a total commitment to the business.

Mr. Renwick also credits the success of his business to his supportive and industrious staff. He is quick to point out that his employees – his business family – have been the backbone of his Company over the years, and to them he is simply “the best boss in town.”

QUOTE #6: Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success.

(Henry Ford) In January of this year, Mr. Renwick celebrated the 50th anniversary of the opening of Renwick & Co Ltd and still employs 110 persons. He began the business servicing the needs of the farmers and today, agriculture is still a very important sector serviced by Renwick & Co.

QUOTE #4: Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.

(William Arthur Ward)

Mr. Renwick declares, “After more than 50 years, I am still the first one at work; I still come to work excited - the passion is still there for the business.” And he repeats his sage advice to aspiring businessmen: “Work hard and do good by others.” It is a philosophy which mirrors his own approach to life and living and is testimony to the success and durability of Renwick the man - and Renwick, the Company.

Helping to make others happy is important to Mr. Renwick. He is a firm believer in making his contribution by helping the less fortunate and maintains an active involvement in the community through the Rotary Club of St Lucia, of which he is a Past President.

Notes: (1) This article is provided with the courtesy of the St Lucia Chamber of Commerce. (2) The content reflected above is an amended version of the original article after changes made by the Publishers due to duplications of content appearing in other articles and space constraints.

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At Renwick, the Future is in Guided Hands

Building a legacy and an empire as formidable as Renwick and Company Ltd over fifty years is only as significant as its plans for continued growth and sustainability long after its founder and revered leader decides to hand over the reins to the next wave of leadership.

That calls for the considerable planning, molding and periodic adjustments across the board in a systematic manner that allows for steady growth and confidence in the next generation.

This is where we must further applaud the visionary leadership of Christopher Renwick and his ability to not only capitalize on business opportunities, but also to capitalize on the scarcely

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committed human resource capital made available to him over the past five decades.

Among those who will be charged with leading this empire for the next fifty years include not only the bloodline of Renwick himself, but those who have stood by him through the growth and success stages of what we know today as the leading distribution company in Saint Lucia.

And induced in the list of successors is his daughter and current Deputy Managing Director and Operations Director of Renwick and Company Cheryl Renwick, who by all accounts is her father’s right arm and by fair extension the extended spine of this evergrowing company.

Cheryl has always maintained a considerable presence in the Renwick Operations, with a presence in almost every department at almost every level. She is also a member of the company’s Board of Directors.

She owns her father’s vision but does so in a manner that embraces evolving technologies and trends in the local and global markets. And as with any formidable “second in command” Cheryl has imparted considerable vision that has added significantly to the steady growth of the Renwick brand.

“It is only fair that I build on my father’s and by extension our family’s legacy. It is no longer about an individual and I believe my father has long recognized and come to embrace that. Just a quick glance around our organization and one can easily grasp the extent to which he embraces the future of the company and the trusting hands he has personally guided. Our future is that much more guaranteed and brighter with his faith and support in us as a team dedicated to the same cause,” Cheryl told Business Focus.

In 2003, Christopher Renwick spoke to us at Business Focus about the “many changes” at Renwick & Co. and its preparation for “a new era in its corporate existence”. Back then, now Deputy Managing Director and Operations Director, Cheryl Renwick was looking at the process of strategic planning to rope in consultants to assist with the preparation for the “next phase” of the Renwick development. It might be fair to assume that her steering of this aspect of the company’s growth has registered well with her father.

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Joining Cheryl on the Board is the company’s Human Resource Director Julie Bonnett, whose history with the company is second only to Cheryl – without direct blood ties.

Julie has climbed the ladder like no other. Exploring the ins and out of every department at almost every level before settling in the capacity of Human Resources where she professes to have found her natural calling.

What makes Julie an excellent part of the succession plan at Renwick is her unwavering commitment to growing professionally and personally with the company having invested decades of her own life in the success of an operation that began as a mere idea in 1966.

Leaders the caliber of Julie are few and far in between in the private sector and Renwick has equalled her commitment with his personal and professional support to her growth and success.

This allowed for a level of professional growth that was matched with personal comfort and job security. For Renwick, Julie’s success was his success, and this is the level of faith and commitment he has placed in a number of his senior team members who have all joined his hands in steering and fostering the growth of the company.

Other Directors include Kelvin Jean - Finance Director. Mr. Kelvin Jean is the Director of Financial Operations.

Julie Bonnett - H.R. Director

In 1990 he acquired a Bsc in Economics and Accounting from the University of the West Indies. In 1994 he gained an Msc in Finance from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow Scotland, and in 1997 he attained his CGA accreditation.

In 1998, Mr. Jean joined the team at Renwick & Company Limited as the Financial Controller, and in December 2003 he was appointed Director of Financial Operations. In his capacity, he oversees the finance function of the company.

Mr. Jean is a member of the following professional bodies: • Certified General Accountant (CGA) • Forensic CPA Society • Institute of Professional Financial Managers • OECS Institute of Chartered Accountants • Caribbean Institute of Chartered Accountant BusinessFocus Apr / May

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Kelvin Jean - Finance Director.

We’ll move the earth to please Happy 50th Anniversary Renwick & Company Ltd.

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Cheryl Renwick and her sons Rhian (L) and Dominique (R) What is more is the extended foresight that looks to cover the company’s sustainability at the operational level.

This is being looked at from the third of the Renwick generations in the likes of brothers Dominque and Rhian Rivers and their sister Melissa Rivers – grandsons and granddaughter respectively of Christopher Renwick and the children of Cheryl Renwick.

Both Dominique and Rhian have literally started their careers in the family empire from the bottom, understanding its inner workings from levels that would elude most. From summer jobs to fulltime line positions.

Dominique and Rhian are literally working their way through the ranks of the company.

Melissa like her brothers has had her grounding from an early age working in various departments of the Renwick operations under the guiding hand of her mother and grandfather. She has since progressed to following through with her University education and a year ago completed her Master’s Degree and is due to join the company soon in the Sales and Marketing Division.

While their progression is addressed in the “career” piece of this extensive coverage of Renwick, it is worth mentioning that vision covering two generations beyond your own is one that exemplifies extensive planning, foresight and most of all – faith.

Forced to bare the responsibilities of a man years before his legal age to even claim the right, Christopher Renwick has underlined and by fair argument defined what it means to own your own, build upon it and leave enough for future generations to extend upon.

Going back 13 years ago, Christopher Renwick told Business Focus, “I just want to see the company become more efficient, and, with the support of our employees, to be able to survive in this age of globalization…” ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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Cheryl Renwick‘s daughter Melissa

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Five tiers to guarantee future Renwick success

Any plans for transformation must be undertaken in a structured manner and this is where the guidance of Managing Director of Strategic Alignment Limited, Robert Wynter, comes in.

Wynter is known throughout the Caribbean for facilitating organizational transformation and leadership development. His work and expertise have even been sought after by governments throughout the region.

He told Business Focus that for Renwick, there is a five-tier process of organizational change and conditioning that is currently ongoing under his guidance – so seamlessly that the public seems not to have caught on.

This process began with mobilizing the company’s leadership in a manner that looked to convince them that the strength of the company’s future demanded change. And him simply being on board, was enough to cement this fact and “unfreeze” the Renwick leadership.

Establishing and conveying the vision for the future of the company was tier two and this was purely to determine what Cheryl Renwick and by fair extension the founder, Christopher Renwick, wanted the company to look like by 2025. With Cheryl Renwick well on her way to fully taking over the company, it is important that this vision lines up with her first.

“This is looking forward and it is almost like we want to create our own vision and path and create a way to get there,” Wynter explains.

Having established this new and exciting vision, the next challenge in the five-tier process was strategic thinking. Now, while strategic thinking is something that must always exist within any organization, it is with most significance that this is intensified and takes a focal point during a period of transition and rethinking.

“How do we get from here to 2025,” Wynter questioned. “There are choices to be made and strategic planning must be employed – because we have limited resources and because we must make choices in keeping with the limits of these resources.”

According to the renowned consultant, lines, focus and possibilities for expansion are important, and Renwick is ensuring that these are all aligned to guarantee a secure and bright future.

“As long as we make these choices and there is a roadmap we then need to realign the company to that new strategy,” he said.

And this is precisely what the fourth tier entails – realignment.

Wynter explained that some changes in even major companies fail because of attempts to employ new strategies and policies without either reshaping the thinking of the existing leadership team, or – more drastically – replacing these talents where necessary.

“It is tantamount to trying to pour new wine into old wine spaces. So the challenge is realigning the organization to the new strategy,” he said.

Completing the structure is what Wynter rightly calls, “flawless execution.”

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Image His excitement in this particular process coupled with the energy of the Renwick team, leads him to believe that the future of the company in Saint Lucia and possibly across the Caribbean, is indeed a bright one.

“I think the 2025 vision is bright. Renwick has a bright future ahead and I think moving forward it will be able to adapt.

How they prepare for changes in the future is equally important as how they prepare now.”

Management, he said, has been slowly accepting the realities of the change necessary for the company’s future, but this – he admits – is a “normal part of the process.”

“There have naturally been hiccups and resistance along the way and that is good, it simply means that the process is working.

“I am very convinced that they will be able to achieve the required change and secure the kind of future that Christopher Renwick would be proud of,” Wynter said.

Moreover, he advised the environment for growth and development can only be created by the synergy, effectiveness and efficiency of every single Renwick director, department head and team member.

He said improving Renwick’s performance, and that of any business, can be achieved through either continuous improvement using a tactical approach or by fundamentally transforming itself using a strategic approach.

The conclusion is simple, according to Wynter, and that is that these initiatives could require minimal expenditure but must be driven by sheer will. ¤

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Restructuring for 50 more years of

success

Restructuring is one of the most essential processes to maintain growth. And what makes this process even more exciting at Renwick & Company, is the fact that it is simultaneously undertaking what is called a process of Progressing, as Christopher Renwick approaches and embraces retirement and Cheryl Renwick prepares to fully take the reins of the company.

Organizational transformation and leadership development consultant Robert Wynter sees this as an electrifying era of transition for Renwick that weds impeccably with the company’s jubilee year.

“It is almost a new era and this transition is coming at a time when we have the environmental changes taking place,” Wynter said.

He explained that this process is being facilitated with a firm revision of senior roles in the company – bringing into line the new vision with the right minds being in the right places.

“We now need to ensure that the company has the proper management in place to guarantee that this transition into the future is a smooth one,” he said.

Of course any change takes some digesting but Christopher Renwick has managed to build such a formidable team that the transition hiccups have been kept to a minimum. He, as one would expect, is actually innately involved – mostly from the observation perspective – in the transition process, adding his seasoned expertise to the process as a matter of reference.

From the perspective of the consultant, “It is important that we have the right people and businesses processes in place. It is also important that we continue to have the right relationships with both customers and suppliers.”

This means that Renwick going forward will be investing considerably in additional training for its team dealing directly with the public, as well as in evolving technologies that will undoubtedly make doing business a more exciting and up-tothe-minute process for both management and customers alike.

According to Cheryl Renwick – the company’s Operations Director, “We have to look at the technology that supports everything that we do, from inventory to delivery and customer service. The latter, as all of Saint Lucia might know, has always been at the forefront of my father’s business model. I remember him not being able to sleep at night if he didn’t feel every customer received the best possible attention and care.”

She said too that the future leadership of her father’s company was not in anyway going to be irresponsible in its bid to stay significant. That means not over-loading on inventory, nor of course under-loading in its process of transformation.

“We can’t afford to be irresponsive, load up too much inventory or not enough inventory and more. We have to keep an eye on the existing and evolving market and adapt accordingly. So we have to ensure that we are managing all these things effectively going forward,” she said.

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Image Both Cheryl and Robert agree also that there is a further fundamental culture change that the company would have to undertake – shifting from what stood over the past five decades, to something new and sustainable for the next five decades.

“Performance management system, in properly managing this is very important. All Human Resource management systems and all systems supporting purchasing and selling – from technology to finance, marketing and merchandising, are the points that are going to make the difference between sinking and swimming. ¤

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For decades Renwick and Company has consistently brought state of the art solu4ons to our dynamic farm communi4es, fostering food security throughout the Caribbean.

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Preparing Renwick for the Future

Robert Wynter is the founder, Managing Director and Principal Consultant/Strategist with Strategic Alignment Limited, and prior to forming Strategic Alignment Limited in July 2009, he was a founding partner in Growth Facilitators which for most of the past decade (2001 – 2009) was the leading Strategic Planning, Leadership Development and Transformation Coaching firm in the Caribbean.

Robert worked as a Process Engineer and Operations Manager in the bauxite/alumina, metal fabrication, food processing and scientific research sectors. He operated his own Engineering, Environmental and Management Consulting firm, Chardale Development Limited before forming Growth Facilitators.

With a background in Chemical Engineering with Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from University of Toronto and McGill University respectively, Robert built on his process thinking honed as an engineer and with a MBA from the West Virginia College of Graduate studies in the USA, he has launched into a career in Management Consulting with special emphasis on Strategic Transformation and Leadership Development.

Robert is also a Certified Professional Facilitator and a member of the International Association o f Facilitators (IAF). He has presented at IAF conferences in South Africa in 2008 Finland in 2010.

Robert is a Kaplan and Norton certified Balanced Scorecard Practitioner and has served on several Boards in Jamaica. ¤

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The Importance of the Renwick Management Structure and Succession Plans

The management structure of any company will undoubtedly determine its strength and fortitude in the business environment.

Therefore, it is not surprising that a company with the repute such as Renwick & Company, would need the full and unequivocal support of all its senior personnel in its bid for continued and sustained growth.

In this area consultant Robert Wynter points out that the most important and probably most sensitive thing about succession planning, is whether the company’s existing seniors opt to remain and embrace the change process, or whether they too choose a change of their own.

“The fact is that we need a talented management team. So a very important point of this is the succession plan,” Wynter explained.

He went on to underline that while it was prudent for possible changes in management to be done internally, it is much better to deliberately prepare the existing team to “take over” the operation – developing a sense of ownership among the management that is often lacking in some organizations.

“There is no guarantee that your existing team would remain forever. Therefore, recruiting as well as maintaining a strong management and support system must be one that ensures continued growth.

It is not just about the people there right now, because you can’t always assume they would be there forever,” Wynter said.

