07252016 business

MONDAY, JULY 25, 2016

business@tribunemedia.net

Bahamianisation ‘more a curse than a blessing’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Cable Bahamas Head office

Sir Franklyn urges Cable to meet the ‘highest standards’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net Sir Franklyn Wilson has urged Cable Bahamas to “meet the highest standards of transparency and accountability” following the issuance of its new mobile licence.

The Arawak Homes chairman told Tribune Business that the BISXlisted communications See pg b6

Fred Smith QC

Says provider has ‘awesome obligation’ Circulates discussion paper on company Denies last-ditch effort to derail license

‘No time to celebrate’ unemployment decline

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net A Cabinet minister says it “is no time to start celebrating despite the 2.1 percentage drop in the Bahamas’ unemployment rate to 12.7 per cent, as he predicted a further decline come November.

“This is no time to start celebrating. There are still too many people unemployed,” said Shane Gibson, minister of labour and national insurance.

“Until we can get that unemployment rate down to an acceptable level, you can’t celebrate. It’s good to see that it’s moving in the right direction.”

According to the Department of Statistics’ 2016 Labour Force Survey for May, the overall unemployment rate dropped to 12.7 per cent - a 2.1 percentage point decline from November 2015’s 14.8 per cent.

The unemployment rate in New Providence fell from 15.9 per cent to 13.2 per cent over that same period, but the rates for Grand Bahama and Abaco increased by 0.5 per cent and 0.4 percentage points, respectively, to 14.7

Minister: Still too many without jobs But Bahamas ‘moving in right direction’

A well-known QC has backed calls to liberalise the Bar, telling Tribune Business: “Bahamianisation has been more of a curse than a blessing.”

Fred Smith QC, the Callenders & Co attorney and partner, said the ‘Bahamianisation’ concept had helped foster a sense of entitlement and protectionism at the expense of maintaining high performance standards.

He added that it had also helped create a political and economic elite who had been able to “profit at the expense of” the rest of Bahamian society.

“I do not advocate nationalistic protectionism at all,” Mr Smith told this newspaper in a recent interview. “It dumbs down the quality of service to simply benefit nationalism.

“It decreases opportunities for competition, the provision of cutting edge products to the consumer, and ultimately only benefits See pg b7

QC: Reinforces elite ‘at expense of the many’ Smith backs Bahamas Bar liberalisation Would boost economy, depth of legal services

Jobless numbers up 10% year-over-year

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net An FNM leadership contender has expressed concern that the Government is usurping the private sector’s role as chief job creator, after unemployment increased 10.2 per cent year-over-year.

Loretta Butler-Turner accused the Government of “focusing on percentages that sound good” in relation to the latest jobless figures, while also failing to create the necessary enabling environment for business to thrive.

Speaking after the Department of Statistics re-

Loretta: Govt too-focused on percentages Says new jobs coming from Govt, not business Web shop growth reducing money circulation vealed the results from its latest Labour Force Survey, conducted in May 2016, the Opposition’s labour force

spokesman argued that the reduction in unemployment since November 2015 largely stemmed from temporary jobs created by Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival.

The official data heralded a 2.1 percentage point decline in the Bahamas’ national unemployment rate, from 14.8 per cent to 12.7 per cent, over the sixmonth period to end-May 2016.

However, much of the improvement is thought to be related to the numerous temporary jobs created in the run-up to Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival, which was held around the time the survey was conducted.

See pg b5

$3.97 $4.06 $3.98

$3.98

500 extra NIB contributors in Bimini not included

Shane Gibson per cent and 10.1 per cent.

According to the Department of Statistics, the unemployment rate decline was influenced by activities related to Bahamas Junkanoo See pg b4

URCA orders ‘middle ground’ on NewCo’s BTC roaming period

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net Regulators have ordered a ‘middle ground’ compromise on how long NewCo2015 can use the Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) network to deliver its own mobile services, stipulating a 24-month time period.

The Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority’s (URCA) See pg b8

24-month limit on use of rival’s infrastructure Longer than BTC wanted, less than Cable BTC criticised for ‘misguided thinking’

FamGuard Corporate Centre, #1 Shirley St., (242) 396-4045 • www.familyguardian.com

PAGE 2, Monday, July 25, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

Campbell named as HoldingCo chairman

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A former Colina Insurance Company president has been appointed as chairman of HoldingCo, the entity that will hold the 51.75 per cent majority stake in the Bahamas’ new mobile phone operator.

Multiple Tribune Business contacts informed this newspaper that the Government has named James Campbell as HoldingCo’s chairman, although the duration of his appointment is unclear.

Mr Campbell’s appointment is understood to have been disclosed to shareholders of HoldingCo’s

Ex-insurance boss heads new mobile operator’s majority owner URCA criticises BTC feedback as ‘out of step’ with law ‘joint venture partner’, Cable Bahamas, at the latter’s annual general meeting (AGM) on Wednesday night.

The BISX-listed communications provider, which has a minority 48.25 per cent equity stake in the new

operator, NewCo 2015, still has Board and management control after successfully winning the bid for the second mobile license.

Tribune Business understands that Mr Campbell, by virtue of his position with HoldingCo, will also be NewCo’s vice-chairman, with Cable Bahamas director, Franklyn Butler, acting as its chairman.

But, given that the Government’s 100 per cent interest in HoldingCo is only temporary, and is supposed to be bought out by institutional investors via a private placement set to launch next month, it is uncertain whether Mr Campbell’s role will be of similar limited duration.

That has yet to be made clear, but it is highly likely that once the Government is replaced as HoldingCo’s owner, its new private investors will have to choose, select and vote on a chairman from among themselves.

Mr Campbell has kept a relatively low profile since the acrimonious shareholder dispute that saw him ousted from Colina Insurance Company’s presidency, and his interest in the then-Colina Financial Group (CFG), around eight to nine years ago.

He was eventually bought out by remaining owners, Emanuel Alexiou and Anthony Ferguson, following arbitration and a long-running, bitter dispute.

Subsequently, he worked as one of the Bahamian ‘point men’ for PowerSecure International on its bid to take over management of the Bahamas Electricity Corporation’s (BEC) transmission and distribution functions. That was before the process was revised to ultimately see PowerSecure take over management for BEC’s generation as well.

Mr Campbell was also a member of the Government’s Cellular Liberalisation Task Force, the body that was formed to oversee the process that ultimately saw Cable Bahamas (and NewCo) awarded the Bahamas’ second mobile license.

Meanwhile, the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) has rejected the Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) argument that it needs 90 days to develop the details of any proposed National Roaming Agreement with NewCo. The regulator has ordered that NewCo be allowed to use BTC’s existing infrastructure to offer services to its own consumers for a period of 24 months, ending on June 30, 2018, and requires that the two companies draw up an agreement containing prices and other details within 14 days.

URCA also described BTC’s arguments over the ‘roaming’ proposal as “inconsistent”, as it was simultaneously suggesting that its system would have to handle a large amount of communications traffic while also claiming the arrangement would benefit “a limited population”.

And it also rapped the incumbent carrier for statements on efficiency cost adjustments that “are out of step with relevant Bahamian law”, particularly the Communications Act. “Obligations relating to cost recovery and price controls must reflect efficiently incurred costs,” the regulator said.

“URCA further reminds BTC that this provision

holds regardless of the methodology used to set national roaming rates.

“URCA, therefore, is specifically obliged to investigate whether roaming rates reflect efficiently incurred costs, as this is the basis for calculating BTC’s rate of return on capital efficiently employed,” URCA added.

“Furthermore, URCA does not consider that allowing the recovery of only efficiently incurred costs would amount to a subsidy to NewCo.” But, when it came to the pricing regime mobile customers will face, URCA said it would not intervene in the market prior to NewCo’s launch.

As a result, mobile consumers will pay for all calls they receive from fixed-line customers. And BTC will be allowed to levy a charge on its customers for “calling and sending messages” to NewCo subscribers.

“There is no direct link between the retail pricing regime and the payment for national roaming services,” URCA said. “Irrespective of the pricing regime on the retail level, BTC will still have to charge NewCo for any calls a NewCo customer receives or makes while roaming on BTC’s network.”

Bahamian realtor assists new US Embassy site deal Bahamas Realty’s commercial division has helped the US government purchase four parcels of land that will form the site for its new Nassau embassy.

NAI Bahamas Realty Commercial teamed with LAC Real Estate Consultants, represented by director Kent S. Kerr, who are based in Miami, to assist the US State Department

in acquiring a 5.22 acre site.

“We’re pleased to have been able to assist in identifying a suitable site for the new US Embassy, and to have successfully negotiated the acquisition of the identified properties from the individual owners,” said Larry Roberts of NAI Bahamas Realty Commercial.

