SXMElections.com

Foreign Direct Investment in Latin America and the Caribbean: Focus on the Caribbean

>PHILIPSBURG:---- FDI is a source of investment and employment. It can allow the transfer of technology and skills and knowledge from the FDI source country to the FDI recipient country. It provides funds to make up for a capital shortfall in the home country. And, very importantly, it is a source of foreign exchange.
FDI coming into the Caribbean
Now, why do investors come to the Caribbean? There are three basic reasons. First, resource seeking – investors seek access to natural resources Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:---- Member of Parliament George Pantophlet is calling on the Minister of Finance Martin Hassink to speed up the process of integrating the St. Maarten Receiver and the St. Maarten Inspectorate of Taxes. The delaying of this process is causing the tax payers of St. Maarten unnecessary frustration and hardship when it comes to the services provided by these two departments Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- Recently the Obersi Group of Companies, represented by WTN-Cable Sales and Marketing Manager, Mr. Fernando Clark and Mr. Aldemier Mingeel, Sales and Marketing Executive for Obersi Electronics/Xerox paid a visit to Hillside Christian School

After equipping Asha Stevens Christian School and Seventh Day Adventist School, with ICT equipment and a training program, Foresee Foundation, the brain behind the DigiKidz project, committed itself to raise funds for the next school, Helmich Snijders in St Read more

Obersi-Xerox Supporting Digikidz Projects

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - Recently the Obersi Group of Companies, represented by WTN-Cable Sales and Marketing Manager, Mr. Fernando Clark and Mr. Aldemier Mingeel, Sales and Marketing Executive for Obersi Electronics/Xerox paid a visit to Hillside Christian School.

After equipping Asha Stevens Christian School and Seventh Day Adventist School, with ICT equipment and a training program, Foresee Foundation, the brain behind the DigiKidz project, committed itself to raise funds for the next school, Helmich Snijders in St Read more

Parliaments set on resolving dispute regulation dilemma

THE HAGUE--Delegations of the Parliaments of Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten are resolute to conclude the Inter-Parliamentary Kingdom Consultations IPKO this week with a solution for the design of a dispute regulation (geschillenregeling).

"We want to get this solved for once and for all. More and more things are getting stuck in a dilemma in the relations between the Kingdom partners," said Member of the St. Maarten Parliament and Chairperson of Parliament's Kingdom Affairs and Inter-Parliamentary Relations Committee Sarah Wescot-Williams (Democratic Party (DP)) on Monday.

The three Dutch Caribbean Parliaments held tripartite meetings in The Hague on Monday in preparation for the IPKO which starts on Wednesday Read more

SCDF seeking to break free from ‘vicious cycle of debt’

~ Structural change crucial, hard data now the focus ~

PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten Carnival Development Foundation (SCDF) said on Thursday that the event threatens to become trapped in "a vicious cycle of debt" that must be broken with decisive business decisions and initiatives.

"After all the revelling and good times the general population had for what many have called the best Carnival ever, the festival is still a very expensive affair that continues to come up short financially," an SCDF press release read.

SCDF, a private foundation, had said for months that it planned on transitioning to a new business structure after Carnival 2015 to ensure the financial viability of St Read more

George queries whether SZV, APS, govt reach agreement

PHILIPSBURG--National Alliance (NA) Member of Parliament (MP) George Pantophlet wants to know whether an agreement has been reached amongst government and the Social and Health Insurance SZV and the General Pension Fund APS.

In a press release on Sunday, Pantophlet said the Committee for Financial Supervision CFT on several occasions had urged government to come to an agreement as to how it will pay the arrears of these funds Read more

Multiracial coalition unseats Guyana ruling PPP/C party

GEORGETOWN--Guyana's multiracial opposition coalition has won a national election, breaking the ruling Indo-Guyanese party's 23 year-old grip on power, the election board said on Thursday, signalling a new era in the ethnically-divided South American nation.

The APNU+AFC coalition, led by former army brigadier and publisher David Granger, won 206,817 votes, versus 201,457 for President Donald Ramotar's PPP party, the election authorities said after all votes were counted.

Ramotar said the elections were rigged and demanded a recount, without giving more details of his accusations.

Diplomats from the United Kingdom and the United States said they were free and fair, and the Guyana Elections Commission said its first tally was unlikely to change on review.

Since gaining independence from Britain in 1966, the nation of just 740,000 people has suffered tensions, and occasional violence, between citizens of Indian and African descent.