Renwick & Co is seen as a responsive organization – one that is not immune to internal and external shifts. That means plans for succession must always always be in place. ¤

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Management

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Kelvin Jean Finance Director

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EXCELLENCE MEETS CONFIDENCE - BEACHCOMBER & SUBARU

“Excellence in Motion” meets “Confidence in Motion” as Beachcomber officially announces its position as distributor in

Saint Lucia for the impressive and luxurious Subaru line, with an official launch of the new brand on March 11, 2016 at its main showroom.

With a range of impressive vehicles now standing firm under one of the fastest growing dealerships on the island, Beachcomber has successfully added to its collection of Premium Quality range of vehicles, with the new star in the ring – Subaru.

The company has built a stellar reputation over the past four decades for introducing some of the best in world class automobiles with unmatched after sales service in Saint Lucia.

This new range created a buzz of sheer excitement with car enthusiasts getting a chance to see, up close and personal, the line of new 2016 All Wheel Drive Subaru models on display.

Timothy Moffat, Marketing Manager at Beachcomber Ltd, said, “Beachcomber has its reputation to live up to, being that it is second to none for servicing. We have a large, extremely well equipped Workshop and Service department. That coupled with the continuous training and certification of our technical staff, Beachcomber spares no effort in ensuring that our customers are treated to the best.”

The comfort, style and overall dynamism of these vehicles, with their Boxer Engines, are still a fact of discussion in the auto ring.

Asked about the company’s decision to align with the Subaru brand, Founder and Managing Director for Beachcomber, David Devaux said, “It’s a Premium Quality brand and we are a company committed to providing only the best and catering to the needs of the people of St. Lucia.”

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Now Offering Catering Services, Menu Diversity and Event Hosting Having set the stage for amazing Indian cuisine and authentic dining experiences in Saint Lucia’s tourism capital, Zaika – the Taste has now made its expertise available on the go.

Director Sachin Narhari announced the establishment’s grand move in a recent sit down with Business Focus.

He said, much like the in house dining experience, Zaika will deliver Catering at its best.

While the restaurant will be available for breakfast and lunch in both buffet and a la carte dining experiences from Indian, Continental, Mexican and even Chinese trained expert hands, Narhari revealed that the increasing demand and the avenues for diversity has allowed for the inclusion of extended services. We are starting the buffet lunch and breakfast for Sundays only for now but have plans to extend it for all days.

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He cited Catering Services being available immediately for parties in two options – one where the event organizers can have meals prepared in Zaika’s state of the art kitchen facility, delivered to an outside location and served by Zaika trained culinary experts, or two, where food could be simply prepared at the Zaika and picked up by the event organizers.

The key to the Catering Service though would be the diversity available to those taking advantage of it. That means, the menu would not simply be limited to Indian Cuisine.

“Our customers are always free to discuss with us what they want. Our chefs are versatile and are willing to even go outside of the menu to prepare what the customers have in mind. We are here to serve you,” Narhari said.

On top of that, Zaika has officially launched its Pool Side Dining experience, and even this location is available for outsourcing, having been home to at least four official parties so far. The venue comes complete with full access to an ostentatious pool and bar with its own servers and access point.

The outdoor marina ambience, with surrounding yachts and overhead stars all add to a blissful atmosphere that can equally be transformed into a cocktail arena or a full-fledged entertainment center.

“Apart form the normal restaurant business we are doing the additions. We can accommodate open air conferences and meeting. White coat ceremonies, graduations and even birthday parties. The possibilities are literally in the hands of those looking for an alternative experience,” said the Zaika Director and Founder.

And just as we thought the Zaika team had exhausted its possibilities, Narhari revealed yet another new addition in the likes of Sunday Lunch Buffet with a versatile vegetarian or meateater menu.

All these are added facilities here at the restaurant. And for those not interested in events of fine dining or even event catering, they can enjoy our two for one pool bar all day.

Now if that’s not putting the cherry on top then, we don’t quite know what is.

Zaika pool bar facilities are opened to patrons from 11:00am to 10:00pm daily and its restaurant is open from 7:00am to 11:00pm.

There is even afternoon tea from 4:00pm to 6:00pm, making it indeed something for everyone.

Come any time. They accommodate. Chefs are always in the kitchen and the culinary team are eager to greet you.

And if you cant be there yourself, don’t worry, you can secure a gift voucher for a spouse, colleague or friend at a cost of EC$20, $50, or $100 which is valid for 60 days. Please call 489 1529 for discount options on Gift Vouchers – win-win situation for all. ¤

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Make it Yours!

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he new Vitara is the latest in a long and successful line of versatile Suzuki products that have become a favourite in markets across the Caribbean. Although the Vitara name was not introduced until 1988, its roots - and its enduring popularity - can be traced even further back, to the opentopped SJ (Small Jeep) models of the early 1970s.

These were rugged good-value packages, which proved hugely popular as both leisure and working vehicles, just as at home with surfers enjoying the beach as with farmers working their fields. As the models evolved and became more sophisticated, so did their owners, growing and travelling Suzuki’s Way of Life!

Suzuki has been in the forefront of the exponential growth in the SUV market for many years. SUV, while meaning different things to different people in different countries, most generally stands for Sports Utility Vehicle, a market sector which has grown so fast over the past 25 or so years that it is now split into a number of size-related segments.

The latest manifestation of Suzuki’s expertise in this market is the Vitara, which builds on those decades of experience.

Currently available in the Caribbean with a 1.6-litre petrol engine, five-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission, 2wheel Drive or ALLGRIP intelligent 4-wheel Drive, the Vitara carries the SUV concept further . . . but without losing the fun element that has been a staple part of its character.

The aim with the new Vitara was to make the driving experience as close as possible to that of the popular and sporty Suzuki Swift - bearing in mind the very different dynamics of the two models, it has certainly come very close.

While the Vitara is quite a high-riding vehicle, body movement is well contained, it backs up its sprightly performance with agile and nimble handling and clings to the road when you step up the pace. The ALLGRIP 4-wheel Drive, which reacts to any terrain and speaks to the ever-greater sophistication on offer, still lets the driver drive!

The steering is light for a vehicle heavier than the Swift and offers plenty of feel, so the Vitara turns into corners with surprising eagerness. The raised driving position and light steering make it well-suited to driving around town but, if you order the optional ALLGRIP 4-wheel Drive and feel like heading to the hills for a little gentle off-roading, then you will definitely find that fun. The Vitara will certainly deal with muddy terrain or slippery tarmac where two-wheel-drive vehicles would be struggling.

The new Vitara has also benefitted from improvements in

With the new Vitara, Suzuki have encouraged you to ‘Make it Yours’ as there’s a huge range of personalisation options.

fuel consumption, thanks to intelligent systems for fuel economy and ALLGRIP intelligent 4-wheel Drive with variable settings. Depending on your journey cycle, the 2wd Vitara will return up to 53mpg, slighter better with the manual transmission than the automatic; even with the ALLGRIP intelligent 4-wheel Drive option, the consumption still hovers around 50mpg.

The stylish exterior clothes a spacious interior and the highsided design means there’s a lot of rear headroom, with sufficient legroom for all but the tallest adults. Extensive seat and steering wheel adjustment means that drivers can get comfortable easily, while there is storage space aplenty.

With the new Vitara, Suzuki have encouraged you to ‘Make it Yours’ as there’s a huge range of personalisation options.

These include contrast roof colour options which lend real class to the Vitara’s appearance: there are six basic body colours and eight two-tone options, while you can select Urban or Rugged styling packs, which feature additions such as extra chrome trim, a tailgate spoiler or tougher skid plates . . . and then there’s a choice of nine different wheel designs. Interior personlisation include options for colour coded dashboard trims, gear change lever, carpet mats, steering wheels and more!

Vitara! – Make it Yours!

The new Suzuki Vitara is available from JQ Motors.

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ENVIRONMENTAL ENVIRONMENTALFOCUS FOCUS

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SLNT Launches Adopt a Reef Programme lthough they are mostly out of sight for those who spend most of their time on land, coral reefs play an essential role as they provide shelter and protection for many species of fish, which feed millions of people annually.

Additionally, without coral the amount of carbon dioxide in the ocean would increase significantly and have a negative effect on all living things.

Notably, coral reefs protect coastal areas from strong currents and waves by reducing the wave energy before it gets to the shore.

So considering those remarkable facts, who wouldn’t want to participate in the ‘Adopt a Reef Programme’?

A two-day workshop was held in January led by the DOF and the Saint Lucia National Trust (SLNT) to improve reef resilience through public-private partnerships towards a sustainable marine ecosystem.

Sixteen persons were targeted to be trained in Reef Check methodology to determine the status of coral reef health.

Reef Check is one of the most widely utilised reef assessment methodology due largely to the largesse and reach of the REEF Check Foundation which is an internationally recognised nongovernmental organisation dedicated to the conservation of coral reef ecosystems.

Coral reef monitoring and conservation has solely been the mandate of the Department of Fisheries, and is conducted on

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an ad hoc basis due to limited staff to monitor the health of our coral reef systems around the island.

Saint Lucia, which is a tourist destination, boasts of its beautiful sandy beaches and marine life, however, with 90% of resorts located along the coast and approximately 75% of which include dive facilities, a true and accurate account of the health of the coral reefs is needed to help determine and guide policy decisions to conserve and improve the resilience of our reefs.

The DOF has developed a good rapport with some dive establishments, however, there is a desire to extend the relationship to hotels/resorts and other agencies like the SLNT so that they could select a reef system and undertake regular and consistent reef monitoring.

Mr. Craig Henry, SLNT’s Programme Officer –South, said “The information gathered from the monitoring will be used to assess the state of reef health as well as to recommend reef restoration and conservation measures to help improve resilience.

Additionally, the programme demonstrates greater partnerships and recognition for the private sector in coral reef management and advocacy.”

Deputy Chief Fisheries Officer, Mr. Thomas Nelson is the lead trainer for the reef check training programme. He is currently the only certified eco dive reef check trainer on island.

The Adopt a Reef Programme is funded by The Nature Conservancy through its Reef Resilience Programme. ¤

Japan & UNDP Kick Start US$15M Caribbean Climate Change Project

World Bank Country Manager for Jamaica, Galina Sotirova

World Bank Provides US$30M Loan for Climate Change in Jamaica

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he World Bank Board says it has approved a US$30 million loan to help enhance Jamaica’s resilience to disaster and climate risk through the promotion of climate and disaster risk management.

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he Government of Japan and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have launched a US$15 million Japan-Caribbean Climate Change Partnership (J-CCCP), in line with the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius and to drive efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

The launch follows a two-day meeting with more than 40 representatives from eight Caribbean countries, including government officials, technical advisors, NGO and UN partners to set out a roadmap to mitigate and adapt to climate change, in line with countries’ long-term strategies. The new initiative will help put in practice Caribbean countries’ actions and policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate change, such as Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).

The Washington-based financial institution notes that Jamaica is one of the most at risk countries in the world, with high percentages of gross domestic product (GDP) and population at risk to two or more natural hazards.

It said damages and losses from hydro-meteorological disasters and earthquakes were estimated at over three billion US dollars between 1988 and 2013. In addition, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the impact of sea level rise and intensified storm surges in Latin America and the Caribbean will be highest in Jamaica.

The government is actively working to reduce the country’s vulnerability to disaster and climate risk through a number of initiatives.

“This project aims to improve the capacity of government agencies to generate and use hazard and risk information to shape local and national development; and make infrastructure more resilient,” said World Bank Country Manager for Jamaica, Galina Sotirova.

It will also boost access to sustainable energy and help reduce fossil fuel imports and dependence, setting the region on a lowemission development path, while addressing critical balance of payments constraints.

The World Bank said among concrete results to be achieved by the Jamaica Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Project are the establishment of a National Risk Information Platform and Coastal Risk Atlas and strengthened seismic monitoring network established; several multi-hazard risk assessments for coastal areas and about 450 government officials and constructors trained on the National Building Code and constructions practices.

Participating countries include Belize, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, the Republic of Guyana, Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Republic of Suriname, benefiting an estimated 200,000 women and men in 50 communities. ¤

“The Jamaica Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Project is financed under a loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) in the sum of US$30 million and will mature in 30 years after a grace period of seven years,” the World Bank said. ¤

Courtesy: Caribbean News Service

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ENVIRONMENTAL ENVIRONMENTALFOCUS FOCUS

Barbados and Japan Sign Agreement to Strengthen Disaster Preparedness Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Maxine McClean, confirms with a hand shake with Ambassador of Japan to Barbados, Mitsuhiko Okada, ...

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arbados and Japan have signed a million dollar agreement aimed at reducing Barbados’ vulnerability to disaster and increasing the island’s resilience.

The agreement for the Japanese Economic and Social Development Programme was signed at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, ahead of the official opening of the Japanese Embassy in Early March.

It provides the government of Barbados with BDS$1.76 million (One Barbados dollar =US$0.50 cents) and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Maxine McClean, noted that the agreement came out of talks held during the CARICOM-Japan Friendship year in 2014.

She said Japan had committed to provide funding to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) governments in the area of Disaster Risk Reduction, as part of its assistance programme.

“As a Small Island Developing State, with a densely populated low-lying coastal zone and tourism-based economy, Barbados has the potential to be severely impacted by meteorological, geological and biological hazards. Therefore, it is necessary to make strategic investments in reducing risks likely to be faced by Barbadian communities, and this agreement with the Government of Japan contributes to the Government’s overall plan of disaster reduction,” she said.

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Japan’s Ambassador to Barbados, Mitsuhiko Okada, who signed the agreement, said that his government was aware of the growing sense of urgency that countries in the Caribbean have toward addressing their vulnerabilities to natural disasters and climate change.

“It is our hope that this grant aid programme will significantly reduce disaster damages in Barbados in the future and will aid Barbados in adapting itself to climate change,” he said, adding that even though Barbados had graduated from receiving Official Development Assistance, (ODA) as specified by the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, (OECD) Tokyo decided to make the funds available as it recognised the importance of disaster risk reduction.

“The Development Cooperation Charter established in February 2015, as the foundation of Japan’s development cooperation, recognises that small island countries in the Caribbean have vulnerabilities that are peculiar to small island states.

“The Charter stipulates that Japan will provide assistance based on individual development needs while bearing in mind the peculiarities of small island countries,” he said. ¤ Courtesy CMC

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ECONOMY & TRADE

350+ CALL CENTRE JOBS FOR JAMAICA

US$6M in Jamaica as we move to totally transform our customer experience. This is certainly a case of putting our money where our mouth is,” Garry Sinclair, CEO Flow Jamaica said at the official signing ceremony.