“These sales are the latest of several recent major

transactions we’ve represented in the Bahamas.”

The proposed Embassy site is located in a prime hilltop location on Shirley Street, at the corner of Shirley Street and East Street.

The site is centrally located within Nassau’s central business district, and is easily accessible for the Embassy’s business.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, July 25, 2016, PAGE 3

New business growth ‘only way’ to cut unemployment

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net The Bahamas “must do everything it can” to encourage new entrepreneurs and get existing businesses to expand, the Chamber’s chief executive arguing this is “the only way” to slash unemployment.

Edison Sumner told Tribune Business that “everybody wins” if the Government creates the right environment for business to thrive, thereby boosting private sector confidence sufficiently to generate increased economic activity.

While welcoming the reduction in the national unemployment rate to 12.7 per cent at May 2016, Mr Sumner expressed concern that the figures were “artificial”.

He based this on the temporary boost provided by the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival, which occured at the same time as the Department of Statistics conducted its bi-annual Labour Force Survey.

Calling on the Carnival’s temporary impact to be stripped out, so a “truer picture” of the Bahamas’ unemployment situation could be obtained, Mr Sumner acknowledged that job creation was not keeping pace with demand and workforce

Chamber chief queries ‘artificial’ survey numbers Urges Govt to focus on entrepreneurs and SMEs expansion.

“We’re always glad to see unemployment decreasing,” Mr Sumner said of the 2.1 percentage drop in the official rate during the six months to May 2016. “My only concern is whether they are real numbers, or are they artificial numbers?”

The Chamber chief executive explained that the ‘artificial’ comment referred to whether the jobless rate had declined largely as a result of Junkanoo Carnival’s timing, and the associated creation of temporary jobs.

The Department of Statistics, in its official release on the May Labour Force Survey, acknowledged that the 26 per cent increase in manufacturing sector employment since November 2015 had been “influenced

by Carnival-related activities”.

Still, manufacturing only accounted for 4 per cent of the Bahamian labour force,

with the civil service, police and domestic service still the country’s largest employer at 36 per cent of the workforce.

Mr Sumner said that with more than 27,500 Bahamians still unemployed (looking for work and unable to find it), the only feasible solution was to grow the economy by sparking the private sector.

“What it shows again is that we need to put our focus and attention on, and see more effort put into, creating entrepreneurs and small businesses,” he told Tribune Business.

Praising Junkanoo Carnival for attempting to do just that, Mr Sumner added: “If we can turn those efforts into a more sustained basis, we will see an increase in entrepreneurship and a reduction in unemployment.

“We did seen, when going through the hurricane relief effort, the entrepreneurial spirit that exists throughout the country.

“One of the things we need to do in supporting SMEs is to ensure the environment enables them to thrive, and gives them access to capital and makes the cost of capital more affordable, so they can create more opportunities for themselves.”

Mr Sumner said that the creation of numerous small businesses, each hiring just three to five staff, would have a major impact on an

unemployment situation where more than one in 10 Bahamians is unable to find work.

The Department of Statistics’ release last week said there had been a 7 per cent increase in the number of self-employed Bahamians in the six months since November 2015, although it did not attribute this to Junkanoo Carnival.

Mr Sumner, though, added: “The more people encouraged to go into business, the greater the increase in economic activity. And once that happens, everyone wins.

“This is something the Government needs to pay particular attention to. The Government does well when the private sector does well.

It raises revenues from businesses and private individuals, and it needs to do everything it can to promote entrepreneurship and SMEs because once it does that, we all win.”

The Chamber chief renewed calls for the Government to implement an ‘enabling environment’ for businesses to thrive, and urged it to “minimise bureaucracy and red tape”.

He acknowledged that the unemployment rate had “not moved much” since the Christie administration took office in May 2012, but said this was explained by lay-offs at the likes of Baha

Mar and the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC), plus the difficulties high school and college graduates face in securing permanent jobs.

Labour Force data comparisons between 2016, and the years 2012 and 2013, are somewhat meaningless because Abaco was only included in the survey from May 2014 onwards.

But, just assessing the last two years, the data shows that while the total labour force and number of employed Bahamians have increased by almost exactly the same amount - 17,000 - the jobless numbers have remained stubbornly above 27,000.

“While we’re moving in the right direction in some instances, we’re not moving at a pace to keep up with the world and engage all the people in the country in the workforce,” Mr Sumner told Tribune Business. “That’s always been our concern.

“This goes to the fact that business and entrepreneurs create jobs. How are we going to create businesses, incentivise new individuals and attract people to take risks and go into business?

“That’s the only way to reduce the level of unemployment in this country. That can only be done through the entrepreneurial class and small businesses, and creat-

Commission launches overhaul of Funds Act The Securities Commission has officially launched its project to overhaul the Investment Funds Act, in a bid to strengthen regulation and improve the sector’s competitiveness.

The Commission launched the project on July 1, 2016, with the engagement of Gonsalves Sabola Chambers as the drafting consultant, and Graham, Thompson and Company as the technical adviser. It aims to complete the draft Act and accompanying regulations before 2016 ends.

The drafting consultant is responsible for producing drafts of the legislation in accordance with instructions provided by the Se-

curities Commission, while the technical consultant will benchmark the proposed legislation against rival jurisdictions to ensure it is competitive. It will also be designed in preparation for the European Union (EU) passporting process.

The investment funds industry a growth in recent years for the Bahamas, largely due to an increase in SMART funds, which are tied to the private wealth management business.

The number of Bahamian-licensed or registered investment funds has shown an average annual increase of 10.8 per cent over the years 2013 to 2015, with 885 total funds domiciled in

this nation at December 31, 2015.

Meanwhile, the number of licensed/exempted investment fund administrators operating in or from the Bahamas rose by 6.5 per cent to 66 during 2015, following several years of stagnation.

“This growth signals that the Bahamas may have an opportunity to gain ground and expand the investment funds industry, which is good news in a sector plagued by contractions in private wealth management,” said Christina Rolle, the Securities Commission’s executive director.

The legislation will address concerns with the regulation of the investment

funds markets identified in the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF’) 2013 Financial Sector Stability Assessment report for The Bahamas.

The revised Act will provide for the oversight of investment fund managers and advisors, and for ongoing capital and prudential requirements for market intermediaries, bringing these areas into compliance with international standards and codes.

The team assembled for the Investment Funds Act overhaul, along with a legislative drafter assigned by the Attorney General, will review and give input to the

Christina Rolle proposed legislation at various stages during the drafting process.

The Securities Commission is also planning to have two periods of industry consultation during the development of the legislation,

ing incentives for large businesses to hire more people.”

Mr Sumner said the private sector needed to have “confidence and comfort” that the economic environment will support job-creating investments and expansion.

He added that “the spinoff benefits will be a reduction in the level of unemployment in this country”.

The Department of Statistics, in unveiling the latest labour force data, said the Bahamian workforce had expanded by 1.7 per cent since November 2015, and by 3.3 per cent in the 12 months to May 2016.

With some 215,880 persons in the labour force, the Department said the number of employed Bahamians had increased by 7,540 since November 2015, with the jobless numbers also falling by 3,855 or 12.3 per cent over the same six-month period.

Some 21 per cent of unemployed persons were aged between 20-24 years-old, with the 25-34 year-old age segment accounting for 24 per cent of the workforce.

The Department of Statistics found that 12 per cent of the workforce was expatriate, while 62 per cent were engaged by the private sector.

which will facilitate direct input from licensees, registrants and the public.

While the Securities Commission is the lead sponsor of the Act’s overhaul, the Ministry of Finance and the Attorney General’s Office are key partners.

As part of the launch, the regulator paid courtesy calls on the minister of state for finance, Michael Halkitis; minister of financial services, Hope Strachan, and held meetings with the project team and other industry stakeholders, including representatives from the Association of International Banks and Trust Companies (AIBT) and the Bahamas Financial Services Board’s (BFSB) funds working group.

PAGE 4, Monday, July 25, 2016

‘No time to celebrate’ unemployment decline From pg B1 Carnival. It said that since last November, employment in the ‘manufacturing’ sector increased by 26 per cent as a result, with the sector accounting for 4 per cent of total employment.

Mr Gibson stressed that the Bahamas needed to tackle its persistently high rate of youth unemployment.

“We are trying to tackle youth unemployment and put a dent in that,” he added, the Department of Statistics

noting that unemployment among persons between 15 to 24-years-old is higher than in any other area.

However, the unemployment rate for this age group declined from 30 per cent in November 2015 to 25.8 per cent in May. “We have started our national youth employment programme already, employing persons between the ages of 18 and 40,” Mr Gibson said.