The People's Progressive Party (PPP) has ruled since 1992 and Afro-Guyanese complain they are marginalized.

But the coalition, a recent fusion between the traditional black party and a smaller third party, had campaigned to break that hegemony, cheered on by youth less hung up on ethnicity and increasingly fed up with the status quo.

"We are a six-party coalition and we are the closest Guyana has ever gotten to a government of national unity and that makes me very happy," said a beaming Granger at his Georgetown home after results were announced.

The 69-year-old has a degree in history and received military training in Nigeria, Brazil and the United Kingdom Read more

Tourism season better, but marketing concerns loom

PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten's accommodation sector enjoyed a positive tourism season, which reportedly measured up to slightly better than last year's. Hotel General Managers (GMs) contacted by The Daily Herald were proud to report the good results, some specifically citing the (now halted) Thomas Cook (TC) charter from Sweden as a positive contribution. However, they also expressed some concern over the lack of destination marketing.

According to St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association's (SHTA's) most recent figures, the first quarter of 2015 saw a total occupancy of 82.1 per cent, of a total of 3,375 rooms belonging to SHTA members Read more

Mesmeric Messi nets double as Barca romp past Bayern

BARCELONA--Two late moments of Lionel Messi magic and a goal from Neymar helped Barcelona break the resistance of Bayern Munich in a pulsating 3-0 victory in their Champions League semi-final first leg at the Nou Camp on Wednesday.

After Barca had been frustrated by the brilliance of Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer for most of the match, Messi fired home after 77 minutes and then doubled the lead with a delightful chip from six metres three minutes later Read more

Mesmeric Messi nets double as Barca romp past Bayern

BARCELONA--Two late moments of Lionel Messi magic and a goal from Neymar helped Barcelona break the resistance of Bayern Munich in a pulsating 3-0 victory in their Champions League semi-final first leg at the Nou Camp on Wednesday.

After Barca had been frustrated by the brilliance of Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer for most of the match, Messi fired home after 77 minutes and then doubled the lead with a delightful chip from six metres three minutes later Read more

Gumbs apologises for landfill fire nuisance

PHILIPSBURG--Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs in his capacity as Acting Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI issued an apology to residents of Philipsburg and surrounding areas for the intermittent landfill fires that have blanketed the sky with smoke.

The most recent fire was on Saturday, May 2 Read more

Jamaica policemen in reported murder-suicide were best friends

KINGSTON, Jamaica--The two police constables who died in a murder-suicide in the early hours of yesterday have been identified as best friends Keemo Walsh and Andualy Smith.

Smith, who was with Walsh at the Grass Hoppa Bar and Grill in White River celebrating another friend's birthday, allegedly shot Walsh around 3:00am and then turned the gun on himself. It is unclear whether the shooting was intentional or accidental.

The incident occurred just hours into the day of Smith's own birthday Read more

>PHILIPSBURG:--- Prime Minister Hon. Marcel Gumbs who is also Acting Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment & Infrastructure (Ministry VROMI), would like to apologize to the residents of Philipsburg and environs with respect to the Landfill fires that take place from time to time.

The most recent fire event was on Saturday evening 2 May Read more

Prime Minister Gumbs Apologizes To Residents Of Philipsburg And Environs For Landfill Fire Nuisance

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten – Prime Minister Hon. Marcel Gumbs who is also Acting Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment & Infrastructure (Ministry VROMI), would like to apologize to the residents of Philipsburg and environs with respect to the Landfill fires that take place from time to time.

The most recent fire event was on Saturday evening 2 May Read more

Editorial - Win-win after all

Not everyone will be happy, but news that work on Rockland Estate Rain Forest Adventure Park is to start this summer (see Saturday paper) should not surprise anybody. After all, it already was clear that the company had been awarded a long lease for the necessary land at Emilio Wilson Estate (EWE), even though Government at the request of Parliament bought that property from its private owners to preserve it as natural-cultural-historic patrimony.

The thought then obviously had been not to allow any major commercial development there, but the lease agreement at US $1.20 per square metre nonetheless was signed, also to help pay for the purchase Read more

Editorial - Win-win after all

Not everyone will be happy, but news that work on Rockland Estate Rain Forest Adventure Park is to start this summer (see Saturday paper) should not surprise anybody. After all, it already was clear that the company had been awarded a long lease for the necessary land at Emilio Wilson Estate (EWE), even though Government at the request of Parliament bought that property from its private owners to preserve it as natural-cultural-historic patrimony.