Expressing his delight at the partnership with Flow Jamaica Joseph M. Matalon, ADV Communications Director and Chairman of its parent Company ICD Group holdings, stated, “This is a proud moment for Advantage Communications; we see our role as a catalyst bringing together the critical elements that allow Flow Jamaica to achieve their customer-focused as well as commercial objectives.”

Scheduled to be fully operational by mid-2016, Advantage has completed the first phase of the programme: “We currently have over one hundred of the best and brightest Jamaicans, trained and developed to deliver unprecedented customer experiences, on the phones serving our Flow patrons,” Joe Matalon also said.

The confirmation of the Call Centre of Excellence partnership marks a major milestone in the company’s journey towards delivering on its commitment to the people of the region.

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low and Advantage Communications Ltd. (ADV) have signed a partnership agreement that sets the stage for Flow’s multi-million dollar investment to repatriate its Customer Call Centre of Excellence to Jamaica, and create some 350+ jobs.

Officials of both companies welcomed the move that will see more Jamaicans finding gainful employment in what is being described as a world class state-of-the-art Customer Call Centre of Excellence never before seen in this part of the world.

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Flow’s Garry Sinclair also expressed confidence in the capacity of ADV to deliver on the already high expectations of the region’s leading telecommunications firm and their customers, and added, “Both Cable & Wireless and Columbus while we were still separate entities worked together to establish ADV’s network infrastructure that today supports their world class operations and which positions them to be able to deliver on this significant initiative.”

The addition of the new operation will bring to two the number of Customer Call Centres of Excellence situated in the Caribbean for the CWC group. The centre will co-exist with Flow’s already operational Call Centre located in Port of Spain, Trinidad.

However, calls originating in Jamaica will be channeled to the Jamaican agents – another compelling example of the company’s commitment to placing the customer at the heart of the business. ¤

1st Floor Financial Centre Building Bridge Street P.O. Box 1860 Castries Tel: (758) 451-3244 | Fax: (758) 458-1222 Website: www.ecglobalinsurance.com | Email: ecglobal@ecfh.com

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ECONOMY & TRADE

Saint Lucia is positioning itself to boost the export capacity of its local enterprises.

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he International Trade Centre has engaged Saint Lucia’s agency tasked with developing the export sector, TEPA, to implement a project that seeks to strengthen the institutional infrastructure for export promotion in Saint Lucia.

On Wednesday February 10th, 2016, the two signed the project agreement that would assist Saint Lucia with, among other things, the development of the brand “Taste of Saint Lucia,” capacity building for trade promotion staff and a review of the National Export Strategy.

Signing the project agreement for the International Trade Centre was Executive Director, Arancha Gonzalez, who made her first official visit to Saint Lucia as part of the organisation’s initial mission to the Caribbean.

“Investing in trade promotion pays and pays well. In a report launched last week in Geneva, we [International Trade Centre] know that for every $1 we invest in trade promotion you could generate $87 in exports and $384 in GDP growth. This is what our figures tell us.

“I feel very strongly about the part of the project that has to do with ‘Taste of Saint Lucia,’ with branding. This island has something unique that consumers want to taste. I’ve had an opportunity to see what this means for rum, with pepper sauce; why not design services. Consumers want to taste the uniqueness that this island has to offer.”

The International Trade Centre is the joint agency of the World Trade Organisation and the United Nations that assists small and medium-sized enterprises in developing and transition economies to become more competitive in global markets, thereby contributing to sustainable economic development within the frameworks of the Aid-for-Trade agenda and the UN Global Goals.

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Saint Lucia Moves Ahead with Boosting its Export Capacity National Export Strategy. Following those engagements came the establishment of TEPA in November 2013.

As part of the agreement, the ITC will provide technical support and advisory services to strengthen the institutional capacities of TEPA and to provide better services to its enterprise clients.

TEPA is the national agency spearheading Saint Lucia’s export development efforts, with the overall objective of increasing the aggregate volume and value of exports from Saint Lucia.

The project agreement will involve an integrated approach requiring involvement of the private sector and mobilising the productive sector towards producing for a market beyond the confines of the domestic economic space.

At the ceremony the ITC also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Government of Saint Lucia to formalise the relationship between the two.

Signing on behalf of government was the Hon. Minister for Commerce, Business Development, Investment and Consumer Affairs, Emma Hippolyte.

“Increased exports is an essential part of crafting an appropriate economic response to the current realities we face if we are to achieve the socio economic goals and objectives that we have set for ourselves as a country. The wide ranging global experiences of the ITC, including the previous engagements in Saint Lucia in 2004 and 2013 in guiding our earlier efforts to develop a National Export Strategy and upgrading the trade information services for exporters in Saint Lucia gives us adequate reason to be confident about the undertaking we are about to embark on.”

Gonzalez held discussions with the Hon. Prime Minister Kenny Anthony on areas of further cooperation including e-commerce, trade facilitation, improving the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises and supporting women in enterprise. ¤

Venture Capital Ecosystem Gets US$3.5m Boost

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he Development Bank of Jamaica has signed off on an agreement with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) – Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) valuing roughly US$3.5 million, the second funding towards the development of the Technical Cooperation Agreement.

Just under three years ago, DBJ signed the first Technical Cooperation Agreement with the IDB-MIF for the development of a venture capital ecosystem to create an environment conducive to the establishment of a dynamic private equity capital industry, and the establishment of new venture capital and private equity funds through public and private sector collaboration with local and international fund managers.

Chief among the initiative is also the development of a sustainable flow of investment-ready businesses, through the support of entrepreneurs, incubators and accelerators and sponsorship of business model competitions and pitch events.

DBJ also hopes to build strong linkages with international development partners (IDPs), the Jamaican Diaspora as well as Latin American and Caribbean neighbours through the funding.

Valued at US$3,483,000, the IDB-MIF will provide US$1,198,750 (J$145 million), while DBJ will provide counterpart funding of US$2,284,250 (J$275 million).

“This Second Technical Cooperation Agreement builds on the first, and is expected to impact over 100 existing and potential, urban and rural, high-growth SMEs. Other beneficiaries will include: regulators, service providers, investors and existing and new fund managers,” chairman of the DBJ, Joseph Matalon, told the audience yesterday during a press conference for the signing of the second Technical Co-operation Agreement and the launch of the third Venture Capital Conference.

According to Matalon, the second Technical Cooperation Agreement is aimed at building human capacity, building the

financial resources for early stage ventures and entrepreneurs, enabling the legal and regulatory environment to facilitate seamless cross-border venture capital and private equity transactions, and building awareness and information dissemination.

“We are particularly enthusiastic about the support this Technical Cooperation will give to building out the entrepreneurial ecosystem to ensure that there are supportive institutions through which our entrepreneurs will be able to develop their businesses and link with investors, creating a deal flow of investment-ready businesses,” he said.

“And so, combining today’s events – the signing of a second technical cooperation agreement and the launch of the third venture capital conference — is no coincidence. The two are inextricably linked and reflect the continued implementation of the strategic plan established under the first Technical Cooperation Agreement.”

The three-day Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ) Venture Capital Conference to be staged March 7-9, 2016, will provide opportunities to network and build new local and international acquaintances. The upcoming conference will offer insight into venture capital as a growing industry; it will look at global trends, examine the readiness of local businesses and how Jamaican businesses can align themselves to these emerging opportunities.

Centred on the theme ‘The Power of Smart Capital… expanding the financial landscape, fuelling innovation, driving entrepreneurship,’ the event expects to attract venture capital stakeholders such as fund managers, entrepreneurs, businesses, investors, investments advisors, policymakers and international development partners. ¤ Courtesy Jamaica Observer BusinessFocus Apr / May

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Saint Lucia PM Upbeat on the Economy

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rime Minister Doctor Kenny Anthony gave an optimistic assessment of the performance of the national economy.

Delivering his New Year’s address to the nation, Anthony reported that most economic sectors showed signs of recovery within the first nine months of 2015. He disclosed that the construction sector gained momentum, supported by continued buoyancy in tourism, agriculture and other services.

Anthony said that construction activity was led by the private sector as work commenced on the construction of the Royalton Hotel, the former Smugglers Resort.

He explained that the trend continued on a number of projects, including Tides Sugar Beach in Soufriere, Harbour Club Hotel, the Courts Megastore, and the Dayana Commercial Centre.

CARIFORUM Meeting Furthers Deeper Regional Cooperation and Integration

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he 23rd Meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Caribbean Forum of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (CARIFORUM) was held on March 17, 2016 in Guyana, under the chairmanship of the Republic of Haiti.

The Ministers had a comprehensive and constructive exchange of views on a wide range of matters of shared interest which are high on the Council’s policy agenda, with a view to advancing coordinated action on a range of policy objectives.

The Ministers discussed certain challenges in programme implementation of the 10th European Development Fund (EDF) Caribbean Regional Indicative Programme (CRIP) and they endorsed the remedial action being taken. The status of the 11th EDF CRIP was also reviewed. It was recalled that the 11th EDF was signed between CARIFORUM and the EU in Brussels on June 11, 2015 and that the programming process is in its early stages. The meeting highlighted the successful conclusion of the agreement to the value of 346 million euros. The 11th EDF CRIP makes provisions for Regional Economic Cooperation

“This increased level of activity was reflected in a 13.5 percent increase in the importation of construction materials over the period from January to September 2015,” the Prime Minister observed.

He said the tourism sector continued to accomplish record performances, with a 6.4 percent increase in total arrivals over the January to November period. Anthony cited an increase of 10.1 and 2.6 percent in cruise and stay over arrivals respectively over the period, which contributed to higher visitor expenditure at an estimated $414.5 million in the first half of the year.

According to him, higher levels of domestic and export demand were reflected in a 6.3 percent increase in manufacturing production.

“The output of food and food products increased by 21.6 percent, corrugated paper and paper board by 12.5 percent, wood and wood products by 11.6 percent and furnishings by 16.1 percent. From all vantage points, these increases are welcome and encouraging,” the Prime Minister asserted.

However, Anthony observed that the agricultural sector experienced mixed fortunes during the review period. He said while there were declines in banana exports and livestock production overall, increases were recorded in pork production and vegetable production.

“Our fiscal balances continue to show improvement. An overall deficit of $-27.2 million was recorded for the first half of the fiscal year 2015/16, representing a 55.8 percent reduction from the $-61.6 million in 2014/15,” Anthony disclosed. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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and Integration, 102 million euros; Climate Change, Disaster Management, Environment and Sustainable Energy, 61.5 million euros; Crime and Security, 44 million euros; Caribbean Investment Facility, 135 million euros; and Technical Cooperation Facility, 3.5 million euros.

Having reviewed key developments since the signature of the 11th EDF CRIP, the Ministers provided requisite political/policy guidance and direction.

The Ministers also reviewed developments in relation to the implementation of the CARIFORUM-EU Five Year Review of the Agreement. They noted that the review concluded that the Region has yet to meaningfully reap the potential benefits of the Agreement. They underscored that, for CARIFORUM, the EPA is a source of mixed feelings. The commonly held view was that CARIFORUM committed itself and signed a comprehensive EPA, yet it has not “harvested the windfall” which seemed to have been held out as reward for early signature of the Agreement. In further reviewing the state-of-play of EPA implementation, the Ministers accorded high priority to wide-range technical work and tasked officials to follow up accordingly. ¤

TEPA Presents Standard Operating Procedures Manual to Customs Department

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he Saint Lucia Trade Export Promotion Agency (TEPA) has recently presented a “Standard Operating Procedures” manual to the Saint Lucia Customs and Excise Department on January 26th, 2016.

The Saint Lucia Customs and Excise Department has a mandate of trade facilitation, revenue collection and border protection consistent with many Customs organisations worldwide. These directives are equally significant in other developing countries where Customs organiations serve as the gate keepers of their country. Trade facilitation is necessary as the organisation conforms to international trade requirements.

The Department’s revenue collection ability significantly impacts the country’s overall economic and social development, whilst its’ border protection is critical for filtering prohibited and restricted imports from the society and for restricting illegitimate trade and trading practices.

Customs is responsible for collecting approximately 50% of government’s total revenue. It is therefore imperative that it strives to maintain the highest standards when interacting with its stakeholders. Consequently, it remains cognizant of the role of Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) in the execution of its daily operational activities.

The apparent lack of clearly defined SOPs within the department is a derivative of many factors. As the department moves towards conforming to best practices within the global trading environment and improving efficiency, the adoption of Standard Operating Procedures is a timely venture.

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TEPA

It will highlight the explicit instructions to reflect the Customs Strategic Business Plan 2013 – 2018 and the new organisational structure soon to be implemented, with the modus operandi reflecting consistency in conformity with departmental policy and transparency.

The public and other stakeholder agencies demand the highest standards. Customs officers have been entrusted with the responsibility of revenue collection, which is the primary role of the department, and so the public demands accountability.

Hence, through enforcement, verification, examinations, intelligence and compliance, the Department has been consistent in making significant contribution to the annual national budget.

The Customs & Excise Department has for a number of years now relied heavily on circulars, organisational directives and the “status quo” in relating processes and procedures to provide guidance for staff. The implementation of SOP within the Department will seek to obtain consistency, clarity, transparency, uniformity and standardisation in the execution of various tasks for the entire department in addition to ensuring that approval procedures are followed in compliance with the department’s direction and legal provisions.

Towards this end, TEPA embarked on the project spearheaded by the Saint Lucia Bureau of Standards to provide the Customs & Excise Department with a concise “Standard Operating Procedures” (SOP) manual, which highlights explicit instructions for the successful accomplishment of its specific goals in the Customs Strategic Business Plan 2013 – 2018. This will promote consistency, transparency, professionalism, public trust, moral authority and accountability. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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Baron Foods Limited Moves Into New Markets Farm Labour Support Programme Aims to Provide Employment in Agriculture

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A supervisor in the Farm Labour Support Programme, Kishma Louis, gave an account of her role under the initiative.

Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Baron Foods Limited, Mr. Ronald Ramjattan, says negotiations with the Réunion I.M.A began in December, 2015.

he Farm Labour Support Programme continues to provide employment opportunities for Saint Lucians.

The programme designed to stimulate the agricultural sector through the use of specially trained and skilled personnel to work on dormant farms, is a collaborative initiative of The National Initiative to Create Employment (NICE); the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Production, Fisheries and Rural Development; and the National Skills Development Centre (NSDC).

“The role as a supervisor is to ensure that effective communication takes place between the workers and the farmers, and to ensure effective time keeping, because we pay our workers based on a time schedule. They work eight hours a day like every normal government worker and to ensure the smooth transition from one farm to another.”