“We have also launched the apprenticeship programme and several other

THE TRIBUNE

initiatives. I anticipate that you would see that rate drop even more. Right now, there’s nothing to celebrate, but we are heading in the right direction,” he added.

Mr Gibson said the recent unemployment figures do not include the island of Bimini. “Our National Insurance numbers show us that we have just over 500 more persons contributing to National Insurance from Bimini today than there were in 2012,” he added.

“If you look at the labour force survey it doesn’t include Bimini. It wouldn’t include persons hired at Bimini Bay, the Hilton hotel, the casino and other projects since 2012.”

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THE TRIBUNE

Monday, July 25, 2016, PAGE 5

Jobless numbers up 10% year-over-year From pg B1 And comparing May’s unemployment figures to November’s is viewed by many observers as relatively meaningless, as the two bi-annual Labour Force surveys are conducted against different backdrops and circumstances.

While May typically produces a drop in the unemployment numbers and rate, due to events such as Junkanoo Carnival, and the peak winter tourism season, the figures traditionally spike in November.

This is because that period captures the impact of between 3,000-5,000 annual high school leavers entering the workforce, which usually increases the jobless figures because the Bahamian economy is not growing fast enough to absorb them all.

As a result, many believe the year-over-year comparisons provide a better guide as to how the Bahamian economy is faring in providing sufficient jobs for its people.

Comparing May 2016 to May 2015 paints a much different picture to the six-month comparison employed last week by the Government’s Department of Statistics.

This shows that, compared to May 2015, the total number of unemployed Bahamians actually increased by 10.2 per cent or more than 2,500 year-overyear, rising from 24,980 to 27,520.

This suggests that the 2,000-plus lay-offs from Baha Mar are still working there way through the economy, as are recent high school graduates still struggling to find permanent em-

ployment.

Moving the comparisons further out reveals that the total number of Bahamians unemployed at May 2016 almost exactly matches the total from two years ago 27,520 versus 27,435 in May 2014.

This indicates that while the economy may be keeping pace with new entrants to the labour force, it has been unable to do both this and slash the existing number of jobless Bahamians.

Mrs Butler-Turner, meanwhile, said she was concerned about the quality of jobs being created, arguing that those created by Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival were largely temporary.

She also questioned why the Labour Force Survey was coinciding with the Carnival, suggesting it provided a misleading indicator of the true unemployment picture.

“We see a two-three week decrease during the time of Carnival,” Mrs Butler-Turner, the Opposition’s labour spokesperson, told Tribune Business.

“Clearly, it is not a sustainable position. Those [Carnival] industries are temporary industries. It is not a sustainable position for any government to count on. We obviously realise that is a short period of time.”

She added: “What the Government should do is create a climate where people’s long-term goals can be achieved.

“While these latest statistics speak to a decrease, we see that it’s not a sustainable position, and the Government has very little to be happy about in this regard.”

However, there were

Loretta Butler-Turner some bright spots that the Christie administration can point to. These include the drop in youth unemployment among 15 to 24 yearolds, which - although still too high - fell from 30 per cent in November 2015 to 25.8 per cent.

The number of discouraged workers, those who have given up looking for work because they believe no jobs are available, also fell by 10 per cent over the same period. On New Providence and Grand Bahama, the number of discouraged workers fell by 14 per cent and 16 per cent, respectively.

Mrs Butler-Turner, though, expressed concern that the drop in the unemployment rate since November 2015 had come mainly from governmentfinanced initiatives (Carnival) rather than the private sector.

“This decrease was not brought about by the private sector,” she told Tribune Business. “We are doing this all on borrowed money that we will have to repay.

“This speaks to the fiscal approach the Government is taking, and not encouraging the growth of small and medium-sized busi-

nesses.

“The big problem we have is that the Government it attempting to create jobs, as opposed to creating an environment where small businesses empower themselves to create employment,” Mrs ButlerTurner continued.

“The Government has to be able to have mechanisms in place for business to have confidence, and banks to have the ability to lend, so small businesses can create employment for a wide cross-section of Bahamians. The Government has failed miserably on that.”

Mrs Butler-Turner pointed out that the total number of Bahamians was higher than this time last year, and added: “While the Government is looking

at a percentage that sounds good, the reality is that more and more people are out of a job and looking for work.”

Suggesting that the Government had done little to solve the plight of redundant Baha Mar staff, she said: “They’re basically looking at percentages when the impact in the community is much greater than they’d like to admit.

“I’ve spoken to the fact that the Government is devoid of ideas, devoid of mechanism to get people back to work in meaningful, sustainable jobs.”

Since the 2008-2009 recession, the only sectors of the Bahamian economy appearing to show meaningful employment growth have been web shops, security

companies and fast food businesses.

Acknowledging that this spoke to a lack of higherpaying, quality jobs, Mrs Butler-Turner said the growth of the web shop industry had both negatively impacted her Long Island constituency and hindered its recovery from Hurricane Joaquin.

“While there may be a slight increase in employment in the web shops, the down side is the decrease in money circulating in the economy,” she explained to Tribune Business.

“It is evident by the number of businesses closing down rather than expanding. We’re also seeing attrition in terms of population numbers due to the lack of economic growth.”

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PAGE 6, Monday, July 25, 2016

Sir Franklyn urges Cable to meet the ‘highest standards’ From pg B1 provider was now “a terribly important company for the Bahamas”, given both the nature and scale of its operations, and how dependent investors are on its success.

He added that “to whom much is given, much is expected”, and that he wanted Cable Bahamas’ Board of Directors and management to fully “understand the awesome responsibility” they have.

Tribune Business spoke to Sir Franklyn after being informed that he had circulated a ‘discussion paper’ on Cable Bahamas to members of the business and financial services community, taking issue with several aspects of its operations.

Multiple financial services and capital markets contacts confirmed they either had seen the ‘paper’, or pos-

sessed a copy, adding that it expressed particular concern with the $200 millionplus preference share debt on Cable Bahamas’ balance sheet.

“They’re fully leveraged; that was his main contention,” one source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said of Sir Franklyn’s ‘paper’. “And that they didn’t do all their universal coverage for the existing licences [cable TV]. He has a point there.”

However, despite repeated requests by Tribune Business, no contact has been able to provide this newspaper with a copy, with some fearing they may be identified as ‘the source’.

Several persons, though, have questioned the motivations behind Sir Franklyn’s ‘discussion’ paper, and whether there is an “agenda” behind it - espe-

cially given the timing of its release.

For it coincided with the June 30 issuance of the licence for NewCo2015 Ltd, the nation’s second mobile operator, in which Cable Bahamas has a 48.25 per cent equity stake, coupled with Board and management control.

Some observers are thus questioning whether Sir Franklyn’s paper was a last-ditch effort to derail the awarding of NewCo’s licence, and if he - or his companies - have any connection to the losing bidder, Virgin Mobile (Bahamas).

While the paper’s release was likely to have been too late to have any impact, Sir Franklyn denied there was any hidden agenda behind its crafting and circulation.

“It was just to try and encourage the leadership of Cable Bahamas to understand the awesome responsibility they have because of their standing in the corporate world,” he told Tribune Business.

Sir Franklyn said he had spoken to Cable Bahamas’ executives and directors over his concerns, and suggested they understood his views “more fully”.

“Cable Bahamas is a terribly important company for the Bahamas,” he added. “If you look at the records, it really has no equal in the Bahamas in terms of the number of shareholders, and diversity among the shareholders.”

Sir Franklyn said Bahamas International Securities Exchange (BISX) data showed that for 2015, Cable Bahamas was the secondmost traded stock behind

Commonwealth Bank, accounting for 9.6 per cent of trading volumes and 13.4 per cent of value.

While year-over-year (52 week) comparisons are made difficult by Cable Bahamas’ stock split last year, Sir Franklyn said its share price had increased by 22 per cent during the first 11 months of 2015.

The ‘next best’ performers were Commonwealth Brewery and his own FOCOL Holdings, with price appreciations of 11 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively.

“When a company has that type of performance, it’s a terribly important company,” Sir Franklyn told Tribune Business.

“And it’s terribly, terribly important that such a company conducts itself in such a way that it meets the highest standards of transparency and accountability and the like.

“That company has to succeed because it’s so important to the country. A tonne of people’s pension fund monies are invested in it.”

Apart from being the dominant player in the Bahamas’ TV and broadband Internet markets, Cable Bahamas has also gained an estimated 30 per cent of the fixed-line voice business since entering that segment.

Its successful bid for the mobile licence means it will become a ‘quad play’ provider in late September/ early October 2016, thereby making it arguably the most important provider in the communications industry - a sector vital to the Bahamas’ economic success.

