Toolkit-E6D68A0EC88BB4EAC8169DD538C65DF5
June 2015
High Court Judge Appointed
 New Commercial Division in St. Lucia
 
Soon St. Lucia will quickly have the ability to quickly settle business disputes with the appointment of Judge. Mrs. Cadie St. Rose-Albertini as the High Court Judge of the new Commercial Division, as of July 1, 2015 for three years.

 

In the 2013/2014 budget, the Government of St. Lucia identified the establishment of a commercial division to its High Court as a high priority. At that time, the Prime Minister explained the importance of having a forum to resolve business disputes quickly, effectively and fairly in order to attract investment and promote private sector growth. The appointment of a high court judge is a significant milestone towards the implementation of the Prime Minister's vision. 

 

Last year, the Technical Secretariat of the National Competitiveness and Productivity Council (NCPC) and the Ministry of Legal Affairs, with support from Compete Caribbean embarked on the design of the Commercial Division to the High Court based on the experiences of a similar court in the British Virgin Islands which has been internationally recognized as a good model. The design is now complete and the NCPC as well as the Ministry is in the process of taking the necessary steps to establish the Division.

 

The new division, which is anticipated to formally open before the end of the year, is expected to increase the efficiency of the legal system to settle commercial matters, including commercial contract disputes. 

 

Compete Caribbean is supporting the implementation of the Division, including providing technical support for the revision of the Civil Code, Insolvency Act and other changes required to the legislative framework. It will also assist in equipping the court over the upcoming months. 

Compete Caribbean Continues To Soar
Take a look at the outputs achieved by the Program
against targets as of May 2015
Click below for the BIG picture...

A New Agenda for Sustainable Growth in the Caribbean 

 Headlined in St. Lucia Recently

 

The Third Regional Caribbean Growth Forum (CGF) was recently held in St. Lucia on June 16 and 17 providing a platform for private sector and civil society to give feedback on national reforms and help track the implementation of actions needed to spur sustainable growth and opportunities for all in the Caribbean.

 

This event brought together Caribbean heads of state and over 200 government officials, private sector, civil society and development partners to discuss what are the new strategies and tools necessary to achieve growth in the Caribbean. 

 

Prime Minister of St. Lucia, Dr Kenny D Anthony officially opened the Forum and said: "This forum presents an opportunity to undertake what we have been entrusted to do. As long as this responsibility is left unfulfilled, such initiatives will come ever knocking at our door with a greater sense of urgency."

 

The CGF is facilitated by the World Bank Group (WBG) in partnership with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and Compete Caribbean with support from the United Kingdom Agency for International Development (UKAid) and the Government of Canada.

 

Caribbean Community (CARICOM) governments have been leading the CGF initiative, which has engaged more than 2,500 government, private sector and civil society leaders, and has led to the implementation of over 100 reforms in improving business climate, boosting skills and productivity, as well as enhancing connectivity and logistics. 

Read More

Compete Caribbean Supporting 
Urban Fish Farms In Jamaica

In the slums on Jamaica's south coast, far from the glitzy tourist resorts of the north shore, the nascent industry of ornamental fish farming is offering young urban entrepreneurs a chance to escape poverty, end a cycle of violence and be part of a $4bn global market.

Urban fish farmers clustered in the outskirts of Kingston, the capital, are competing increasingly with long-established industries in Singapore, Malaysia and even Spain to send tiny fish around the world. Aquarium keeping is one of the world's most popular hobbies, with Jamaica's fish destined mostly to be displayed in tanks in the US, the world's largest importer.

The Jamaican fish farms are the brainchild of The Competitiveness Company (TCC), a local
non-governmental organisation funded mostly by the US Agency for International Development plus private donations and proceeds from its own projects. TCC's core mission is to create jobs for inner-city youths, improve standards of living and, ultimately, reduce drug and gang involvement.

Compete Caribbean is providing technical assistance to enhance the cluster's capacity, increase its productivity and foster sustainable competition in national, regional and global markets. Read More
Caribbean Cross Border Coordination with Spectrum Management

silver-keyboard2.jpg

How are you reading this newsletter? Computer? Smartphone? Have you ever asked yourself how is this possible? Spectrum management of course! That being said, one of the essential components of effective Spectrum Management is cross border coordination. 

 

Between June 1 - 5, the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU) hosted a Cross Border Interference Workshop in Grenada to broker a framework to minimize cross border interference in 14 Caribbean countries including the OECS. The opportunity to build capacity and expertise in interference mitigation and management was also a focal point. 


 

A significant achievement of this workshop was the development of a draft agreement between the OECS and the French Regulator (ANFR) for cross border interference management between the Caribbean French territories of Guadeloupe and Martinique along with the OECS states. 

 

Additionally, more good news for the Eastern Caribbean as it is expected that this agreement will aid in the roll-out of nationwide 4G networks. Compete Caribbean, in conjunction with the CTU remains committed to supporting the Caribbean's Harmonization of Spectrum Management Policies. Read More

Compete Caribbean Launches Interactive iOS App


This FREE App designed for both iPhone and iPad puts the Compete Caribbean Program at the palm of your hands. In it you will be able to access information regarding News, Key Results, Project Data and more! Download App Here
Grenada Visits Costa Rica To Learn About Sustainable Tourism

A delegation representing the Grenada Hotel and Tourism Association (GHTA) recently visited Costa Rica to study  sustainable tourism in Costa Rica's cloud forest. 

 

The trip is part of a South-South exchange that brought Janelle Wilkins to Grenada in January to share the experiences of the Monteverde Community Fund in Costa Rica with GHTA members and the Grenadian community at large. The GHTA delegation focused on learning from Monteverde's experience of setting up a community fund that supports local community projects as well as exchanging knowledge and ideas about the promotion of sustainable tourism.

 

Following the familiarisation visit, the GHTA will apply what was learnt to establishing the "Go Pure Grenada Community Fund" and "Geotourism Council" plus the hosting of workshops with its members to share their experience and knowledge.  This exchange is one of the many positive outcomes from the CREST/CTO Costal Innovators Conference hosted by Grenada at St. George's University in 2014.  The trip was financed by grants from the Inter-American Foundation and Compete Caribbean. 

 

The GHTA is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation tasked with being the representative private sector voice of the island's tourism sector. Read More

 

Fashion in the Black™ (FiB) is an international entrepreneur discovery and development competition for emerging fashion designers of Caribbean and African Diaspora decent designed to identify the most talented and business savvy designers for placement in the US Markets. Deadline: July 15! Read More
Like us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterView our profile on LinkedIn

 

Inter-American Development Bank

'Hythe'

Welches

Maxwell Main Road

Christ Church

BB17068

Tel: 246-627-8500 

E-mail: [email protected]

www.competecaribbean.org