The criteria for the selection of farm labour support worker include, having basic reading and writing skills, being between the ages of 16 to 45 and having an interest in farming, agriculture or related field.

“NSDC was the one in charge of selecting and screening and training the farm workers. They have their own database and also NICE contains a database. So they went through both their databases, called these individuals in, did a few counselling sessions with them and then a main group was selected. Further on more training were done and the group got smaller and smaller until we had the selected group currently.”

Training under the farm labour support programme includes education in agricultural entrepreneurship and food security. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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aron Food’s Limited, one of Saint Lucia’s manufacturing company, is taking into expanding its export base into the Réunion Islands in the Indian Ocean.

On February 18, 20146, the company recently shipped over 2000 cartons of its award winning sauces and condiments to its newest territory, which has a population of about one million.

The company will be targeting other islands in the Indian Ocean this year.

“Entry into this market was unchallenging as we met all of the requirements,” Mr. Ramjattan disclosed.

As to the reason for targeting the Indian Ocean Island, he explained that several of the islands have populations and cultures similar to that of the Caribbean, and hot sauces are quite popular with the locals of the Indian Ocean Islands.

The people of Réunion even speak French Creole.

Mr. Ramjattan noted that in the continuous quest to export sauces of a continued high quality and consistency, Baron Foods Limited is targeting countries with populations and cultures similar to the Caribbean such as Mexico, India and nations in Africa.

Over the years the locally-based company has exploded the myth that locally produced goods are not good and cannot be exported.

To date, Baron Foods Limited products are exported to over 25 countries around the world. ¤

Barbados Seeks to Strengthen Commercial Linkages with St. Lucia

A mission.

24-member contingent of Barbadian manufacturing and services companies arrived in St. Lucia on Sunday, January 24, 2016 to participate in a series of pre-arranged business to business meetings – the first leg of a multi-country CARICOM trade

Led by Barbados’ Minister of Industry, International Business, Commerce and Small Business, the Honourable Donville Inniss, the visit is intended to enhance policy dialogue and the exchange of business information, while strengthening the network of business support organisations, promoting trade, and exploring investment opportunities which could yield economic gains for both territories.

The Barbados Investment and Development Corporation (BIDC) is spearheading the mission, with support from the Barbados Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and the Barbados Manufacturers Association.

One of the highlights of the visit was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the BIDC and the St. Lucia Trade and Export Agency (TEPA).

During the visit, the Barbadian delegates, representing firms from the food and beverage, construction, printing, health and wellness and consulting services sectors, engaged in business to business meetings, consulted with business support organisations and agencies and explore opportunities for

the development of trade relations, joint ventures and other investments. The Barbados-based Queen Elizabeth Hospital was among the delegates, showcasing the eye care, neurosurgical and cardiac services offered at its facility.

Barbados already enjoys a longstanding relationship with St. Lucia manifested in the areas of trade, tourism, and culture.

With respect to trade, Barbados’ exports to this market have averaged approximately US$16 million each year for the last ten years, comprising mainly of wheat flour, margarine and soya bean oil. Items such as prefabricated buildings, building cement, juice mixtures, household aerosol insecticides and medicaments for therapeutic use have also featured prominently in recent years.

Barbados’ imports from Saint Lucia, while averaging US$6.3 million annually over the period 2005 to 2013, grew significantly in 2014 when Barbados began to source diesel oil from this market. Imports reached US$43.1 million in 2014 and preliminary estimates indicate 2015 imports to be in the same range. The main items imported were beer, corrugated paper containers and fresh bananas.

Barbados established diplomatic relations with St. Lucia in February 1979. H.E. the Hon. Robert Morris, CHB, was appointed as the Barbados High Commissioner to St. Lucia in September 2015. The accreditation of the non-resident high Commissioner signals the aim to strengthen the bilateral relationship between the two countries. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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ECONOMY & TRADE

IDB Launches 2016 Call for Proposals to Promote Regional Public Goods in Latin America and the Caribbean

Nevis Envisages Selling Power to Antigua & Barbuda

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he Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) launched the 2016 Call for Proposals of the Initiative for the Promotion of Regional Public Goods in Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC), which supports projects aimed at resolving shared challenges and seizing opportunities for development through regional cooperation.

Since 2004, the RPG Initiative has financed 124 projects, investing a total of more an $93 million.

In 2016, the Initiative will provide grants to finance regional public goods (RPGs) that are produced collectively by a minimum of three IDB borrowing-member countries. Even though the Initiative is open to the promotion of RPGs in any development area covered by the IDB, alignment with the Bank’s operational priorities is a selection criterion. The other two criteria are the value added of a regional (vs. national) approach to addressing a development challenge or opportunity, as well as the prospects of sustaining the benefits of regional collective action beyond the support of the Initiative.

The Initiative for the Promotion of Regional Public Goods is the IDB’s most prominent grant instrument to support intraregional cooperation and the collective design of development solutions. Demand for its resources has intensified in tandem with the increasing importance of multi or bilateral SouthSouth cooperation (SSC) in the development agenda of most LAC countries. The interest in SSC among the Bank’s borrowing members is a reflection of the fact that the region is a source of innovative development solutions that can be shared and replicated throughout LAC and in other parts of the developing world. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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s the neighbouring island of Nevis gets closer to going green through the use of geothermal energy, the authorities on the island said there will be enough energy to export to Antigua & Barbuda and other territories.

Legislators on Nevis have set a December 2017 deadline in which to do so and Premier and Minister of Tourism Mark Brantley said there will also be export potential.

“We have already done the interconnectivity studies; Antigua is a possibility because they have no prospects for geothermal energy,” Brantley told OBSERVER media in a recent interview.

“Anguilla has no prospects there, but we also have neighbouring islands like St. Barts, Saba, St. Eustatius who have potential, so Nevis can potentially, I think, in a year, become a net exporter of energy. And, as a net exporter of energy, we can change the whole economic paradigm in terms of what we rely on here, so that we can wean ourselves even off tourism as a mainstay and have energy and energy production instead,” Brantley added.

Geothermal energy is the heat from the Earth. Resources of geothermal energy range from the shallow ground to hot water and hot rock found a few miles beneath the earth’s surface, and down even deeper to the extremely high temperatures of molten rock called magma.

Brantley said officials discovered the presence of geothermal energy some 10 years ago; however it took a while for all the exploration work to be completed.

He said when the plant switches on in December 2017, it means that Nevis’ electricity will be 100 per cent renewable. ¤

Haiti and the Dominican Republic to Pool Resources to Attract Foreign Direct Investment

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he Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) in collaboration with the Centre for Facilitation of Investments of Haiti (CFI) and the Export and Investment Centre of the Dominican Republic (CEI-RD), conducted a workshop on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) lead generation, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic from March 15-17, 2016.

CFI’s General Director, Ms. Norma Powell, opened the session welcoming participants to the event, expressing that “we are happy to work together with the Dominican Republic and other CAIPA (Caribbean Association of Investment Promotion Agencies) members in order to foster a spirit of cooperation in working to improve the investment promotion efforts in the region.”

Echoing her sentiments, Ms. Florence Van Houtte, representative of the Delegation of the European Union (EU) in the Dominican Republic, explained that the workshop “is a concrete step in the right direction, to achieve both countries’ mutual objectives of enhancing their capacity and improving their cooperation in the field of trade and investment promotion.” The EU representative additionally underscored the importance of supporting economic cooperation between Haiti and the Dominican Republic with a view to harmonising their economic relations and strengthening their socio-economic development at regional and international levels.

Ms. Mildred Santos, FDI Market Intelligence Manager of CEIRD, stated that “the success of our regional and national investment promotion strategies can only be achieved with the strengthening of our agencies and the capacity building to our

regional promoters. That is the value proposition of this training and the importance of regional integration for the economic and social development of all Caribbean countries.”

The workshop helped the participants to garner new FDI techniques through the use of good practice methods such as the development of an interactive, hands-on approach that is grounded in accepted adult learning theory. In addition how case studies can be used as a mechanism to attract investment together with the involvement of best practice investment promotion intermediaries and external experts. The facilitator of the training was the consultant Mr. Francisco Alvarez Roca, Investment Promotion Advisor and expert on investment attraction and facilitation services. The sessions brought together 19 representatives from CFI and CEI-RD, as well as other CAIPA members, such as Belize Trade and Investment Development Service (BELTRAIDE); Invest St. Lucia and Invest Turks & Caicos.

Ms. Ileana Tejada, Investment Promotion Expert of the Haiti-DR Bi-National Programme explained that “this project falls within the purview of activities related to the support provided by Caribbean Export for strengthening the institutional capacity of Haiti and the DR with a focus on supporting investment promotion and strengthening the intraregional ties with the rest of the Caribbean.” The workshop was undertaken within the framework of the Haiti-DR Bi-National Programme, Trade Component, implemented by Caribbean Export and funded by the European Union under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF). ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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IN THE KNOW

US & Cuba Finalize IMF Hails Economic Growth

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irectors of the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have welcomed the “recent uptick in economic activity and the positive short-term outlook [of the Saint Lucian economy] on the back of stronger tourist arrivals and lower oil prices.”

According to the IMF, “GDP growth reached 0.5 percent in 2014, with transportation and hotels mostly contributing to the economic recovery.”

The growth rate is expected to increase to at least 1.6% in 2015.

The IMF noted that the current account deficit was estimated to have narrowed, and that for the first time since fiscal year 2008/09, the primary balance showed a small surplus in 2014/15, reflecting somewhat higher revenues, restraint on current spending, and cuts to capital expenditures.

The Executive Board welcomed the Government of Saint Lucia’s progress in tackling financial sector weaknesses, but sounded a cautionary note regarding public debt, unemployment, and competitiveness. The Directors also rendered a positive opinion of the Citizenship by Investment Programme.

According to the Release: “Directors took note of the newly launched Citizenship by Investment Programme. They welcomed the emphasis on transparency in the governing legislation, noting that the highest integrity standards could help prevent abuses of the programme. Directors underscored the importance of a prudent deployment of the associated revenues which may be volatile, for example to finance key infrastructure projects or retire public debt.

In respect of unemployment and the business environment, the IMF listed a series of measures, several of which are already being undertaken: “Directors underscored the importance of ambitious structural reforms to reduce unemployment, improve the business environment, and foster higher and more inclusive growth. They shared the view that continued efforts are needed to diversify energy sources, reduce the costs of doing business, and improve efficiency, including in port operations and customs.

Furthermore, education reform would help address skills mismatches in the labour market.”

During the week of February 8th, the Department of Statistics released figures indicating a significant drop in unemployment, spurred by private sector investment in construction and tourism. The Eastern Caribbean Asset Management Corporation Bill, as recommended by the IMF Board, also completed its passage through the legislature. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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Commercial Air Travel Agreement

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he US and Cuba have officially finalized their landmark air service agreement, paving the way for the imminent launch of regularly scheduled commercial flights.

“We are excited to announce the availability of new scheduled air service opportunities to Cuba for U.S. carriers, shippers, and the traveling public, and we will conduct this proceeding in a manner designed to maximize public benefit,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.

The February signing brings into effect the arrangement that was reach on December 16, 2015 to restore regular commercial flights between the two countries. The arrangement will continue to allow charter flights operations. While US law prohibits travel to Cuba for tourist activities, the arrangement will facilitate authorized travel, enhance traveller choices, and strengthen peopleto-people links between the two countries.

Citizens and residents from the US will continue to be required to travel according to one of the twelve travel categories legally authorized by the US government.

The agreement will provide for both countries to offer up to 20 daily round-trip flights per day between us cities and Havana, along with up to 10 daily round-trip flights between the United States and each of Cuba’s nine other international airports.

Scheduled services are expected to commence sometime later this year. ¤

Saint Lucia Establishes Diplomatic Relations with Fiji

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mbassador Rambally and Ambassador Thomson exchange instruments establishing formal diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Saint Lucia has formalised diplomatic relations with the Republic of Fiji. On January 27, 2016, Ambassadors Peter Thomson of the Republic of Fiji and Menissa Rambally of Saint Lucia signed the instruments establishing diplomatic relations.

The agreement aims to promote relations of friendship and cooperation between the two sides in the political, economic and cultural spheres at the national and international levels.

This latest formal solidification of diplomatic ties represents the consolidation of Saint Lucia’s active diplomatic outreach, which seeks to build mutually beneficial partnerships to address Saint Lucian interests in the context of an ever evolving global environment.

Following the signing the two Ambassadors discussed matters of common interest to Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and the opportunities for further bilateral cooperation at the United Nations. ¤

The Caribbean Association of Banks Inc. Elects New Board of Directors for 2016

Back Row: L-R: Mrs Carole Eleuthere-Jn Marie – First Citizens Investments Ltd, Mr Donald Thompson -St Kitts -Nevis-Anguilla-National Bank Ltd, Mr Richard Sammy – Republic Bank (Guyana), Mr Rolf Phillips - Consolidated Finance Co. Ltd Front Row: L-R: Mrs Mary Popo – CAB Secretariat, Mr Mark Anderson - First Global Bank Ltd, Ms Joanna Charles – ECFH, Chairperson , Mrs Moya L Leiba-Barnes – JMMB Merchant Bank Ltd, Mr Farid Antar - Republic Bank, Vice Chairperson Missing: Mrs Enid Bissember – CARICOM

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he Caribbean Association of Banks Inc. has announced a new board of directors for 2016 responsible for policy decisions and oversight of the CAB’s operations.

The new CAB Board of Directors are as follows:

Chairperson - Joanna Charles, East Caribbean Financial Holdings Co. Vice Chairperson - Mary Popo, Republic Bank Ltd, Farid Antar, Secretary Director - Carol Eleuthere-Jn Marie, Frist Citizens Investment Services Ltd Director - Enid Bissember, CARICOM Director - Moya Leiba-Barnes, JMMB Merchant Bank Ltd, Director - Donald Thompson, St Kitts Nevis Anguilla National Bank Ltd, Director - Richard S. Sammy, Republic Bank (Guyana) Director - Rolf Phillips, Consolidated Finance Co. Ltd Director - Mark Anderson, First Global Bank Ltd are directors.

The CAB is a community of banks and other financial institutions in the Caribbean region, which proactively influence issues impacting the financial services sector through advocacy, education and networking. Cab represents 51 banks and financial institutions in the Caribbean with an asset base in excess of US$ 31 billion as of Dec 31, 2015, in addition to 12 Services members comprising regional and international technological and professional institutions and three honorary members. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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IN THE KNOW

Marketing Edge: How to Keep the Doors Open in a Slow Economy!