“This is a tremendous concentration of power,” Sir Franklyn told Tribune Business. “When you have that concentration of power and interest, to whom much is given, much is expected.

“You have to perform at very high levels. I’ve had conversations with senior executives at Cable to drive home this point; you’ve got to perform at a very high level. They have to behave a certain way and meet very high expectations.

“My sense from talking to some of the leaders there is that they now understand this point more fully. Going forward, let’s see if there’s a change in the way they deport themselves.”

Sir Franklyn then criticised the lack of explanation for Cable Bahamas’ $14.371 million net loss in 2015, saying the company was “not telling the public what that’s about”.

However, Tribune Business reported in early May 2016 that the loss was driven by a one-off $20.5 million accounting ‘write down’ associated with Cable Bahamas’ US operations.

The BISX-listed communications unveiled a more than-$25 million year-overyear swing ‘into the red’ for the 12 months to end-December 2015, as ‘goodwill impairment’ at its recentlyacquired Florida business came into play.

That ‘one-off’ $20.499 million charge accounted for around 80 per cent of the ‘bottom line’ reversal, with the other decisive factor being a 63.3 per cent year-over-year increase in preference share dividends.

With some $189 million

THE TRIBUNE worth of preference share debt issued over the past two years, Cable Bahamas’ dividend payments to these investors rose by more than $4.2 million - from $6.696 million in 2014 to $10.936 million last year.

The loss resulted from the fact that Cable Bahamas is effectively investing for projected future gains and shareholder returns tomorrow, and these have yet to materialise.

The company has sharply increased the amount of debt (bank financing and preference shares) on its balance sheet to fund both its $100 million worth of US acquisitions, and their expansion, and its mobile growth opportunity at home.

Cable Bahamas acknowledged in the offering memorandum for its latest $50 million preference share issue that costs associated with recent debt capital raisings “have dragged on profitability and cash flow”, impacted its short-term financial performance.

The BISX-listed provider also conceded that the latest preference share issue, some $30 million of which is being raised locally, would impact its leverage or ‘gearing’ ratio.

Cable Bahamas forecast that debt-to-EBITDA would be 5.81 times’ and 4.66 times’, respectively, at year-ends 2016 and 2017.

These, though, would be quickly reduced as NewCo2015 “ramped up” and debt was paid down.

One capital markets source, speaking on condition of anonymity, suggested to Tribune Business that Cable Bahamas and its Royal Fidelity advisers may have difficulty in placing the $30 million local component.

They said many institutional investors were “operating at their limits”, both in terms of their exposure to Cable Bahamas and preference shares generally, given the company’s capital-raising activities in the past two years.

“A lot of the institutions won’t subscribe; they don’t have the capacity,” the source said. “Whether it’s 10 per cent or 15 per cent, they’re operating at their limits. Cable Bahamas has to stack on a lot of debt, and the revenues come at the back end.”

call 502-2394 to advertise in the tribune today!

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Parts Warehouse Clerk and Counter Sales Person Machinery & Energy Limited, Parts Department, is looking for candidates to work in its Parts Warehouse and a Counter Salesperson. Candidates should have an academic high school diploma; Successful candidates will be trained to work in the Parts Department Warehouse, assisting with Inventory Control, rebuilding hoses, and Customer Service. Experiences in Warehousing and Customer Service would be an asset.

Send complete resume with education and work experience to M & E Limited, P. O. Box N-3238, Nassau, Bahamas, Attention Human Resources Department, or email: me@me-ltd.com Only persons with the necessary requirements will be contacted.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, Monday, July July 25,25, 2016, 2016, PAGE PAGE 7 7

Bahamianisation ‘more a curse than a blessing’ From pg B1 a select few.”

Continuing with this theme, he added: “Bahamianisation has been more of a curse to the Bahamas than a blessing.

“It is short-sighted, insular and creates a class that is politically and financially powerful, profiting at the expense of the many. It is not the idealistic equaliser it holds itself out to be.”

Mr Smith’s comments are likely to reignite debate on the merits of Bahamianisation, which many view as a powerful tool for national development.

Its proponents believe this policy concept has enabled Bahamians to train for, and ascend to, top managerial and ownership positions in their own economy, thereby contributing to the betterment of society.

Others, such as Mr Smith, instead argue that Bahamianisation has resulted in reduced performamce standards and innovation, given some local expectations that they will ‘automatically’ be promoted into certain positions because of their nationality.

Such debate has been rejuvenated after Tribune Business and other media recently revealed a request by the Financial Services Group (FSG), a committee of the Bar Association, for $6,000 to fund a survey that would ascertain attorney view on ‘liberalising’ the legal profession.

This prompted several attorneys, including Paul Moss, himself the principal of a Bahamas-based financial services business, to reject the notion of ‘opening up’ the Bar to specialist practitioners and law firms.

Mr Smith, though, has become the first prominent attorney since the FSG survey revelation to publicly endorse the Bahamian legal profession’s liberalisation.

“As a senior practitioner, I very much support the liberalisation of the Bar,” he told Tribune Business. “It is certainly in keeping with our international obligations, in

particular to CARICOM, and the free movement of people between Caribbean nations.”

Mr Smith’s latter comment appears inaccurate, given that the Bahamas has never signed on to the Caribbean Single Market & Economy (CSME) and its associated ‘free movement of people’ concept.

However, the ‘opening up’ of various professions to foreign workers is an issue that the Bahamas’ trade negotiators will have to deal with in determining the terms of this nation’s accession to full World Trade Organisation (WTO) membership.

Still, Mr Smith argued that Bar ‘liberalisation’ “can only accrue to the benefit of the domestic and international legal services consumer.

“The deeper the Bahamas’ bench is, the greater its ability to provide competitive legal services, not only in financial services but in maritime, trust, litigation, arbitration, mediation and asset protection, which will reduce costs to the consumer and also put the Bahamas at the cutting edge in the provision of such services,” the Callenders & Co partner added.

Mr Smith said ‘liberalisation’ would add to, and boost, the Bahamas’ existing competitive advantages, including its proximity to the US and “ease of accessibility” from North and South America, and Europe.

“Given that the Bahamas promotes itself as a safe, stable and competitive jurisdiction in which to do business, expanding and liberalising our Bar, and allowing foreign practitioners to appear in the country, will expand the jurisdiction and legal services industry,” he reiterated.

Apart from numerous spin-off economic benefits, such as the impact on the real estate and property rental market, Mr Smith said ‘liberalisation’ would create opportunities for

joint ventures and partnerships between Bahamian law firms and their foreign counterparts.

This, in turn, would also provide avenues for Bahamian attorneys to train and work abroad in international partnerships, and aid this nation’s goal of becoming an arbitration/alternative dispute resolution (ADR) hub.

Mr Smith repeated his belief that Freeport was “ideally suited” to become an ADR hub, especially with respect to maritime disputes, an idea that has also been backed by the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) and government ministers.

“I encourage the Government to continue to pursue the liberalisation of the Bar,” he told Tribune Business.

Opinion in the legal profession is split on the issue.

Those advocating it believe the Bahamas lacks the depth of expertise necessary to handle increasingly complex financial services transactions and client demands.

Just as importantly, they also believe that in a relationship-driven business, the Bahamas lacks the key contacts necessary to attract and retain major ‘blocks of business’.

Such a problem, ‘liberalisation’ proponents feel, can be addressed by ‘opening up’ to specialist foreign financial services practitioners and law firms. They argue that the likes of the Cayman Islands and Bermuda have gained a competitive advantage by already doing this.

But senior attorneys who have called for ‘liberalisation’, such as Bryan Glinton, Brian Moree QC and Michael Paton, have been quick to point out that such an ‘opening up’ will not be widespread, with areas such as family and criminal law reserved for Bahamians only.

‘Knowledge transfer’ to Bahamians would also be required, as would partnerships and joint ventures between local and foreign law firms.

Opponents, though, argue that ‘liberalisation’ is unnecessary and will not be a ‘silver bullet’ or oneshot panacea to resolve the financial services industry’s lack of growth.

Mr Moss recently described the ‘liberalisation’ issue as a ‘red herring’ to Tribune Business. He suggested it was distracting attention from the real issues as to why the Bahamas’ financial services industry is not growing, such as ‘ease

of doing business’ woes and a lack of worldwide marketing/promotion.

Elsworth Johnson, the Bar Association’s president, last week questioned why the Bahamas had seemingly been unable to develop a deep enough financial services expertise base after 40 years of Independence.

He argued that Bahamian attorneys were just as bright and competent as their foreign counterparts, but said Bar ‘liberalisation’ was a matter for the Government, Parliament and Immigration policy.

The Christie administration, though, appears to have determined that legal profession ‘liberalisation’ is necessary to help revitalise the financial services sector.

