CBI Program to fund AID Bank facility for musicians

Paul spoke at a town hall meeting recently

Minister for Commerce, Enterprise and Small Business Development, Roselyn Paul has announced that government has just approved $1-million facility at the Agricultural Industrial and Development (AID) Bank for the benefit of musicians on the island.

It will be available to musicians at two percent interest with a one-year grace period.

She said the money was made available from the revenue of the Citizenship By Investment (CBI) Program and the plan is to ensure that government reinvest that money into sustainable livelihoods

“The government has just approved $1-million to be placed at the AID Bank towards music,” she announced. “Musicians will now be able to go to the bank, the artiste will now be able to go to the bank … it is to promote the creative industries at 2 percent interest and one year grace period.”

Paul the government is working with manufacturers and the intention right now is to put a similar facility in place, “targeting manufacturers and agro-processors.”

“We are using the money to re-invest in our people,” she stated.

Copyright 2012 Dominica News Online, DURAVISION INC. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or distributed.

Disclaimer: The comments posted do not necessarily reflect the views of DominicaNewsOnline.com and its parent company or any individual staff member. All comments are posted subject to approval by DominicaNewsOnline.com. We never censor based on political or ideological points of view, but we do try to maintain a sensible balance between free speech and responsible moderating.

We will delete comments that:

  • contain any material which violates or infringes the rights of any person, are defamatory or harassing or are purely ad hominem attacks
  • a reasonable person would consider abusive or profane
  • contain material which violates or encourages others to violate any applicable law
  • promote prejudice or prejudicial hatred of any kind
  • refer to people arrested or charged with a crime as though they had been found guilty
  • contain links to "chain letters", pornographic or obscene movies or graphic images
  • are off-topic and/or excessively long

See our full comment/user policy/agreement.

30 Comments

  1. CONSCIOUS
    March 19, 2017

    Doesn’t the headline for this story seems strange to someone else besides myself. The Aid Bank is a Financial Institution in Dominica. Why is it getting money from the CBI programme. It is a Bank. If the musician facility is getting the money from the CBI i would have understood that.

  2. Clergy Man
    March 18, 2017

    It’s great for a musician to get financial help for instruments etc etc. This facility would have boosted potential of Cadence musicians back in the days, if used properly and carefully and responsibly. However, as well intentioned as this initiative is, some more effort should be made to implement MUSIC Programs in ALL our high schools. Music programs in schools will surely yield exponential results like we have never seen before, and be more far reaching than most most efforts to boost music in Dominica. Anyway, every little bit helps the struggling musician especially and including access to soft loans.

    • Roger Burnett
      March 19, 2017

      For more music in schools I’ll say yes, a thousand times over. But that isn’t the role of this ploy. As I understand it, these loans are not to buy instruments for students, but for “musicians”.

      Try as I may, I cannot think of one successful artiste in history that has taken or benefited from a bank loan. Louis Armstrong and Billy Holiday started their careers playing and singing for dimes. And Sarah Vaughan sewed all her own stage gowns.

  3. tru d bino q la
    March 18, 2017

    MIss Paul, I really like your initiative, I also like the people of your village and I like music but I share the vision of another blogger that there is a real possibility of Paix bush falling off a precipice and spilling all the red dollar bills into Dos dan river. Please take hid. This is not mapuis, it is not politics either. I advise the chairman of the credit union to always secure the funds in a different location. My analysis is base on the weather pattern and the topography of the place__ the loose soil over the bedrock coupled by the passage of subterranean water that is a constant, especially in that area will not avert the possible disaster.

  4. Jon Jones
    March 18, 2017

    Is the best way to utilise CBI money? The island needs roads more than it needs tunes

  5. March 18, 2017

    Take the money and finish the room you adding on to your house don’t you guys have better things to do with the money. Tell musicians go work while making music. No way you can survive by making music only especially a bigginer. Give the people who Cleans by the elderly the money for pinesol. So much more important things to do with the money. Bunch of jokers.

  6. John Jay
    March 17, 2017

    Take the money and make a band for the supremo for you all to play music around the country and make a song the CBI money. Set of jokers things happening around some of you all parliament reps and don’t even know what to tell the nation.

  7. %
    March 17, 2017

    Really?,CBI MONEY?…And all you evil people want me to hate HONOURABLE LLL LEADER LENNOX LINTON???Thank you honourable patriot..You are indeed a REAL LEADER,and a GOOD MAN!!!You are for all Dominicans.

  8. FORKIT
    March 17, 2017

    oh my since lennox did that interview its no longer your damn business where we get our money from but. CBI, CBI, CBI, CBI, CBI, CBI, CBI. cbi for pregnant women 35 and under, cbi for pit toilet, cbi for this and that…

    dominicans cant see they are bankrupt of ideas and have no solution to growing an economy… things cannot get any better, its plain to see…

  9. Roger Burnett
    March 17, 2017

    The very last thing an artist or artiste needs is the burden of a bank loan, no matter how low the rate of interest or how long the grace period.

    Capital in the arts relates to talent and innovation. Curiously, these two attributes come to the fore when spurred by challenges rather than when couched in ease. If I were to draw a graph of my brief periods of financial ease against my creative accomplishments, the two would be diametrically opposed.

    One of the most memorable musical recitals that I have heard in my 75 years was played on a penny whistle by a struggling student on the pavements of London.

    Coincidentally, this weekend’s posting on sculpturestudiodominica.blogspot.com will be on this very subject and titled “Will it Pay?”.