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he last few years have been exceptionally taxing on most businesses, with many making the hard decision to scale back their overall operations or even close doors permanently. For those attempting to reduce on expenditure, the Marketing Department was an easy target, suffering immense cutbacks in the face of the ever-looming economic problems. Some businesses even went a step further to merge departments, placing Brand Development, for example, in any other department, with no clear succession strategy – or marketing knowhow, with disastrous results.

For the companies riding the uncertain economic wave, many have kept a keen eye for new marketing forces and capitalized on the opportunities which dissipate as quickly as they materialize.

But how does a company stand out and market its products, when the budget really doesn’t allow for major monetary investment? The key is being innovative and thinking outside the box.

Finding a solution is simple - Know your product/services and know your market needs! Being able to plan effectively and adapt quickly are key elements which will certainly work in your favour and keep your business recession-proof.

Never panic!

The truth is most companies never see the long term effects of poor marketing until the returns on investment are quantified. Others are so stuck in the BusinessFocus Apr / May

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past that they are reluctant to adapt but instead, reinforce the archaic practices their forefathers implemented – if it isn’t broke why fix it! We know this mentality has drained such companies not only of their profits and customers, but valuable employees who feel underutilized and powerless, have left in droves. But how does a company not panic when all resources are leaving? The best way is to keep focus on the customer, maintaining a great relationship while ensuring the right employees are present to carry the message. Learn the customer experience. Don’t worry if your competitors are giving away everything and the kitchen sink to attract more business; a truly valued customer will stay.

Develop your marketing strategies and focus on improving customer relations while implementing these new strategies.

Reaffirm your Unique Selling Points (USP) What is your unique selling point? What differentiates you from everyone else?

Your company may already have unique selling points which need some further development or there may be a need to strengthen your position. Work on those and stand by your product. Whether you champion the ‘Go Green” campaign or you are the business to offer a specialized item, promote that aspect and let the customer come to you!

Don’t become a ‘Serial Discounter’ Yes, the market is slow and bills need to be paid. Motivation is running low and you are fresh out of positive advice

for your team. However, constantly discounting your product or service to get revenue in, will take away from its core value and hurt your profits significantly.

Instead, offer a reduced rate for addons and upsell, upsell, upsell! Offer your clients a free trial on a service if a contract is signed in advance for at least a year.

Kezia Preville is the Business Development Manager at Regional Fire & Security Ltd which operates offices based in St. Lucia, Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago; the location of its parent company. She currently manages the St. Lucia office and can be contacted on info. stl@1rfsgroup.com or (758) 451-3473 for more information

Every customer is a Brand Ambassador Most customers like to try before they buy. In some cases, the buying decision process is heavily dictated by reviews, social media stories and word of mouth. Ensure the customers you have already satisfied, are truly satisfied. Work with other departments and keep track of what goes out. Was the after sales service in keeping with the first point of contact? Feedback is a great way to measure what was good and what needs improving. Remember, even the customer who had a notso-good experience at any stage, can be become a satisfied customer with a simple follow up.

Do Social Media right!

Time and time again, many companies are falling into the social media trap and are treating the company’s page, as a personal page. Break the cycle and employ business centric techniques to promote your business and its brand identity. This is a low cost medium which can gain new customers, supplement existing marketing tactics and help keep the company’s name in the limelight for positive results. Remember, it’s not always about what you are promoting, post about what is at the heart beat of the organization. A company with a clearly defined Corporate Social Responsibility will stand out for the right reasons.

Email Marketing is a must From Constant Contacts to Mailchimp, many options are available to help establish a direct link to clients and prospective clients alike. This is low cost but can become costly if not undertaken in the correct manner. Ensure email campaigns are correctly targeted and aligned with the overall marketing strategy which the business has developed. Never bombard clients with multiple emails a month and always give an option to opt out. Email marketing done right, can spread the word in seconds and it isn’t expensive.

Public Relations can help!

Let’s face it, keeping a positive image is becoming increasingly difficult as new technological advancements have seen the emergence of tech savvy customers. Maintaining a positive image is particularly important in a slow economic period.

Promote staff or new initiatives with sound PR support. The media will spin a story whichever way, why not steer the course of your own brand identify? Add sensational stories in local newspapers and magazines or maintain a blog to share with clients and sit back and wait.

Have a plan Whatever you do, have a plan and don’t be afraid to adapt to new environmental changes. Record and implement what works, while learning from the mistakes of failed initiatives.

New trends for example can be tempting to follow but efficient market research is needed to ensure you aren’t jumping on the bandwagon without due diligence. Ensure your company is portrayed in the best light through the employees; are they dressed appropriately, promoting the same message and have a positive attitude to work? How does the media portray the company? All factors in the master plan, which in the middle of economic uncertainty for a business, must be agreed, designed properly and implemented to ensure sustainable development and returns on investment. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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IN THE KNOW

Company Registries to Go Online

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ompany registries within the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) are set to go online this year.

This development stems from an ongoing project funded by the 10th European Development Fund to create an online regional registry of companies. This will serve as a central repository of information on companies and other legal entities established in the CSME. The move should address some challenges related to the Right of Establishment regime within the CSME. This regional registry would facilitate information exchange and networking among the national companies registries and the Secretariat. It would also function as a portal via which persons can perform name searches, reserve business names, and register a company in CSME Member States.

As part of that project, the company registry in each Member State will be converted to an online system to facilitate participation in the regional e-registry.

Today there will be a demonstration of the national registry system (NRS) via video conference to member states by Caseflow Systems, the project consultants and developers of the prototype software information system.

The demonstration session will explain the key features and functions of the system and invite comments and recommendations from member states.

Participants will comprise national registrars and other relevant personnel who are expected to utilise and interact with the system.

The NRS will be deployed in the 12 member states over the coming months and relevant users will be able to access the system. There will also be a

demonstration of the regional registry system in early February to member states to obtain feedback on its functions and any possible improvements to the system before it is deployed. This session will also take place in Barbados.

This online registry within the CSME is a vital part of the drive toward creating a single jurisdiction for companies operating in the single market whereby once registered in one participating member state, companies will be deemed as being registered in all. The 12 participating member states include Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts & Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, and T&T. ¤

Antigua’s CIP Approved by Investment Migration Council Jermilla Kirwan-Henriques, the public relations and marketing officer for the Citizenship by Investment Unit (CIU), said that membership would “increase the visibility” of Antigua & Barbuda and the opportunities available to investors through the CIP. However, she also confirmed that as an Observer Country Member, Antigua & Barbuda would be required to adhere to the Council’s Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, a document released in June of 2015. This would impose further guidelines on the operations of the CIU.

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ntigua & Barbuda has become an Observer Country Member in the Investment Migration Council (IMC). Membership could enhance the Citizenship by Investment Programme’s (CIP) international profile and introduce an additional set of rules from the Council.

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In September of 2015, the Council invited the Government of Antigua & Barbuda to acquire Observer Country status which was approved and finalised on January, 25 2016.

The Investment Migration Council, which was founded in 2014, is an association that represents firms and organisations in the investment migration industry and the citizenship-by-investment field. It is a not-for-profit group based in Geneva, Switzerland. ¤

Caribbean Export to Stage Caribbean Investment Summit 2016 in Miami

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he Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) in collaboration with the Caribbean Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (CAIPA) will host the 3rd staging of the Caribbean Investment Summit on May, 13, 2016 at the Marriott Hotel, Miami, USA. The event will be funded and co-organised by the Inter-American Development Bank as a part of a regional public goods initiative entitled: Support to Foreign Direct Investment in the Caribbean.

Produced with support from Financial Times’ fDi Magazine, the Caribbean Investment Summit offers a unique window for investors to the region to discover diverse opportunities available to them, and aims to attract a wealth of potential investors interested in the dynamic Caribbean brand.

Following the success of two previous events in London and Mexico, the Summit will bring focus to the region’s key industry sectors: renewable energy, business process outsourcing (BPO) and niche tourism. Continuing under the theme, ‘The Climate is Right in the Caribbean,’ the event will provide an unmatched platform for regional Investment Promotion Agencies, senior government officials and Ministers of Government to expose their ‘shovel ready projects’ to prospective investors in their newest target market, the United States.

Over 100 high net worth individuals and investors are poised to gather at this year’s Summit which will once again be emceed by Courtney Fingar, Editor in Chief, fDi Magazine, Financial Times Group. The event also seeks to take advantage of the proximity of the United States to the Caribbean, as the region continues to target strategic investors under the rollout of the recently developed Regional Investment Promotion Strategy. At this years’ event awards will be given to the Regional Investor of the Year and those in attendance will hear first-hand from investors who have successfully invested in the region.

Caribbean Export is a regional export development and trade and investment promotion organisation of the Forum of Caribbean States (CARIFORUM) currently executing the Regional Private Sector Development Programme (RPSDP) funded by the European Union under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF) Caribbean Export’s mission is to increase the competitiveness of Caribbean countries by providing quality export development and trade and investment promotion services through effective programme execution and strategic alliances. ¤

CIBC FirstCaribbean Partners with Small Business Development Centre to Host Small Business Workshop

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workshop geared at improving the knowledge and success of small business owners was recently held in Saint Lucia.

There, CIBC FirstCaribbean’s business banking clients, as well as those of the Small Business Development Centre formed part of the workshop titled MSE Mind Your Business. The group received information from the Small Business Development Centre (SBDC), BDCFO and CIBC FirstCaribbean.

Jonathan Allain, Business Development Officer of the Small Business Development Centre (SBDC), gave detailed insight into the services the centre offers and how these benefit small business owners from start-up through all development phases of the small business.

Barrington Dolcie is the CEO of BDCFO, a business development and accounting consultancy, providing financial management support to several local businesses. He presented the group of business owners with evidence of the need to keep proper financial records as well as some of the tech tools that can be used to make record-keeping an easier and more seamless process.

A range of innovative products and services were discussed that are specifically geared toward facilitating the growth and development of small business.

The small business workshop will be repeated in Vieux Fort at a later date. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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IN THE KNOW

The Business Benefits of Online Reviews

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hink about a recent major purchase - did you Google the product, read the Amazon review or look at the number of star ratings on Tripadvisor.com? Did it influence your purchase decision or perception about the product or service? Chances are, you read an online review on a third party website at least once; and like you, other customers are savvy multi channel users who conduct their own product research.

Understanding how customers view products, services or a company is important to identifying the perceived strengths and weaknesses of a company. So what are online reviews and why are they important to a business?

Online reviews typically highlight the key features of a product, they display images of the product packaging, provide how-to directions, describe the overall service experience and sometimes make buy or don’t-buy recommendations.

Online reviews act as buying guides to customers by offering glimpses into the best and worst of a product or service.

But they can sometimes be biased, even malicious, aimed at: deliberately destroying a company’s reputation; negatively shaping perceptions and influencing purchase decisions.

So how can businesses embrace the online review and leverage the feedback to enhance customer satisfaction and propel business growth?

1. DEEPEN THE CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS By listening to and reading online customer reviews, businesses can deepen their understanding of customer concerns and needs. With the rise of social media and every other customer owning a smart phone, the probability is that at some point in the life of a business, a positive or negative review will be posted about their product/s or service/s. If the review is positive, the business should thank the customer and use it as a testimonial or as a key selling point.

If the review is a case of poor service or product quality, for example, a picture of a tainted meal, a messy guest room or a video of an abusive employee; the business should engage the affected customer, address the facts, apologize and offer a remedy to the customer.

This will build trust and credibility with the customer, allow the business to demonstrate empathy and responsibility, potentially recover a lost customer or prevent a dissatisfied customer from going to the competition and gain goodwill and brand advocacy.

2.

INCREASE BRAND AWARENESS

By encouraging customer reviews and participating in conversations with customers on social media, third party websites, even on their own customer blogs or forums, businesses can increase the levels of awareness of their BusinessFocus Apr / May

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brand over time. Take the pioneering Tripadvisor social travel website, as early as 2010, Tripadvisor began issuing travellers’ choice and certificate of excellence awards to businesses in the travel, leisure and hospitality market who “consistently achieve outstanding traveler reviews”. These reviews not only create a digital footprint by exposing the business to a much wider range of people, but as the number of reviews expands, the business benefits from free advertising and top ranking on online search engines like Google.

research there is and presents significant opportunities to generate new product ideas, product improvements as well as new customer acquisition from word-ofmouth recommendations.

Today, the active encouragement and monitoring of online reviews should be a critical part of a business’ overall brand management and business development strategy. Customer reviews should not be feared even the bad ones since they offer great learning and product improvement opportunities. ¤

Businesses across the global and in St Lucia have been seen using the Tripadvisor awards and recognitions as endorsements to their quality and service excellence by posting them on their websites, storefronts, customer receipts and menus. Customer reviews on third party website like Tripadvisor, add credibility and boasting rights to businesses and potential customers who read these reviews, view them as authentic and trust worthy.

3.

GENERATE NEW PRODUCT IDEAS

When giving a review, customers are uninhibited about how they feel about the business, its products and customer service. They often make suggestions about areas for improvements and new product uses - as in the case of Johnson and Johnson’s use of baby oil as an adult moisturizer. It is the best-unpaid

Michelle Stephens is a Chartered Marketer, Certified Strategy and Business Planning Professional and the Chief Strategy Officer at Caribbean Strategy Inc. She has over 15 years experience in marketing, business development and strategic planning across the Caribbean, and holds a MBA from the Edinburgh Business School. You can follow Ms. Stephens on Twitter at michellestephens@Michst22.

the region’s education leader. It now has relatively low levels of education for both sexes. Only 18 percent of females go into further or higher education but that’s still more than twice the number of men continuing their education after school and enough to land it on the number three slot on the top 10 list.

4: URUGUAY Eighty percent of all women in Uruguay go into further education.

With a population of over 3.4 million, the South American nation of Uruguay has a significantly high percentage of educated women. Eighty percent of all women in Uruguay go into further education, a ratio of 1.73.

Ten Caribbean and Latin American Nations Where Women are More Educated than Men

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hen it comes to education in the Americas – the Caribbean and Latin America – girls/ women are doing far better than boys/men.

Below are the top 10 nations in this region where women are more likely to go into tertiary education and are better educated than men according to the World Economic Forum’s latest Global Gender Gap index.

Tertiary education is anything taken on after school and includes university, vocational training, and military service.