Prime Minister Perry Christie earlier this year told the Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB) conclave in Abaco that the Bahamian legal profession needed to ‘open up’ to specialist foreign attorneys, suggesting this was key to the industry.

This followed similar calls by former financial services minister, Ryan Pinder, and his successor, Hope Strachan.

Mrs Strachan last year said her meetings with high net worth individuals and their advisers revealed that

the inability of foreign specialists to practice from the Bahamas was a major obstacle to the financial services industry’s growth.

“The Bahamas is notoriously recognised for its closed shop policy towards foreign lawyers and certain other industry professionals,” Mrs Strachan told a Bahamas Institute of Financial Services seminar.

“On a recent industryrelated trip, it was communicated that this continues to be an impediment as to why more business is not being referred to the Bahamas, despite our advanced legislation, our location and proximity to the US, our language, political stability, our cadre of well-educated and experienced professionals, and our reputation as a well-regulated and respected international financial centre.

“This was a common unsolicited theme from many of our friends and industry partners. The question is: What should be done about it? Are we prepared to recognise the problem and do something to fix it?”

Her call then for more openness, and an end to what was perceived as a ‘closed shop’, was met with strong push back from many in the legal profession.

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PAGE 8, Monday, July 25, 2016

URCA orders ‘middle ground’ on NewCo’s BTC roaming period From pg B1 final determination on NewCo’s ability to ‘roam’ via BTC’s existing infrastructure provides a shorter timeframe than Cable Bahamas wanted, but longer than BTC desired.

The BISX-listed communications provider wanted NewCo 2015 to be able to deliver services via its rival’s network for 36 months, or three years, while BTC wanted half that timeframe - a period of just 18 months.

URCA, though, explained that it selected the two-year duration because this coincided with when NewCo is obliged to complete the Bahamas-wide roll-out of its own network infrastructure, thereby achieving nationwide coverage.

The regulator ordered that NewCo’s BTC network ‘roaming’ should start “no later than the date” when the second mobile operator launches its services to the Bahamian public.

Given that NewCo, in which Cable Bahamas has a 48.25 per cent equity stake, is mandated to launch in New Providence and Grand Bahama by end-September/ beginning of October 2016, the National Roaming Agreement with BTC must

be in place by then.

NewCo2015’s mobile network must cover 99 per cent of New Providence’s population, and 80 per cent of Grand Bahama’s, within three months of its June 30 licence award from URCA. The regulator, in its ‘roaming’ determination, said that even if NewCo2015 met this target, around 20 per cent of the Bahamas’ population - some 70,292 persons - would still be unable to access its network and services.

Hence the justification for allowing NewCo2015 to ‘piggyback’ on BTC’s network, despite the latter’s protests, with URCA arguing that the “substantial benefits” to consumers from being able to enjoy the benefits of mobile competition outweigh any impact to the incumbent.

Turning to how long ‘national roaming’ should last, URCA acknowledged the “differing views” of BTC and Cable Bahamas on the issue.

“URCA does not consider it would be in the public interest to discontinue the proposed obligation after 18 months,” it said in responding to BTC’s demands. “This is because, NewCo is not expected to have completed its cellular

mobile network build-out to all island groups within 18 months from the issuance date of its licences.”

Having shot down BTC’s request, URCA then did the same with Cable Bahamas. “Similarly, URCA finds that the 36-month timeframe contemplated by Cable Bahamas is unnecessary and excessive,” it concluded.

“Rather, URCA proposes that the duration for this obligation should be linked clearly to the 24-month roll-out timeframe to which NewCo has committed in its ISL (individual spectrum licence).

“Indeed, URCA notes that Cable Bahamas made no attempt in its submissions to justify its proposal to extend the national roaming obligation for a further 12 months beyond this period.

“Because NewCo is expected to have completed its network build-out within 24 months from the issuance date of its licences, URCA considers that the obligation imposed on BTC should end concurrently with NewCo’s roll-out obligations; that is, no more than 24 months from the issuance date of NewCo’s licences.”

This means NewCo’s service delivery via BTC’s network should cease by June 30, 2018, although URCA agreed that should the former’s roll-out “be delayed through matters beyond its

control”, it could apply for an extension.

URCA acknowledged that the initial 36-month timeframe it was providing was linked to the roll-out schedule contained in the bid documents for the second mobile license, and it had not accounted for the shorter timeframe promised by Cable Bahamas and NewCo. URCA also dismissed BTC’s opposition to the inclusion of Long-Term Evolution (LTE) technology in the ‘roaming’ obligation, the incumbent having sought to limit this to ‘basic’ mobile capabilities.

“That is, the services to be offered under a national roaming agreement would enable a NewCo roaming subscriber to make and receive calls, send and receive messages, and access ‘[basic’ Internet services only,” URCA said, translating BTC’s wishes.

“BTC opined that there is no justifiable reason why high-speed LTE data access should be part of the obligation, especially if it would be required to upgrade its LTE network capacity to handle temporary demand for the service.”

In response, the regulator said it “struggles to understand the position” taken

by BTC in relation to LTE data access for NewCo’s subscribers.

“URCA is not aware of any technical constraints that would make it infeasible for BTC to provide LTE data access to a NewCo roaming subscriber,” URCA said.

“This is because BTC currently provides LTE data services to its own retail customers and visitors to the Bahamas roaming on its network.

“BTC states that it will incur additional costs by having to add LTE capacity to its network to cope with the demand from national roamers. If BTC does incur any such costs, and these can be directly attributed to the national roaming obligation, then it will be able to recover those costs.”

URCA said Cable Bahamas had pointed out that customers did not “pay a premium price” for BTC’s LTE product, with the BISX-listed provider arguing that customers “should receive the same service and experience” regardless of who their operator was.

“Limiting national roaming to ‘basic services’ would provide BTC with an unnecessary competitive advantage,” was the other thrust of Cable Bahamas’ argument.

BTC had also attacked the whole notion that it was necessary to provide ‘national roaming’ services to NewCo2015, criticising URCA for failing to conduct a cost/benefit analysis on the issue.

“It was BTC’s assertion that the arguments put forward by URCA do not justify the imposition of a national roaming obligation on the company,” the regulator recalled.

BTC had argued that the more remote geographic areas, which is where NewCo2015 will need ‘roaming’ capability, were its “highest cost serving areas”, meaning that it would incur “significant costs” to meet its new rival’s demand.

It also suggested that URCA had failed to account for how many people would “have no alternative choice” beyond BTC, and the possibility that people could purchase SIM cards and subscribe to both providers - BTC and NewCo2015.

“At commercial launch, NewCo must have established a cellular mobile network (including infrastructure) that covers 99 per cent of New Providence’s population (including Paradise Island), and 80 per cent of Grand Bahama’s,” URCA said.

“In other words, NewCo must provide cellular mobile services to approximately 80 per cent of the entire population of the Bahamas using its own cellular mobile network and infrastructure at commercial launch.

“This means that NewCo’s cellular mobile network would be inaccessible to roughly 20 per cent (70,292) of the entire Bahamian population (351,461), but perhaps more critically, on 17 of the 19 populated island groups in respect of which the Government has determined as a matter of policy must benefit from cellular mobile competition.”

URCA continued: “Until NewCo has completed its network build-out, a significant (albeit decreasing) number of populated islands would not have an

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THE TRIBUNE alternative choice of a cellular mobile provider beyond BTC, and the Government’s objective that the benefits of competition accrue to residents in all areas and locations in the shortest possible time would not be met.”

The timetable produced

by URCA showed that by year-end 2016, some 90 per cent of the Bahamian population - 316,315 persons - would have access to NewCo’s network. And by endFebruary 2017, 95 per cent or 333,888 persons would be able to enjoy its services.

URCA added that the ability to access NewCo’s services throughout the Bahamas may be a key consideration for New Providence and Grand Bahama residents when choosing whether or not to subscribe to its services.

“As such, without national roaming, NewCo’s ability to compete with BTC may be compromised during its initial roll out even in areas where it has deployed its own network,” URCA said.

And, while acknowledging that owning multiple SIM cards was an option, URCA said much “uncertainty” existed as to whether this would be an effective substitute for allowing NewCo customers to temporarily ‘roam’ on BTC’s network.

The regulator also said it was not mandated by any law to conduct a cost/benefit analysis of its proposals, and said BTC was “misguided in its thinking”. It added that roaming was “the most proportionate” way to ensure competition between BTC and NewCo as the latter built out its network.

“The proposed obligation is necessary because it enables residents throughout the Bahamas to purchase services from competing cellular mobile providers during NewCo’s build-out period and to be confident that they can use that service throughout the country,” URCA said.