The thought then obviously had been not to allow any major commercial development there, but the lease agreement at US $1.20 per square metre nonetheless was signed, also to help pay for the purchase Read more

>CUL DE SAC:----  Seven sixth form students of St. Maarten Academy's CAPE (Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination) programme returned to St. Maarten on Saturday (April 25, 2015) after a week-long field trip to the Commonwealth of Dominica, which culminated with a visit to the Prime Minister, Mr. Roosevelt Skerrit.
The visit to the Nature Isle was aimed at exposing the students and teachers to a myriad of experiences that meet their curriculum goals in Physics and Biology. Led by the school's Vice Principal Mrs Read more

Academy Cape Science Students Visit Dominica

CUL DE SAC, St. Maarten – Seven sixth form students of St. Maarten Academy's CAPE (Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination) programme returned to St. Maarten on Saturday (April 25, 2015) after a week-long field trip to the Commonwealth of Dominica, which culminated with a visit to the Prime Minister, Mr. Roosevelt Skerrit.

The visit to the Nature Isle was aimed at exposing the students and teachers to a myriad of experiences that meet their curriculum goals in Physics and Biology.

Led by the school's Vice Principal Mrs Read more

style="text-align: center;">The governing coalition parties and their independent affiliates have "suddenly" lost interest in our own integrity chamber.

PHILIPSBURG:---  DP Member of Parliament Sarah Wescot Williams said based on the response she got from the Prime Minister of St Read more

Former US President Jimmy Carter to head observer team to Guyana polls

GEORGETOWN, Guyana--Former United States President Jimmy Carter will lead an observer mission to monitor the May 11 regional and national elections in Guyana.

"I look forward to leading our delegation to observe Guyana's elections on May 11," Carter said.

"The Carter Center has a long history in Guyana and great respect for the Guyanese people. These will be the fourth elections we have observed there since 1992, and we trust they will be peaceful and inspire hope for the future."

The Carter Center is joining the Organization of American States (OAS) that have been invited to monitor the polls by the Guyana government.

The Carter Center in a statement said that the core team of experts will be joined this week by six medium-term observers, together representing nine countries.

The Center's observers will meet regularly with representatives of the Guyana Elections Commission, political party candidates, civil society organisations, the international community and citizen election observers to assess electoral preparations and the pre-electoral environment, including election administration, campaigning, voter education, and other issues.

They will be joined by a larger delegation of election observers in May, led by Carter, who will assess the voting, counting and tabulation processes.

The election here is seen as a straight fight between the ruling People's Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) which is seeking to extend its more-than-two-decades hold on power and the coalition alliance comprising the main opposition A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the small Alliance for Change (AFC) Read more

Editorial - Reckless move?

It's always a bit difficult to judge having heard only one side of the story, but Wednesday's news that the Central Bank of Curaçao and St. Maarten (CBCS) terminated its agreement with a local contractor for renovation of the complex in Philipsburg due to "signals" of integrity issues no doubt raises questions. It supposedly regards the construction company's role in a project of St. Maarten Housing Development Foundation (SMHDF), where the managing director was dismissed recently based on perceived irregularities.

However, one has to seriously doubt whether such concerns can be a valid reason not only to break a contract for work that seemingly has nothing to do with the SMHDF-case, but also to withhold payment Read more

Editorial - In a bad light

It was interesting to see the picture of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in Panama City with St. Maarten's Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs and Telecommunication Claret Connor and Port of St. Maarten CEO Mark Mingo on Monday's front page. The three men attended a round-table meeting about opportunities offered by the expanded Panama Canal, among other things.

This is noteworthy especially because Members of Parliament (MPs) in The Hague, particularly from Rutte's own VVD party, have been very critical about the Harbour Group of Companies on several occasions Read more

Editorial - Preferred option

How much is enough? The Dutch side alone currently has 480 taxis and 263 buses (see Friday paper). This certainly sounds like a lot for such a small territory, but readers should keep in mind that it regards a one-pillar tourism economy and tens of thousands of visitors without their own means of transportation are present at any given time.

Nevertheless, there is a reason moratoriums were placed on these types of licences. This becomes all the more evident when one takes into account that there were 321 taxis and 211 buses prior to 2012, but respectively 69 and 14 were added that year, plus another 87 and 38 in 2013.

That seems questionable at best, as the apparent oversaturation of the market must have been pretty clear by then, certainly to the local associations representing the drivers Read more