1: BARBADOS

5: SURINAME 15 percent of women in Suriname go into higher education.

In the Dutch Caribbean country of Suriname, just 15 percent of women go into higher education in this nation of over 500, 000 people. But this is way higher than the 9 percent of men who do, landing Suriname in the fifth spot on our top 10 list.

6: VENEZUELA A cumulative 99 percent of women in Venezuela go into tertiary education.

While the South American nation of Venezuela struggles with dropping oil prices that has sent its economy into a rough patch, its female citizens are definitely moving on up the education ladder. A cumulative 99 percent go into tertiary education compared to 58 percent of men in this country of over 30 million.

7: BELIZE Women in the nation of Belize outnumber men by 1.68 times in tertiary education.

The Central American CARICOM nation of Belize takes the number 7 spot for better educated. Women in the nation of over 311,000, outnumber en by 1.68 times in tertiary education.

88 percent of Barbadian women are in higher or further education.

In the eastern Caribbean island of Barbados, aka BIM, with a population of less than 300,000, a whopping 88 percent of Barbadian women are in higher or further education, outnumbering men by nearly two and a half times. This makes Barbados the number one country in the Americas where women are more educated than men.

8: CUBA

2: JAMAICA

9: THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

In Jamaica, with a population of over 2.7 million, around 40 percent of women go into tertiary education.

Taking the number two spot, Jamaica, with a population of over 2.7 million, around 40 percent of women go into tertiary education. That’s 2.29 times more than the number of men going to universities and colleges.

57 percent of women in the DR go into tertiary education.

In a country of over 10 million, more than 57 percent of women in this Spanish Caribbean nation go into tertiary education.

That’s compared to just 36 percent of men.

3: GUYANA

A massive 98 percent of Argentine women have some form of tertiary education.

Out of a population of over 41 million, a massive 98 percent of Argentine women have some form of tertiary education. That’s more than one and a half times the number of men. ¤

18 percent of females go into further or higher education.

The South American CARICOM nation of Guyana, with a population of under 800,000, has dropped from its hay days as

60 percent of female Cubans continue their education once school is over.

Coming in at number 8th is the Communist Caribbean island of Cuba. Here in this island of over 11 million, which continues to struggle with a US trade embargo, 60 percent of female Cubans continue their education once school is over.

10: ARGENTINA

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IN THE KNOW

25 things You Should NEVER Say to Your Employer…

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By Trudy O. Glasgow B.A., LL.B (Hons.), BVC, LL.M, P.C.H.E

aving your own business is stressful enough without employees who are not assisting in making the business work efficiently. According to the Labour Code No.37/2006 (and amendments), section 133, an employer can terminate an employee immediately for serious misconduct. As an attorney, the writer deals with many labour disputes and labour issues between employers and employees. Communication is key to all relationships; personal and professional. What you say and how you say it, are equally important. Here are some things you should never say to your employer if you want to keep your job.

1.

“No problem.” If your employer shows appreciation for a task that you have completed very well by saying “Thank you”. The appropriate response is “You’re welcome” and not “No problem”. No problem conveys that there was a difficulty in doing the task requested but you tried to complete it. It has a negative connotation that you do not want to relay to your boss.

3.

“I don’t have time for this right now.” Your role is essentially to

2.

“I didn’t make that call yet because I was on my lunch break.” Employers are looking for

4.

“Your brother never liked me”. What does this have to do with

team members who will go above and beyond their calls of duty to do certain tasks without complaint. This comment conveys a disrespectful attitude because you are basically stating to your boss that whatever he or she requested was not important and disruptive to your lunch break. Consider this: your boss is aware that you are on your lunch hour, and will only ask you to do tasks that are urgent and very important. Therefore, taking the occasional shorter lunch break to assist works well with your boss who will remember when you need time off to take care of a personal matter.

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assist your boss in some capacity, and make his or her life a lot easier. With this attitude, the suggestion is negative and conveys a lack of commitment on your part. If you truly have a lot of other tasks to complete which are time sensitive then say so, so that tasks can be prioritised either by you or your boss.

your job? Never bring up family members in a negative way. It is a recipe for disaster.

5.

“If my exams are in the third week of September and I have already taken my annual leave, I will write my exams.”

Your employer is NOT required to give you time off to sit any exams, so stating that you will take time off for any reason without permission or as agreed is highly disrespectful and are grounds for dismissal.

6.

“I missed your call because my phone was at the bottom of my bag.” If your boss is trying to reach

Ms. Trudy O. Glasgow, B.A (History) (UWI), LL.B (Hons.) (Hull), B.V.C, (Northumbria) LL.M, P.C.H.E, (Sheffield) is a practising attorney at the law firm of Trudy O. Glasgow & Associates and a court-appointed mediator and author in Saint Lucia (and has also taught law at University level in the UK).

Ms. Glasgow is the current Vice President of the Bar Association of Saint Lucia and sits on various boards including Chairperson of the National Research and Development Foundation (NRDF); Legal Aid Board and the Rotary Club of Gros Islet. She wrote a weekly legal column, Simply law, in The Voice newspaper for eight years (2007-2015) and published a book which is a selection of her articles with some new material.

you during the day and you miss the call, during work hour, this 15.

“How do I benefit from doing this?” conveys a lack of concern for the reason for the communication. An employee who actually says these words to an employer Even if this was true, if you were expecting the call, this is a poor requesting a legitimate task which forms part of your job, clearly excuse to miss the call, so just skip it! wants to leave his or her current employment.

7.

“I have a doctor’s appointment at 11am tomorrow so I will come in after that.”

Your employer is NOT required to give you time off to see a doctor unless the proper office procedure is followed. Asserting that you will be going to the doctor without expressly asking for the time off is plain RUDE!

16.

“It is a little slow today, can I leave early?”

There is ALWAYS work to be done! If your employer suggests leaving early for a special occasion such as Christmas or your birthday that is one thing but on an ordinary day for you to ask to leave early under such circumstances suggests a lack of interest in the job and the success of the business.

8.

“I won’t be at work tomorrow because I have 17. “I don’t have a solution.” a funeral to attend.”

If you do not have the solution - find it! Do not simply admit Culturally, employers in Saint Lucia tend to be empathic about giving employees time off to attend the funeral of a close member of the family or friend. However, you still need to formally request the morning or afternoon off depending on when the funeral is scheduled.

9.

“I wasn’t watching music videos during office hours, I was only listening to music on your computer.”

Do you really want to admit to your boss that instead of WORKING you were listening to music? Unacceptable!

10. “I told that client to p*** off because I didn’t like his attitude.”

Summary dismissal in accordance with the Labour Code is actionable here. Being rude to a client or customer at the workplace is one of the grounds for instant and automatic dismissal. This is serious misconduct. It reflects badly on the company and the employer to have an employee who swears at clients.

11. “I can wear my hair any way I like, and you can’t stop me.”

Your employer must follow the guidelines as set in the Labour Code of Saint Lucia. Further, your employer may have specific rules and regulations which govern his or her business. As long as the said regulations are not in conflict with the labour laws, he or she has the discretion to set them. The Labour Code is silent on hairstyles. Therefore, if your employer is unhappy with your attire, hairstyle etc., he or she can invite you to leave if it is not in keeping with the prescribed rules of the workplace.

12. “My boyfriend visits me at the office all the time but we don’t do anything inappropriate while you are out.”

This is an inappropriate response and could lead to suspension or dismissal.

13. “Can I get paid earlier, I need to pay my phone bill?”

Requesting an advance on your salary is a request that your employer does not have to honour. Depending on your relationship with your employer, for example, you have been working with your employer for many years and have a very good relationship, your employer may assist you but this is at the employer’s discretion.

14.

“I don’t know.”

NEVER say you do not know what happened, where something is and the like. It shows a lack of interest and knowledge and could lead to your working somewhere else.

to your employer how useless you are. Show your boss how resourceful you are by finding a solution to even the most difficult of tasks.

18.

“I’m pretty busy right now, can this wait?”

19.

“At my last job we did it this way.”

20.

“I just assumed that he was coming back.”

21.

“This isn’t in my job description.”

22.

“I don’t get paid enough to do this.”

If you really are too busy with work already set by your boss and will not be able to manage more tasks. Indicate this politely to him or her. Prioritise your work and get assistance from other employees if necessary, but just get it done!

Your boss’s response may be, then why don’t you go back to work there? NEVER compare your current workplace to a previous one especially if you are putting down where you work now. That is always a recipe for disaster.

If a client turns up and pay an outstanding bill and you don’t write him a receipt, this could be a problem. Even if the client says he is in a hurry and you can give it to him the next time. Write the receipt and hand it to him, don’t assume he will return because he may not.

Your employer is aware of what is and what isn’t in your job description. If the task falls slightly out of your job description, as long as it isn’t anything illegal or immoral, you should try to accommodate your boss.

Your boss may respond, then why don’t you leave and get a job that pays you better.

23. “I have a cold, I can barely function but I came to work anyway.”

Should your employer be grateful for your dedication or your sarcasm? If you are ill, stay home and apply for sick leave. If you are at work, don’t complain!

24.

“I’ve never had a boss as smart as me.”

25.

“Do I have to finish this task today?”

So you are calling your boss stupid and every boss you have had before stupid as well. Let’s just say you are walking a fine line between leaving immediately and leaving in the next ten minutes.

It is rude and disrespectful.

Your employer is likely to say the affirmative and formulate a negative impression of you as a result. If the task is handed to you in the morning, it is likely expected to be completed the same day unless otherwise stated. Do your best! ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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95

TOURISM FOCUS

Landmark Agreement Between IDB and CARPHA to Address Tourism and Health

T

he Caribbean is the most tourism dependent region in the world, receiving a record 26.3 million stay over arrivals in 2014. These high levels of travel which bring so many economic benefits, can bring different health, social and environmental challenges, including the possible international spread of disease.

In this regard, the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) signed an Agreement on January 27, 2016 with the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) that will allow the Agency to develop a novel regional tourism health information, monitoring and response system; Caribbean-wide health, safety and environmental (HSE) tourism standards; and a training and certification programme to build capacity in food and environmental safety.

In signing this landmark Agreement, CARPHA will work along with the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) and the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) to execute the project.

Dr. Lisa Indar, head of the Tourism and Health programme at CARPHA, indicated that “the key benefit of this project will be fewer, less costly outbreaks and other negative public health events occurring in the tourism industry and thereby a healthier, safer, more reputable Caribbean for both visitors and locals.”

Dr. C. James Hospedales, CARPHA’s Executive Director, pointed out that “the project will contribute also to improving regional health security in the face of new and re-emerging threats to health of residents and visitors through strengthening member states’ ability to achieve and sustain the capacities under the International Health Regulations for monitoring and response systems.”

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Mr. Julian Belgrave, Chief Operations Officer at the Trinidad and Tobago IDB Country Office, stated that this project is a critical component to the development of population wellness for Caribbean people, as well as preserving the health of 25 million visitors.

In his remarks, CTO Chief Executive Officer, Hugh Riley, welcomed this initiative and pledged full support and collaboration in executing the project, stating “there is no better time than now, for the Caribbean to be creating a mechanism for monitoring and responding to health threats.”

The Chief Executive Officer of CHTA, Mr. Frank Comito emphasised that “the health and safety of our guests and employees has been a longstanding priority for the hospitality industry and that this project will help to achieve this priority.

The Minister of Tourism for Trinidad and Tobago, the Honourable Ms. Shamfa Cudjoe in her feature address said there is an important interconnection between tourism, public health, environmental sanitation and safety and sees the project providing the countries with a healthier, safer improved tourism product.

The Regional Tourism Health Information, Monitoring and Response Systems and Standards to Enhance Sustainable Tourism project will be executed in six participating countries (Barbados, Belize, Bahamas, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago) from 2016-2019. The project will be implemented under CARPHA’s Tourism and Health Programme, through a Project Coordination Unit (PCU) at CARPHA and a Regional Project Steering Committee, along with National Focal Points and a Private-Public Team in each country. The Project is being funded by the IDB to the tune of US$ 800,000. ¤

Sandals Resorts International

SLHTA

Announces Sale of Grand Pineapple Resort in Antigua

Provides Wine Education

T

he St. Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association, as part of its mandate to further Human Resource Development in the tourism industry, hosted an eight week wine training course for twenty-one bartenders from member hotels and restaurants.

The course facilitated by Jasper Kok, Executive Assistant Manager for Food & Beverage at Cap Maison Resort & Spa, provided attendees with an intensive eight week course titled Foundations of Wines of the World. On Wednesday January 27th, the participants received their certificates at a ceremony held in the SLHTA’s Hospitality Training Centre at Rodney Heights, Gros Islet.

This course, the second of three levels, provided an approachable insight into international wines, grapevines, wine Regions, wine cultivation, wine making, wine styles, reading the label, professional serving standards and basics on food and wine pairing.

This course and the many like it to follow will provide industry workers the opportunity to become more skilled in their chosen profession while advancing the quality of service offered to visitors to the island.

The SLHTA has committed much funding to Human Resource Development with the understanding that it is critical to productivity, competitiveness and creating positive and empowering work cultures.

S

andals Resorts International (SRI), parent company of Sandals Resorts, Beaches Resorts and Grand Pineapple Beach Resorts, has announced the sale of Grand Pineapple Antigua to Elite Island Resorts effective May 30, 2016. The 180-room resort located at Long Bay, Antigua will continue accepting bookings and will remain open as it seamlessly transitions to a new name and brand, Pineapple Beach Club, on June 1 under Elite Island Resorts’ ownership.

According to the agreement with Elite Island Resorts, all resort staff members will remain in place under the new management team, continuing the resort’s tradition of Caribbean hospitality.

Chief Executive Officer, Noorani Azeez, in his comments to participants emphasised that, “We need to maximize the returns of tourism for each one of us by taking advantage of new opportunities that the growing tourism industry provides.

However these opportunities can only be realized through the advancement of knowledge. He continued that, “this is the first of many opportunities offered by the SLHTA, in which our industry professionals will be able to locally avail themselves of international knowledge and trends that will enable them to create a richer experience for visitors to the island.”

“We are very satisfied that our staff and loyal customers will be properly taken care of under the stewardship of Elite’s Chairman, Mr. Rob Barrett,” stated Gordon “Butch” Stewart, Chairman of Sandals Resorts International. Guests with bookings made for arrivals to Grand Pineapple Antigua after May 30, 2016 will be fully protected at the agreed upon rates by Elite Island Resorts and its sales team. Grand Pineapple Negril remains a part of the SRI collection of resorts and will not be impacted by the confirmed sale.