“Without a national roaming obligation, NewCo’s ability to compete is likely to be reduced, as consumers would be less willing to take a service from NewCo, unless it was at a discounted price to BTC’s offering (assuming consumers face a trade-off between price and service availability and coverage).

“Indeed, this could cause lasting reputational harm to NewCo, even once it has completed its network roll-out, thus dampening competition over the longer term..... Without a national roaming obligation, the benefits of competition would be severely restricted during NewCo’s build-out.”

Employment Opportunity

Customer Service Representative Responsible for answering customer related queries via either email, telephone or in person. To ensure that all information regarding products, procedures and services that company provide are up-to-date.

II. • • • • • III.

Tasks and Responsibilities Daily processing all orders received for delivery.

To handle all Customer Service related complaints and forward information to respective departments for analysis.

Checking driver invoices daily to ensure that all orders received are processed accurately and received on the requested delivery date.

Maintaining an up-to-date database of all Customer contact information.

Collecting data and gathering routine reports and documents for management, accounting department and external partners.

Competency

Education/Experience High School Diploma BGCSE’s including Math and English A Minimum of 2 years experience in Customer Service, Tele Sales and/or related field.

Skills • • • • • • • •

Excellent oral and written communication skills.

Excellent organizational skills.

Telephone Etiquette Data Entry Skills.

Problem Solving Skills.

Attention to detail Computer literacy (Microsoft Excel, Word and Route Center) The ability to speak a foreign language may be an asset

Training • MAS 90 and Routcentre Software Application • Relevant KORE Requirements and Company Procedures • Awareness of Integrated Management System: • IMS Policy and Objectives • Training in applicable Work Procedures: Quality, Food Safety and

GMPs Interested persons must submit resume to the front desk or electronically no later than July 30, 2016

Caribbean Bottling Co. Sir Milo Butler Highway Nassau, The Bahamas vbain@cbcbahamas.com

JOB OPPORTUNITY A specialist international boutique law firm is looking for a young ambitious graduate calibre secretary/paralegal who has been working as a secretary /paralegal in either another law firm or other professional services environment for at least one year.

The role will be to provide secretarial and paralegal support to a corporate and commercial Litigation Principal and will include all diary management, dictation (correspondence and emails) managing payments and expenses, liaising with clients, and drafting engagement letters. You will also be fully trained to do certain paralegal duties including file opening and closing, carrying out Companies House searches and supporting on corporate transactions including the drafting of ancillary documents. In addition to the paralegal duties, you will also take on some general office management responsibilities and provide day to day assistance with the smooth running of a busy office.

This role is ideal for a law graduate with some secretarial experience or a secretary looking to take on more paralegal duties. It is essential that you are proactive, dynamic and flexible to help out with anything and everything. There will be extensive liaison with clients so you must also have exceptional communication and Microsoft Office Suite skills.

This is a great opportunity for someone to gain solid corporate legal experience in a well rounded position.

Someone who has previously worked as a corporate paralegal, a corporate administrator or someone with minimal legal experience would be considered. Please note, this is a stand alone position in which you will work alongside the sole director / managing partner.

Requirements:

• Undergraduate degree • Prior secretarial, administrative and/or paralegal experience • Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite • Excellent command of the English language Contract type: Permanent Hours: Full Time If you’re interested in this role, please apply now and forward an up-to-date copy of your CV together with a current photograph to:

c/o The Tribune DA # 1110 9 0 P. o . b o x n - 3 2 0 7 nAssAu, bAhAmAs

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, July 25, 2016, PAGE 9

Global deals may drop $1.6 trillion if Brexit talks lag LONDON (AP) — Global mergers and acquisitions may drop by as much as $1.6 trillion over the next five years unless Britain quickly agrees to leave the European Union under terms that give it continued access to the single market, according to a report released Monday.

While the U.K.’s decision to leave the EU will reduce takeover activity under any scenario, a “disorderly” exit marked by difficult negotiations will result in increased political and economic uncertainty and a bigger decline in transactions, a forecast from the law firm Baker & McKenzie shows.

The study comes just days after a gauge of business activity suggested that Britain’s economy was weakening at the fastest pace since the global finan-

cial crisis in early 2009, underscoring the need for the government to swiftly negotiate a new relationship with the EU. “An active M&A market is all about confidence and credibility,” Michael DeFranco, global chair of mergers and acquisitions at Baker & McKenzie, said in a statement. “To restore that confidence, the U.K. government will need to get to grips with the enormous challenge of negotiating a new trading relationship with the EU as quickly as practically possible. Otherwise we move into more dangerous territory.”

The fallout from socalled Brexit will be concentrated in the U.K. and Europe and won’t lead to a crash in global takeovers like the one that followed the collapse of Lehman Brothers at the start of

Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond, left, and Bank of China Chairman Tian Guoli attend UK-China High Level Financial Services Roundtable at the Bank of China head office building in Beijing Friday, July 22, 2016. (AP Photo)

the financial crisis, the law firm said. Still, it could take four years to catch up with levels of activity that were predicted if Britain had decided to stay in the 28-nation bloc.

The vote is likely to trigger a $240 billion, or 24 percent, drop in U.K. mergers and acquisitions over the next five years even with a relatively quick departure that preserves access to the single market, the study found. That would increase to $340 billion, or 34 percent, if Britain is unable to negotiate favorable terms.

“Without a clear Brexit roadmap, a more damaging cycle of political and

market uncertainty could be unleashed with subsequent repercussions for transaction activity globally,” Baker & McKenzie said. “In this adverse Brexit scenario, the U.K. vote to leave adds to the existing strength of populist mood across Europe, leading to further questions about the unity and stability of both.”

Despite the declines, Baker & McKenzie said lots of activity would still take place in London because of the “primacy of English law” for cross-border deals and the fact that the city will “retain a remarkable concentration of financial, legal and economic talent.”

PAGE 10, Monday, July 25, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

G-20 countries pledge to protect against Brexit shock BEIJING (AP) — Global finance officials promised Sunday to protect the world economy from the shockwaves of Britain’s European Union referendum and to boost sluggish growth.

Envoys of the Group of 20 major economies also rejected trade protectionism, an issue that has risen in prominence as U.S. Republication presidential candidate Donald Trump stirs unease with talk about restricting access to American markets.

The gathering of finance ministers and central bank

governors from the United States, China, Britain, Germany and other governments took place against a backdrop of a weak global recovery that was rattled by Britain’s vote to leave the EU and trade tension over Chinese exports of lowpriced steel.

The British vote “increased global economic uncertainty,” said a joint statement by the officials, who were meeting in Chengdu in western China.

“G-20 members are ready to actively respond to the potential economic and

financial impact brought by the British referendum,” said the statement. “In the future, we hope to see Britain as a close partner of the EU.” On Friday, the directorgeneral of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, called for quick action to end uncertainty about the British-EU split. She said that turmoil prompted the IMF to cut its forecast of this year’s global growth by 0.1 percentage point.

Sunday’s statement promised to use “any and

PUBLIC NOTICE

G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors pose for a group photo in Chengdu in Southwestern China’s Sichuan province, yesterday. Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the 20 most developed economies met in the southwestern city of Chengdu ahead of a G20 leaders meeting in September hosted by China. Participants in the front row are, from left: Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, an unidentified member, Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek, China’s Finance Minister Lou Jiwei, China’s People’s Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan, Germany’s Federal Minister of Finance Wolfgang Schauble, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde and OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria. (AP Photo)

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL

The Public is hereby advised that We, PETER DAVIS SR. of # 42 Hawkins Hill and Beulah Rolle of Frank Edgecombe Street, father and mother of PETRA ROLLE intend to change our child’s name to PETRA AALIYAH DAVIS. If there are any objections to this change of name

by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O.Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

The Public is hereby advised that I, LATOYA THOMPSON BROWN of Lake Grove Road, P.O. Box EE-17328, Nassau, Bahamas, intend to change my child’s name from SARAI IRVINNIQUE THOMPSON to SARAI IRVINNIQUE BROWN. If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O.Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

LEGAL NOTICE

LEGAL NOTICE

NOTICE

NOTICE

ZUNTARI INVEST LTD.

GOLDANTILOP LTD.

NOTICE is hereby given as follows:

NOTICE is hereby given as follows:

(a) Goldantilop Ltd. is in Voluntary Dissolution under the provisions of Section 138(4) of the International Business Companies Act 2000.

(a) Zuntari Invest Ltd. is in Voluntary Dissolution under the provisions of Section 138(4) of the International Business Companies Act 2000.

(b) The Dissolution of the said Company commenced when the Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.

(b) The Dissolution of the said Company commenced when the Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.

(c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Beatus Limited, P.O. Box N7776-348, N.P., Bahamas.

(c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Beatus Limited, P.O. Box N7776-348, N.P., Bahamas.

Dated this 21st day of July, 2016

Dated this 21st day of July, 2016

Beatus Limited Liquidator

Beatus Limited Liquidator

t. 242.323.2330 | f. 242.323.2320 | www.bisxbahamas.com

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX: CLOSE 1,962.79 | CHG 0.02 | %CHG 0.00 | YTD 138.84 | YTD% 7.61 BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 3.65 17.43 9.09 3.50 4.70 0.18 8.34 8.35 6.10 10.60 15.50 2.72 1.60 5.80 8.75 11.00 7.90 6.90 12.25 11.00

52WK LOW 2.21 17.43 9.09 3.14 4.70 0.12 5.85 7.25 5.50 6.85 14.48 2.25 1.27 5.51 6.00 9.85 6.01 5.55 11.75 10.00

PREFERENCE SHARES 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1.00 105.50 100.00 100.00 100.00 105.00 100.00 10.00 1.01

1.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.01

SECURITY AML Foods Limited APD Limited Bahamas Property Fund Bahamas Waste Bank of Bahamas Benchmark Cable Bahamas CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank Colina Holdings Commonwealth Bank Commonwealth Brewery Consolidated Water BDRs Doctor's Hospital Famguard Fidelity Bank Finco Focol ICD Utilities J. S. Johnson Premier Real Estate

SYMBOL AML APD BPF BWL BOB BBL CAB CIB CHL CBL CBB CWCB DHS FAM FBB FIN FCL ICD JSJ PRE

LAST CLOSE 3.65 15.85 9.09 3.50 5.22 0.12 6.50 8.35 5.84 10.50 14.49 2.70 1.41 5.80 8.75 10.93 7.90 6.36 11.93 10.00

CLOSE 3.65 15.85 9.09 3.50 5.22 0.12 6.50 8.35 5.84 10.50 14.49 2.72 1.41 5.80 8.75 10.93 7.90 6.36 11.93 10.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

CAB6 CAB8 CAB9 CAB10 CHLA CBLE CBLJ CBLK CBLL CBLM CBLN FBBA FCLB

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.01

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.01

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

SECURITY Fidelity Bank Note 17 (Series A) + Fidelity Bank Note 18 (Series E) + Fidelity Bank Note 22 (Series B) +

SYMBOL FBB17 FBB18 FBB22

LAST SALE 100.00 100.00 100.00

CLOSE 100.00 100.00 100.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00

Bahamas Note 6.95 (2029) BGS: 2014-12-3Y BGS: 2015-1-3Y BGS: 2014-12-5Y BGS: 2015-1-5Y BGS: 2014-12-7Y BGS: 2015-1-7Y BGS: 2014-12-30Y BGS: 2015-1-30Y BGS: 2015-6-3Y BGS: 2015-6-5Y BGS: 2015-6-7Y BGS: 2015-6-30Y

BAH29 BG0103 BG0203 BG0105 BG0205 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0303 BG0305 BG0307 BG0330

115.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

115.06 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

0.06 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 8 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Cable Bahamas Series 10 Colina Holdings Class A Commonwealth Bank Class E Commonwealth Bank Class J Commonwealth Bank Class K Commonwealth Bank Class L Commonwealth Bank Class M Commonwealth Bank Class N Fidelity Bank Class A Focol Class B

CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00 100.00 100.00

52WK LOW 100.00 100.00 100.00

BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing) 115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

113.70 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

VOLUME

9,200

VOLUME

EPS$ 0.304 1.351 1.086 0.220 -1.134 0.000 0.185 0.551 0.508 0.541 0.528 0.094 0.166 0.510 0.612 0.960 0.650 0.703 0.756 0.000

DIV$ 0.090 1.000 0.000 0.160 0.000 0.000 0.187 0.260 0.200 0.360 0.610 0.060 0.040 0.240 0.275 0.000 0.280 0.120 0.640 0.000

P/E 12.0 11.7 8.4 15.9 N/M N/M 35.1 15.2 11.5 19.4 27.4 28.9 8.5 11.4 14.3 11.4 12.2 9.0 15.8 0.0

YIELD 2.47% 6.31% 0.00% 4.57% 0.00% 0.00% 2.88% 3.11% 3.42% 3.43% 4.21% 2.21% 2.84% 4.14% 3.14% 0.00% 3.54% 1.89% 5.36% 0.00%

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%

INTEREST 7.00% 6.00% Prime + 1.75%

MATURITY 19-Oct-2017 31-May-2018 19-Oct-2022

6.95% 4.00% 4.00% 4.25% 4.25% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.00% 4.25% 4.50% 6.25%

20-Nov-2029 15-Dec-2017 30-Jul-2018 16-Dec-2019 30-Jul-2020 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2018 26-Jun-2020 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045

MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 1.99 3.89 1.91 167.58 138.35 1.44 1.67 1.55 1.06 6.67 8.16 5.81 10.66 10.12

52WK LOW 1.67 3.04 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.38 1.53 1.47 1.03 6.11 6.93 5.55 10.37 8.65

FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund FG Financial Preferred Income Fund FG Financial Growth Fund FG Financial Diversified Fund FG Financial Global USD Bond Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Secured Balanced Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Targeted Equity Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Prime Income Fund Royal Fidelity Bah Int'l Investment Fund Principal Protected TIGRS, Series 5 Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Equities Sub Fund

NAV 1.99 3.89 1.91 167.58 136.68 1.44 1.67 1.55 1.06 6.67 8.01 5.81 10.66 8.65

YTD% 12 MTH% 2.09% 4.15% 3.06% 6.67% 1.39% 3.06% 3.41% 5.18% 2.95% -0.58% 1.89% 3.91% 2.32% 8.70% 1.68% 5.28% 2.77% 1.26% -0.14% 9.15% -1.87% 15.62% 0.83% 4.82% 70.00% 2.80% -6.29% -13.65%

NAV Date 30-Jun-2016 30-Jun-2016 24-Jun-2016 30-Jun-2016 30-Jun-2016 30-Jun-2016 30-Jun-2016 30-Jun-2016 30-Jun-2016 29-Feb-2016 29-Feb-2016 29-Feb-2016 29-Feb-2016 29-Feb-2016

MARKET TERMS BISX ALL SHARE INDEX - 19 Dec 02 = 1,000.00 52wk-Hi - Highest closing price in last 52 weeks 52wk-Low - Lowest closing price in last 52 weeks Previous Close - Previous day's weighted price for daily volume Today's Close - Current day's weighted price for daily volume Change - Change in closing price from day to day Daily Vol. - Number of total shares traded today DIV $ - Dividends per share paid in the last 12 months P/E - Closing price divided by the last 12 month earnings

sensus that what the global economy needs is growth — not austerity — and the discussions here have focused on how best to achieve that outcome.”

The envoys also pledged to avoid devaluing currencies to boost exports.

“We will oppose all forms of protectionism,” their statement said.

Trump, who was named the Republican Party’s nominee for president on Friday, setting up a race with presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, has called for measures to protect American industry, though he has given no details.

National leaders of the G-20 economies are due to meet in September in Hangzhou, southwest of Shanghai.

LEGAL NOTICE

NOTICE

ABANCAY INVEST LTD.

NOTICE is hereby given as follows:

(a) Abancay Invest Ltd. is in Voluntary Dissolution under the provisions of Section 138(4) of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The Dissolution of the said Company commenced when the Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.

MARKET REPORT FRIDAY, 22 JULY 2016

all policy instruments” to achieve “strong, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth objectives.” The governments promised to strengthen communication and cooperation but announced no joint action, as some financial traders had hoped.

“We are taking action to boost confidence and promote growth,” said the statement.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said ahead of the meeting that it was not the right time for coordinated action similar to that in 2008-09 following the global crisis because economies face different conditions.

“Overall, the general sense was that the outlook remains uncertain,” Lew said in a statement Sunday.

“There is now broad con-

YIELD - last 12 month dividends divided by closing price Bid $ - Buying price of Colina and Fidelity Ask $ - Selling price of Colina and fidelity Last Price - Last traded over-the-counter price Weekly Vol. - Trading volume of the prior week EPS $ - A company's reported earnings per share for the last 12 mths NAV - Net Asset Value N/M - Not Meaningful

TO TRADE CALL: CFAL 242-502-7010 | ROYALFIDELITY 242-356-7764 | FG CAPITAL MARKETS 242-396-4000 | COLONIAL 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225

(c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Beatus Limited, P.O. Box N7776-348, N.P., Bahamas.

Dated this 21st day of July, 2016 Beatus Limited Liquidator

NOTICE

TAZEWELL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED Notice is hereby given that IN ACCORDANCE WITH Section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act 2000, TAZEWELL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED has been dissolved and struck off the Register according to the Certificate of Dissolution issued by the Registrar General on the 19 day of July, A.D., 2016.