SLHTA members Peter & Co. Ltd, St. Lucia Distillers Ltd., and Bel Voir Estates contributed over 60 wines towards the training program, allowing participants to experience a wide variety of flavors. ¤

SRI continues its longstanding legacy in Antigua with Sandals Grande Antigua, an award-winning resort which debuted in 1991 as the first Sandals Resorts outside of Jamaica and remains in high-level discussions to introduce the first Beaches Resorts to the island of Antigua. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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97

TOURISM FOCUS

Saint Lucia Resorts Make ‘25 Best allInclusive Resorts in the Caribbean’ List

B

usiness Insider has named seven Saint Lucia resorts in its list of ‘25 best all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean.’ Insider said the list was put together after teaming up with Hotels.com and looking at hotels that had high travelers’ ratings.

The Saint Lucian resorts making the list are Ladera, Anse Chastanet, Bay Gardens Beach Resort, Capella Marigot Bay Resort and Marina Saint Lucia, The BodyHoliday, Ti Kaye Resort & Spa and The Landings.

Other resorts are making that list include Cocos Hotel Antigua, Antigua; Franklin D. Resort and Spa in Jamaica, Excellence Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, Couples Sans Souci in Jamaica, Manchebo Beach Resort and Spa in Aruba, Sunset at the Palm Resort in Jamaica, Couples Tower Isle in Jamaica, the Reserve at Paradisus Palma Real Resort in the Dominican Republic. ¤

Rendezvous Opens a New Restaurant

T

he Rendezvous Resort has opened its newest restaurant to cater to the tastes of Saint Lucians.

Founded in 1966 and originally known as Malabar, Rendezvous became the first couples-only resort in Saint Lucia, aimed at providing a personalized and idyllic destination paradise for those seeking a romantic holiday.

The property recently underwent a massive renovation – successfully extending the corresponding beach area and adding a new restaurant that exposes guests to the soothing ocean breeze. With its distinct designer canopies and open kitchen concept, The Malabar Beach Club will create a unique dining experience. Guests will have a chic yet casual meal while they can enjoy their toes in the sand. In addition, Rendezvous plans to launch a “club card” for those living on Saint Lucia, providing special pricing for dining and for Spa services at the resort. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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98

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HEALTH & WELLNESS

EU and PAHO Pledge Assistance in Commissioning Owen King EU Hospital

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team of officials from the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), the European Union (EU) and health specialists from neighbouring Martinique, met with officials of the Ministry of Health on a two day visit to explore areas of cooperation as the government of Saint Lucia moves closer to commissioning the Owen King EU Hospital (OKEUH).

Accompanying the team is Yves Vignau, former Director of C.H.U. Hospitals of Bordeaux in France who will be working closely with the commissioning team for the OKEUH. Vignau brings with him a wealth of knowledge having managed the transitioning of larger hospitals in France.

In welcoming Mr. Vignau and the team of officials, Minister for Health, Wellness, Human Services and Gender Relations, Hon. Alvina Reynolds, expressed her profound gratitude on behalf of the Prime Minister and Cabinet of Ministers for the offer of assistance from a hospital expert with such a wealth of experience.

“For us the excitement is grand Mr. Vignau. It’s a major facility that we’re commissioning. We’re excited and we want to make sure that we do it right.

We understand that you have great experience in the field in working in a space like France where you have the best of the best as it pertains to facilities, as it pertains to everything. And so we are embracing you because we really want to

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learn from your experience. The French and the EU have invested allot in the hospital and health care for us and there is a good relationship between Martinique and Saint Lucia and it strengthens what we have done for the people of Saint Lucia.” Reynolds stated.

Liure Garancher, PAHO’s Adviser for the French Department of the Americas, said one of the major areas of assistance from PAHO will be in training staff to fully utilise the new and advanced pieces of equipment currently installed at OKEUH. “There is a team of French specialists who just visited the nice, new hospital to see how they can provide technical support…In Victoria Hospital you have one type of equipment and here you have something new which we are also using in Martinique. So training might be a big area for support where we would be able to receive people from Saint Lucia in Martinique to train on the actual equipment that we have and to see how they are functioning after the hospital is actually opened.”

The PAHO Official indicated that the training will be for a period of three months after which other areas of cooperation can be identified. With Martinique and Saint Lucia being so close geographically, she anticipates even more exchanges going forward.

Mr. Vignau who will effectively function as a consultant to the Owen King EU Hospital Commissioning Team had the opportunity

to tour both the Victoria and Owen King EU Hospital.

“PAHO asked me to help in the opening of a new structure, a very important one and I am really excited by this project and what I have seen today is really amazing and is really a splendid realisation and an opportunity for this island; and not only for this island but for the World Health Organisation in the Caribbean Area.”

Vignau said.

New Commissioning Director for Owen King EU Hospital, Dwight Calixte acknowledged that Saint Lucia is actively exploring increased areas of cooperation with the French. He said EU and PAHO have come on board as partners for this initiative to ensure the proper training of staff as well as look into any possibility of additional equipment being provided.

“As we’re moving forward now towards the intentional opening of the hospital, it becomes very important for us to make sure the essential processes, experiences, personnel, equipment is in place as we’re going forward.”

Calixte indicated that there currently exists a draft agreement between the Ministry of Health and the delegation in areas of training such as ICU, A&E and sterilisation which he says is absolutely necessary for opening a facility of this size. ¤

PANCAP Partners Commit to High Impact Cost Effective Interventions for Sustaining HIV Response

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he Pan Caribbean Partnership against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP) partners committed to implementing high impact cost effective interventions to sustain national and regional responses. This commitment was made at the Fourth Annual Meeting of National AIDS Programme Managers and Key Partners, which concluded in Trinidad in March.

The meeting’s participants were challenged to identify the national and regional guiding policies and actions needed to sustain an effective HIV response. They were also challenged to fast track the end of the AIDS epidemic by 2030, notwithstanding the current global economic development and declining donor funds for HIV.

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EU Releases 10 Million Euros for Zika Research

he European Commission released 10 million euros for search on the Zika Virus currently affecting large parts of Latin America and the Caribbean.

The most affected country is Brazil, where the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared that the recent cluster of severe brain malformations in new-borns may be linked to the virus.

While the risk of transmission of the Zika Virus in the EU is low, there is currently no treatment or vaccine against the virus and diagnostic tests for infections are not widely available.

The funding, which comes from the Horizon 2020 EU research and innovation funding programme, will go into projects that will first have to prove the link between the virus and severe brain malformations reported in new-born children.

If proven, researchers could then move on to combatting the Zika virus, including developing diagnostics and testing potential treatments or vaccines.

Strategies for operationalising new approaches for HIV prevention and treatment at the national level were agreed, and the need for the integration of HIV information health systems was reaffirmed. Partners reiterated and agreed that the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and congenital Syphilis was within the Caribbean’s reach. Cuba was validated in 2015 as the first country in the world to achieve their target and 17 other countries in the region are working towards validation in 2016.

PANCAP is the Caribbean regional partnership of governments, regional civil society organisations, regional institutions and organisations, bilateral and multilateral agencies and contributing development partners. Established in 2001, PANCAP provides a structured and unified approach to the Caribbean’s Framework on HIV and AIDS (CRSF) to maximise efficient use of resources and increase impact, mobilise resources and to build capacity of partners. ¤

The funding will complement a number of other research initiatives currently funded under Horizon 2020 that can aid in the fight against Zika. One is a 40 million euro call for research on vaccine development for malaria and neglected infectious diseases, which include the Zika virus.

The recent rapid spread of the virus has suggested links with the upsurge in brain malformations in new-borns. Cases of GuillianBarre syndrome, a form of paralysis, have also recently been reported in adults and it is believed that there may be a link with the virus.

This EU- funded research will examine the potential link between the Zika virus and the brain malformations in new-borns and other neurological complications observed across Latin America and French Polynesia.

Over 40 countries over the past nine months have reported native cases of the Zika virus infection. ¤ BusinessFocus Apr / May

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events 2016

HEALTH & WEALTH

CARILEC CEOs and Finance Conference May 15-18, 2016, Marriott Beach Resort, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

The CARILEC Chief Executive Officer’s & Finance Conference will be held under the theme “Power. People. Partnership” in Grand Cayman.

It is the only Conference in the Caribbean where all Utility CEO’s & CFO’s gather to discuss opportunities, challenges, cutting-edge methodologies and best practices that will empower participants to better serve the countries in which we conduct business.

This year’s Conference will be one with a difference as we prepare to celebrate our Cohost “Caribbean Utilities Company” (CUC), auspicious 50th Anniversary. The company began operations in May, 1966, and remains Cayman’s only electric utility company. The conference The conference will showcase the uniqueness of merging CEOs with Finance thereby highlighting topics on leadership, financial management, energy law & policy reform, and change management. It will provide insights into contemporary issues relating to the energy sector and approaches to leading the Caribbean energy sector with a renewed vision. For further info: www.carilec.com

Caribbean Fashion Week June 4-13, 2016, National Indoor Sports Centre, Kingston, Jamaica

Established by Pulse Investments Ltd. 2001, Caribbean Fashion Week is the region’s largest, best produced, most recognized and internationally respected fashion event. The event features the Caribbean’s best designers, world famous supermodels & celebrities, important fashion press from around the world as well as local, regional and international fashion buyers.

For further info: http://caribbeanfashionweek.com

Taste of the Caribbean June 6 - 10, 2016 - Hyatt Regency, Miami, Florida

Organised by the CHTA - Taste of the Caribbean provides a forum for gathering practical information, developing skills, sampling, purchasing, strengthening established supplier relationships and meeting new vendors, all on hand to help Taste of the Caribbean registrants build food and beverage business – and yield benefits on the bottom line. Taste of the Caribbean will bring innovative and exciting educational sessions for food and beverage professionals that promise to enhance individual skills.

Since 1993, the best chefs and culinary teams unite to learn, compete and demonstrate their skills and provide the general public a scintillating exhibition of the most savory and delectable treats of the islands. Taste of the Caribbean is the region’s premier culinary competition and cultural showcase. For further info: www.caribbeanhotelandtourism.com

Trade & Investment Convention (TIC) July 6- 9, 2016, Port of Spain, Trinidad.

Hosted by the Trinidad & Tobago Manufacture’s Association, (TTMA), the Trade and Investment Convention has a mandate to foster intra and extra regional trade for regional businesses. TIC takes place at the crossroads of the Americas, in Trinidad and Tobago, the region’s financial capital and the largest economy in the Caribbean, with strong links to Central and South American companies and businesses from around the globe! So when you take part in TIC, you’ll do business with more than 35 countries!

Our multi-sectoral tradeshow brings together local, regional and international businesses.

Exhibitors with thousands of products meet hundreds of buyers seeking new suppliers, goods and services. With structured networking events, a cutting-edge business education programme and assistance from an experienced team on hand to provide expert guidance and matchmaking services, you’re sure to succeed at TIC! For further info: www.tic-tt. com BusinessFocus Apr / May

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MAJOR MOVES & Company Limited among others. He most recently held the position of OECS Director of Finance & Technical Services at Unicomer, trading as Courts. ¤

CAREER banker Nigel Baptiste took over as President and Chief Executive Officer at Republic Financial Holdings, the parent company of Republic Bank in February.

Severin Moncherry Appointed St Lucia’s New Commissioner of Police

He will also take over as Managing Director of Republic Bank and replaces David Dulal-Whiteway who is retiring after more than 25 years with the bank.

Baptiste, Dulal-Whiteway and other Republic Bank directors recently hosted a luncheon at the banking group’s head office at Park Street in Port of Spain for the departing Dulal-Whiteway and to introduce Nigel Baptiste.

Stephen Mc Namara is the new Chairman of LUCELEC’s Board Attorney-at-law Stephen Mc Namara has been appointed the new Chairman of the St. Lucia Electricity Services Limited (LUCELEC) Board of Directors.

A Senior Partner with the law firm of Mc Namara & Company, the incoming Chairman has been a member of the LUCELEC Board since October 2005. He chairs the Board’s Governance Committee and is a member of the Human Resource Committee.

The St Lucia Government confirmed that Mr Severin Moncherry has been appointed as the New Police Commissioner to head the Royal St Lucia Police Force with the retirement of the former Commissioner Errol Alexander.

Mr. Mc Namara replaces Dr. Trevor Byer who retired from the LUCELEC Board of Directors after serving the company since December 2008 when he was appointed to represent minority shareholders. ¤

The new Commissioner has since hosted a Town Hall meeting to address several current issues of national concern and committed to put plans in place to take corrective action.

Ian Peter is the new Chief Financial Officer at LUCELEC St. Lucia Electricity Services Limited (LUCELEC has appointed Ian Peter to the position of Chief Financial Officer (CFO) as of January 1, 2016.

A Fellow of the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (FCCA) with an excellent track record in senior and executive management positions, Mr. Peter brings a unique perspective to the role of CFO at LUCELEC, having worked for the past eight years in a competitive retail environment.

He holds a BSc (Hons) Management Studies from the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus and has held positions of Senior Accountant at KPMG and Financial Controller at Peter

The Republic Bank Group is a significant shareholder in the St Lucia based ECFH Group. ¤

Alison King is new WASCO Chairman

He revealed that he will be meet¬ing with representatives of the Department of Human Services, the Saint Lucia Crisis Centre, Red Cross, the Christian Council and other non-government organiza¬tions to discuss his initiatives.

He was joined at the Town Hall meeting by other police officials, including his immediate prede¬cessor, former Police Commis¬sioner Errol Alexander.

Mr Moncherry is a veteran police officer with more than 30 years of service in the Police Force working his way up the ladder over the years before finally assuming the position of St Lucia Top Cop. ¤

Nigel Baptiste is the new President and CEO of Republic Financial Holdings and Managing Director of Republic Bank

on February 8, 2016.

Alison King has assumed the position of Chairperson of Saint Lucia’s Water and Sewerage Company, WASCO, which took effect

King, an engineer by profession, has served as a member of the WASCO Board of Directors for the last four years and brings a wealth of experience and expertise in the water sector to her new position.

She takes her position at the helm at an important juncture for WASCO, as the company embarks on the major exercise of de-silting the John Compton Dam, while simultaneously undertaking the redevelopment of the water systems in the Dennery Valley and Vieux Fort.

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MAJOR MOVES Ms. King replaces Mr. Egbert Louis, who served as Chairman of WASCO for four years, from January 2012 to January 2016. ¤

Dr. June Soomer is the new Secretary General of the Association of Caribbean States St. Lucian diplomat, Dr. June Soomer has been appointed as the new Secretary General of the Trinidad based regional body – the Association of Caribbean States (ACS).

Dr Soomer, who was selected by the Ministerial Council for a four-year term on the basis of rotation, replaces Secretary General Alfonso Múnera Cavadía.

The St. Lucian diplomat, who will be the first woman to head the regional body, currently serves as St. Lucia’s Ambassador to CARICOM and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and has responsibility for Diaspora issues.

She received her Ph.D. in History from the University of the West Indies in 1994 and since then has lectured at the University of the West Indies, the University of North Carolina (Wilmington), the University of North Carolina Central and was a visiting lecturer at the University of San Francisco.

Dr Soomer also served at the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank from 1996 – 2006 in the area of Human Resource Development and Strategic Planning and served as Advisor, Organisation Development and Strategic Planning. ¤

Permanent Secretary in the Department of Finance in Saint Lucia, Dr. Reginald Darius has been appointed as Director of the Economic Policy Division at the Commonwealth Secretariat in London, UK. In this position, Dr. Darius will be responsible for providing strategic advice to the Commonwealth Secretary-General on issues of sustainable economic development, particularly in international finance, international and regional economic co-operation, small States, and economic management.

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to January 2016.

Mrs. Emmanuel served as Press Secretary to the Prime Minister from January 2012

Ms. Brown is the former anchor at Helen Television System (HTS) News Force, and previously served as a senior news reporter at the same media outlet.

Ms. Brown hails from the community of Canaries, and serves as the Chairperson of the Canaries Carnival Community. ¤

Dr. Darius will bring to this position a first-hand understanding and appreciation of the development challenges of Small Island Developing States.

Dr. Darius assumed the position of Permanent Secretary in St Lucia’s Department of Finance in August 2012. He brought to the position extensive knowledge and experience in macroeconomic and fiscal policy. Prior to assuming the position of Permanent Secretary, Dr. Darius held the position of Senior Economist at the International Monetary Fund.

Dr. Darius holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Warwick, and a Masters Degree in Economics from the University of Cambridge and he has published papers in a number of international journals in the areas of fiscal and monetary policy, exchange rate regimes and unemployment. ¤

Jade Brown appointed new Prime Minister’s Press Secretary Dr. Reginald Darius Appointed Director of Economic Policy at Commonwealth Secretariat

to become the Communications Director of the Saint Lucia Labour Party.

Effective, February 1, 2016, Ms. Jade Brown assumed duties as the new Press Secretary to Prime Minister Dr Kenny D Anthony. She replaces Mrs. Jadia Jn. Pierre-Emmanuel, who resigned

Roderick Cherry appointed as Chief Operations Officer at the SLHTA The Saint Lucia Hotel & Tourism Association has appointed Mr Roderick Cherry as Chief Operations Officer.

Roderick brings to the Association over twenty years of management experience with over ten years at senior management level. He has served as the Chief Executive Officer of the National Insurance Property Development and Management Company Limited (NIPRO), the Executive Director of the St Lucia National Conservation Fund and the Senior Manager for Marketing at ECFH. He holds a MBA in Strategic Management.

As the Association seeks to better serve its membership together with the tourism industry at large, Cherry will seek to monitor and improve upon the many projects and administrative duties of the Secretariat as well as manage the projects of the Tourism Enhancement Fund.

MAJOR MOVES Additionally, he will pursue external funding for the SLHTA’s future programs and in turn maintain existing relationships with external stakeholders and grant funding organizations. ¤ Donnette Ishmael appointed Agricultural Liaison Officer at SLHTA The Saint Lucia Hotel & Tourism Association through its partnership with the Tourism Enhancement Fund has appointed Ms Donette Ismael as its Sector Liaison Officer – Agriculture & Tourism.

As part of the Association’s mandate to foster stronger relations between the tourism and agricultural industries, Ms Ismael will work with stakeholders in both sectors to strengthen the buyer seller relationships and provide support services to farmers seeking to grow their businesses.

Ms Ismael holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Communication. For over five years she has developed a wealth of experience in the Agricultural industry through her work as a Procurement Officer at the National Fair Trade Organization where she was responsible for the purchase and distribution of agricultural products to farmers islandwide. During her tenure, Ismael hopes, “to see our Agricultural sector overcome existing limitations through information sharing and to ensure that farmers are given a fair share of the tourism dollar in an effort to increase national economic growth”. ¤

An internationally recognised culinary giant has joined two of the Caribbean’s storied hotels as their new Executive Chef.

German-born Goehcke has more than a decade of work experience in lauded restaurants, cruise ships and luxury resorts from Europe to Vietnam and the Maldives.

“I look forward to applying my culinary expertise to create an exciting fusion of innovative international cuisine with the exquisite tropical flavors of St. Lucia.”

René Yaron Cahane is New Executive Head Chef at The Landings

Goehcke has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants and a host of high end eateries in the culinary capitals of the world but he was drawn to St. Lucia and the twin resorts Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain partly because of their commitment to organic food and to their use of local produce. ¤ Landings St. Lucia.

Scott Seger is new Director of Food & Beverage at Windjammer Landing Windjammer Landing Villa Beach in Saint Lucia, recently welcomed Scott Seger as the resort’s new Director of Food and Beverage.

Seger will be responsible for all of the hotel’s food service operations including five on-property restaurants and overseeing room service as well as playing a key role in facilitating resort events, weddings and corporate meetings.

Stefan Goechke is the new Executive Chef at Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain

world’s finest hotels and resorts. Seger joins Windjammer Landing following his tenure with Hyatt Coconut Point Resort & Spa in Bonita Springs, Florida, where he served as Director of Food and Beverage since 2012. Prior to Hyatt Coconut Point Resort, Seger was Director of Food and Beverage at several other well-renown and high-end properties, including: Haig Point Resort & Golf Club in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina; Canyon Ranch Health Resort & Spa in Lenox, Massachusetts; and the Renaissance Grand Beach Resort in St. Thomas. ¤

With an extensive background in hospitality, Seger brings more than 20 years of experience with some of the

Accomplished culinary professional René Yaron Cahane is the new Executive Head Chef at The

With more than 25 years of experience in Caribbean and British kitchens, Cahane joins the Caribbean luxury resort from Blue Waters Resort and Spa in Antigua where he served in a similar role.

“My experience spans all aspects of food preparation, from managing overall operations to optimizing organizational processes and ensuring concept delivery,” said Chef René who joins Food and Beverage Director Eric Toles to elevate the culinary experience at The Landings.

Cahane is skilled and experienced in cooking classical French, modern European, creative Caribbean and traditional British foods. He also holds a number of key certifications relating to the industry.

In his native United Kingdom, Cahane formerly served as Executive Head Chef at St. James Theatre, The Adria Boutique Hotel as well as Head Chef with Durrants Hotel in London. ¤

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105

NEW COMPANY REGISTRATIONS COMPANY

NATURE OF BUSINESS

7th HeavenClub Ltd

Bakery & Confectionery

Daniel Buchler

Acetech Engineering and Construction Services Inc

Construction Services to include Project Management, Engineering Design, Development Planning, Architectural Designs and Drafting

Asa Celestin

DIRECTORS

Actilus Inc.

Tourism Services

Eliot Bailey

AJAI Inc.

Real Estate Development, Property Management, Acquistions and Sales

Ainsworth Peter, Arletta Gene Walcott-Peter

Ajoupa Ltd.

Contracting Services

Maurice Leon Juston

Bastion Secretarial Services Inc.

Corporate Secretarial and Management Services

Daniel Francis, David Francis

Blueprint Auto Inc

Automobile Repair and Retail of Vehicle Parts

Kurt Elibox, Mark Harding

Bougainvillea Bluff Ltd.

Event Hosting and Management

Ersher Delauney-Daniel

C & A Holding Ltd.

Property Holding Company

Andie Wilkie

Caribbean Contractors Co. Ltd.

Construction Material,s Equipment and Supplies

Arthur Isidore, Sachin Apte

Commercial Linen Laundry Services Ltd.

Linen Laundry Services & Rental

Ubaldus Raymond

Consport Pools Inc.

Full Construction of Swimming Pools and Aquatic Parks

RubenOolivier Ferreira Oliviera, Juan Antonio Marin Amengual

Deonarain Corp.

Buying and Selling of Goods and Merchan- Bibi Lina Deonarain, Steven Deonarain, dise Bibi Farzana Yusuf-Leon

Du Boulay Brothers Ltd.

Joint Business Ventures

Tony Du Boulay, Dunstan Du Boulay, Leslie Du Boulay, Frank Du Boulay

Dynamic Real Estate Ltd.

Property Development and Sales

Cecil Henry Lay

Energyze Holdings Inc. (EHI)

Carry out Ligitimate Business Activities

Trevor Louisy, Wynn Alexander, Carole Eleuthere Jn Marie

Hewanorra Citizenship Services Ltd.

Economic Citizenship Related Services

Nicholas John

Humiclima Saint Lucia Ltd.

Electrical Contracting Services

Antonio Bonet Gambins

HyLuce Investments Ltd.

Rental of Property and Investments

Carter Hyacinth, Adrian Hyacinth, Louis Lewis, Karen Augustin, Asha Louis

Island Drive Ltd.

Transfer Services

Chevon N. Raveneau

Krishna Investment & Holding Co. Ltd

Investment Holding Company

Dr. Dharmenda Shah, Mrs. Parul Shah

Lambton Holdings Ltd.

Real Estate Investment

Sunningdale Properties Inc.

Lunar Events Inc.

Events Planning

Theres Monplaisir, Tianah Foster, Hazel Marie-Ann Joseph

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106

NEW COMPANY REGISTRATIONS COMPANY

NATURE OF BUSINESS

DIRECTORS

On A Roll Systems (St. Lucia) Ltd.

Supply of Point of Sale Paper Rolls, Point of sale Technology and Consulting, Printing, Consultancy and Supply of Consumable Products to the Printing Industry, Business Promotion, i.e Marketing and Advertising Supplies

David Paterson Spencer, Nathan Paterson Spencer

People’s Discount Pharmacy Ltd.

Pharmaceutical Trading Company

Rosemary Michel (nee Eugene), Jose Michel

Polaris Citizenship & Investment Consultancy Services Ltd.

Rendering of Services of an Authorised Brenda Floissac Fleming, Geoffrey DuBoulay Agent under the Citizenship by Investment Act.

ProBelle Construction Investmnents Ltd.

Construction and Investment

Allan Smith, Cecil Issac, Keith Issac

Properties Mart Ltd.

Real Estate Services

Sylvester Anthony, Kisna Oscar

Property Race Inc.

Real Estate and Media

Anselm Mathurin, Deborah Barley-Mathurin

Pure Element Ltd.

Management Services Company

Allen Chastanet, Feolla Chastanet

PVF Stevedoring Services Inc.

Stevedoring and Marine Services and Commercial Services

Joel F. Greene, Eldridge Stephens

Remodel St. Lucia Ltd.

Constuction, Remodeling, Real Estate and Property Management

Allwyn Alfay

SMC Plus Ltd.

General Merchandising except Finance Banking

Giancarlo Cattoni, Sarah Dunn

The Bastion Corp.

International Financial Services

Daniel Francis, Valerie Isaac, Patrick Isaac, Elma Gene Isaac

The Liquor Store Ltd.

Duty Free Shop, Retail of Wines, Liquors and Accessories

Wissam Chreiki, Habib Chreiki

The St. Lucian Association of Beekeepers Beekeeping Association (S.L.A.B) Ltd.

Earl Gajadhar, Lucianus Emmanuel St. Croix, Sylviana Geoffray, Claude Edwin, Walter Edwin, Wayne Athanase

Veconinter Saint Lucia Inc.

Administrative and Outsourcing Services to the Maritime Industry

Leonardo Arturo Brea Matute, Ramon Eduardo Brea Matute, Jose Luis Canavesi

Vibe Tribe Inc.

Arts and Entertainment

Kennedy Iran Bellas

VYBE Radio Ltd.

Media Broadcasting Services

Eustacius Olanda Phillip, Elijah John Williams, Kwency Griffith

West Indies Shuttles Inc.

Transportation of Passengers by Sea, Transportation of Goods and Produce, All Goods and Tourist related Activities

Kenneth Joseph, Thierry Theodule Dulormne, Theresa Thomas-Savy, Jean Claude Florentiny, Julie Cyril-George

BusinessFocus Apr / May

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107

ADVERTISER’S INDEX COMPANY

Page

COMPANY

Page

1st National Bank St Lucia Limited

37

RBC Royal Bank

51

Advertising & Marketing Services Ltd

99

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Setalon

53

Axcel Finance

05

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Alfaparf Malino

63

Bank Of St Lucia / ECFH

11

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Cariba International

57

75

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Colcafe

31

66-67

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Duwest

55 41 35

Beachcomber Ltd. Beachcomber Ltd. (Subaru) C.O. Williams Construction

43

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Global Furniture

Caribbean Consultancy Services

65

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Listerine

CIBC Firct Caribbean

59

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Lysol

46

Consolidated Foods Ltd.

61

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Nuetrogena

28

Cool Breeze Jeep & Car Rentals

99

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Punch Caribe

63

DIGICEL

02

Renwick & Co Ltd. - SCL Trinidad Ltd

65

18-19

Renwick & Co Ltd. - Vitamin B Complex

57

Dilly’s Supermarket

61

Renwick& Co Ltd. - Cementos Argos SA

27

EC Global Insurance

77

Rubis West Indies Ltd.

17

SAGICOR

77

DIGICEL

Ernst & Young

106-107

Fast Cash St Lucia Ltd.

15

Secure St Lucia Ltd.

65

First Citizens Investment Services

25

True Value

65

Goddard Catering Group

23

Ultra Mart Inc.

63

13

West Indies Shipping Co.

56

Windward & Leeward Brewery Ltd.

89

Grant Thornton Harris Paints J Q Motors Ltd.

01

J Q Motors Ltd.

70-71

Jeffrey & Jeffrey Ltd.

33

LIME

Zaika - The Taste

68-69

Covers DIGICEL

ISBC

M & C Group Of Companies

61

Harris Paints

OSBC

Nat’l Competitiveness & Produtivity Council

55

LIME

INFC

Rayneau Construction & Industrial Products

49

BusinessFocus Apr / May

|

108

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