Dated the 25 day of July, A.D., 2016 _____________________________ Dartley Bank & Trust Limited Liquidator NOTICE

STANFIELD INVESTMENTS LIMITED Notice is hereby given that IN ACCORDANCE WITH Section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act 2000, STANFIELD INVESTMENTS LIMITED has been dissolved and struck off the Register according to the Certificate of Dissolution issued by the Registrar General on the 19 day of July, A.D., 2016.

Dated the 25 day of July, A.D., 2016 _____________________________ Dartley Bank & Trust Limited Liquidator

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, July 25, 2016, PAGE 11

Democrats will meet in a city of great economic inequality PHILADELPHIA (AP) — When the Democrats come to the City of Brotherly Love to nominate Hillary Clinton for president and the talk turns to income inequality and the 1 percent, Exhibit A will be right outside their windows: Philadelphia itself.

The nation’s fifth-largest city is rebounding, filling some Philadelphians with an unfamiliar sense of civic pride. And yet it struggles with the gap between rich and poor that Sen. Bernie Sanders decried during his campaign against Clinton, with 26 percent of residents living in poverty, the highest rate among the 10 biggest cities in the U.S. The July 25-28 convention creates an opportunity to acknowledge the city’s successes in urban revitalization, but also “to look closely at the real Philadelphia, which is also the real America,” said Randall Miller, a history professor at Saint Joseph’s University.

Philly has ridden a wave of good publicity lately. Pope Francis visited last fall, and Lonely Planet named the city its top travel destination in 2016. The opening of new civic spaces, bike paths and beer gardens has generated major buzz.

And yet a report released this year by Pew Charitable Trusts found that for every residential area that gentrified since 2000, there were 10 others where the median income dropped. Overall, annual median income in Philadelphia is about

visitors walk in view of Independence Hall in Philadelphia. Democrats are set to begin their convention Monday, July 25, 2016 in a city that symbolizes both the nation’s promise and its shortcomings. (AP Photo) $39,000, compared with more than $53,000 nationally.

Many of the gentrified tracts ring Center City, the downtown area filled with nightspots, businesses and cultural attractions where delegates will probably spend a large amount of time. Numerous construction cranes dot the skyline, building high-end condos, offices, hotels and a second skyscraper for Comcast Corp.

“There have been in recent years a lot of positive signs in the city,” said Larry Eichel, who directs Pew’s Philadelphia Research Initiative. “But the high poverty rate and all that comes

with it has not gone away.”

New Mayor Jim Kenney hopes to change that, starting with better schooling.

Last month, City Council passed a soda tax, with the revenue going to expand prekindergarten and renovate badly run-down libraries and recreation centers.

“This is the beginning of a process of changing the narrative of poverty in our city,” he said.

The last time Philadelphia hosted a Democratic convention was 1948, a couple of years before hitting its peak population of nearly 2.1 million. The ensuing decades saw manufacturing jobs decline and

middle-class families flee to the suburbs. By the time the Republicans came here in 2000 to nominate George W. Bush, the population had dropped to 1.52 million.

In 2006, the count hit 1.49 million — its lowest point in a century — before

starting its slow rebound.

The restaurant industry started hopping and a tech start-up community began taking shape. The Phillies even won the World Series in 2008, breaking a 25-year drought in major sports championships.

Today, Philadelphia has 1.57 million residents, and overall is younger and more diverse, according to Pew. That’s due in part to a large influx of millennials who often come for the city’s wellregarded universities and stay after graduating. Many find it an affordable, walkable place with a rich arts scene.

“You can go to plays, you can see music, you can eat really good food and not break the bank,” said Emma Fried-Cassorla, creator of the Philly Love Notes blog .

Still, many young adults leave after starting families because the school system is in such poor condition.

The district has a graduation rate of just 65 percent, contributing to an unskilled workforce that business leaders say makes it hard to attract jobs.

There’s another group of millennials that is not faring so well: Young black men account for the majority of homicide victims, most by gunshot. Gun violence has wreaked havoc in swaths of the city, and the homicide rate has begun ticking up after historic lows in 2013 and 2014.

Norman Jefferson, who lives in a North Philadelphia neighborhood where the annual income averages $14,185 per year, recently passed a hot afternoon on his porch with his sister Shirley. They said Democratic delegates need to know how difficult it is to live on low wages.

“It costs more to ride the bus, to eat, to do everything,” said Shirley Jefferson, a retired school district employee. “But how are you going to do that without the salary going up?”

Philadelphia has hosted several “Fight For $15” protests where fast-food workers rallied for a $15 minimum wage. Democrats appear to be listening, incorporating their support into the party platform.

VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT:

COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT/DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT CONTRACTUAL The Bahamas consists of more than 700 low lying islands and cays extending over an area of 5000 sq. km. and encompassing a variety of coastal and marine ecosystems, mangroves, extensive beaches and coral reefs. The coastal zone is a critical asset for the national economy. It harbors much of the islands’ critical infrastructure in the tourism and fisheries sectors, including industrial complexes, ports, fish processing plants and tourism resorts and associated services; as well as 80% of the island’s residential population. Coastal ecosystems themselves provide goods and services that are also vital to these sectors, including for example the provision of nursery habitat for fish stocks, buffering public infrastructure and coastal populations from coastal erosion and flooding, and supporting tourism and recreation. Natural disasters pose a recurring and substantial threat to the well-being of the country’s coastal and marine assets and tourism plant, and thus to the country’s economy. Bahamas on average is affected by a hurricane once every three years and three of the Bahamas islands (Andros, Abaco and Grand Bahama) are ranked among the top 10 in terms of effects from tropical systems of all cities, islands and countries in the North Atlantic Basin. Coastal erosion present additional threats; and the densely populated coastal zone is also prone to flooding. There is also increasing evidence that increased intensity and frequency of storms associated with climate change and sea level rise is affecting the health of the country’s coastal and marine biodiversity including reef degradation and coral bleaching due to increased temperatures and physical damage and loss of reefs. As most coastal development, tourism, industry, and residential sites occur at elevations of one to four meters above sea level, and more than 90% of all fresh water resources lie within 1.5 meters of the surface, significant property damage, potential loss of life, and long-term damage to coastal biodiversity is predicted (ICF, Bahamas National Report). Other impacts include greater inundation of low-lying coastal lands, loss of beaches, inland migration of coastal wetlands (notably mangroves) and increased groundwater contamination due to saltwater intrusion.

Key Functions The tasks include and are not limited to the following: • Support to the Bank’s Environment, Rural Development and Disaster

Risk Management Division and the Country Office Bahamas in the execution of approved TCs in The Bahamas and the Caribbean Region • Increasing capacity within the Government of The Bahamas to incorporate ecosystem services into coastal planning and evaluation • Evaluating the impact of hazard-resilient coastal infrastructure • Comparing best practices in ICZM in SIDS/SDS • Disseminating lessons learned • Assist in the project preparation and supervision of ICZM

and DRM-related operations (BH-T1029/BH-T1038, BHT1040) in The Bahamas, including (i) supporting the preparation

of TC approval documents (e.g., San Salvador); (ii) contracting of individual contractuals and consulting firms; (iii) coordination and monitoring of activities of firms and individual contractuals and with executing agencies;

(iv) technical review of project documents; and (iv) the updating of Bank monitoring systems; • Assist in the preparation of technical studies; • Develop presentation material and reports and deliver presentations as requested; • Assist in the organizing of meetings, workshops and conferences, including those aimed at building the

community of practice in risk-resilient ICZM in The Bahamas and regionally.

• Support other ICZM-related operations in the region

(RG-T2489, RG-T2675/RG-T2702).

Requirements • Academic Degree/ Level& Years of Professional Work Experience: Master’s degree in coastal zone management, coastal engineering

and/or natural resource management, with at least five years of postgraduate relevant experience in analytical research and technical

input for projects and programs in coastal zone management/disaster risk management, or the equivalent combination of education and experience. Experience in the Caribbean is necessary.

• Languages: English written and spoken fluently.

• Areas of Expertise: Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM), climate change adaptation, disaster risk management.

• Skills: Dynamic individual with capacity to be proactive, work under minimal supervision; strong analytical, planning, organizing and executing skills; attention to detail; ability to work with multicultural and

multidisciplinary teams; ability to adjust to multiple demands; ability to write technical reports; and excellent communications skills in English For more information about this position and to apply, please refer to the following link before July 25th, 2016: https://iadbcareers.taleo.net/ careersection/external/jobdetail.ftl?job=1600003293&lang=en&sns_id=email