  10. Is Joke we joking cause we are jokers
    March 17, 2017

    Take a look at the cannot ministers of Skerrit and you will see not one of them is able to hold their own or challenge Skerrit on anything that will help Dominica. They all look like CBI paid for ministers. What a shame! None of them can question Skerrit and none of them can say pm here is a better way.just a CBI cabinet according to Justina

  11. Shameless
    March 17, 2017

    CBI Encore???? Lord have morcee on us.

    So if UWP did not dayclaarway them we would never know. No man them people belong in jail. NEP-CBI money, Musicians- CBI money, San Sauveur School- CBI money, Lapwent roads – CBI money, C/Bruce – CBI money, Laplaine Dasheen Houses – CBI money, Ports Mouth Marriott Hotel – CBI money, Party in Dubai – CBI money, Jungle Bay Relocation – CBI money, ……papa god oyeeeeee! :twisted:

    When are we going to develop this country so the people can have a sustainable future? SKERRIT MUST GOOOO!

    Very Assertive! :twisted:

    • Dumb
      March 17, 2017

      you are not stupid just wicked

      • Shameless
        March 19, 2017

        Hello Dr. Dumb, if asking for “sustainable development” for Dca qualifies me as being stupid then I will accept the criticism as a compliment. Remain blessed but Skerrit MUST GO!

        Assertive as the rod of Moses! :twisted:

  12. Is Joke we joking cause we are jokerd
    March 17, 2017

    Ms. Paul, what about CBI money to fund a sea, a river, a flat, and everything Paix Bouche does not have? Better yet, what about CBI money to build a returning wall right in front of the credit union? A back wall is a necessity less Paix Bouche rolls down to Dos dan

  13. Me and me alone
    March 17, 2017

    Rosslyn what about CBI money to buy husband’s for our women, especially those in cabenot

  14. Din-din
    March 17, 2017

    Boy elections must be in the air and around the corner.-too much activity you ‘all. How can I get some of those $$$$$$? I am planning on building a house in the air over the Roseau bridge- will that qualify?

    • FORKIT
      March 17, 2017

      thats the way to confuse people with regards to the actual monies that were collected.

  15. Din-din
    March 17, 2017

    You again Roselyn and CBI? What else?

  16. Chanter
    March 17, 2017

    Keep the prayers people. Keep praying.

    • March 17, 2017

      Do not pray for bad things to happen to any one that is trying to do good for the Island and who would like to see better for all, so in your heart ask yourselves who are those persons that you believe put Dominica and the residence first at all times, because we all believe there are still some good men and women in Dominca who are ready to help make out beautiful Island good again, I love Dominica and I pray for everyone regardless what their concerns are . God taught us to love one another so let us get down on our knees and lift our eyes to the Hill for there our strength comes from.. God we need a revival in our land.

  17. Floridian Diaspora
    March 17, 2017

    Soon we’ll have fully 100% cbi funded country. Cbi to the rescue for everything!!! I have a feeling that this is being done just to show the nation the importance of the cbi program; (like skeritt insists it was so crucial to us). It’s like this program is life support for us and without it we won’t survive. My problem with the cbi madness is that the buyers(maybe not all of them) are supposed to invest but I do not see that happening. They should rename it to cbm ( citizenship by money) or cbc (citizenship for criminals). Are we becoming too dependent on this program? What’s gonna happen when the cbi program stops bringing in revenue? In the meantime his majesty Roosevelt skeritt is feeling good masking himself in all his glory continuing to stress how important this program is. Labor ka travay!!!

  18. March 17, 2017

    Nice, we really need to push our young musicians. I also hope our well-seasoned artists such as Ophelia and Michele and the bands can get involved in workshops for the younger, up and coming artists.

  19. March 17, 2017

    These people will not pay that money back , and when they default where is the collateral? are you[the government ] gonna seize there land, or the band equipment? an other bad decision on the Skerro administration , we are going down a slippery slope fast, just throwing money away , money we don’t have, this administration has gone mad.

  20. March 17, 2017

    Great initiative. Investing in our young people, this government cares!

  21. Lady Gaga
    March 17, 2017

    All CBI missing to do right now is heal the sick and make the blind see…but will the blind ever truly see ? hmmmm.

  22. zandoli
    March 17, 2017

    Can we all agree that 75% of Dominica’s economy is now being funded by the Chinese government and the CBI program? This puts us in a very vulnerable position. These are entities that we have no control over and can be terminated at the whim of any of the developed countries.

    What if the there is a change in Chinese leadership and the new president decides to start looking inward?

    What if the US and other major industrialized countries decided to place sanctions on Dominica and the other islands that sell their passports? What do we do then?

  23. Anthony Ismael
    March 17, 2017

    The CBI Program is like the old faithful drunken husband who comes home from the rum shop every night after work and beats his wife for no good reason at all. After attending several counseling classes and finding Jesus, he tells his wife “You see honey I haven’t broken your nose or blackened your eyes in two months.” Every time the Cabal sends out another “Mouth Piece” like Ms. Paul they expose their corrupt ways. This is a great initiative and it should have been done years ago. Labor has been in office for 15 years now and is only after “Lennox” laid you guys bare, that you suddenly remembered sustainable development. I guess the “Boys” have taken a break from the regular jollies, building multiple mansions, buying every new jeep at the dealership and enjoying the fruits of corruption. It’s time to spread a few crumbs to the poor. $1 million dollars is a slap in the face and kick in the rear end for sustainable development of any kind. What a freaking joke!

  24. Gem
    March 17, 2017

    Bel bef CBI money making ding dang nowadays.

  25. March 17, 2017

    Everything is CBI CBI, nobody talking about those new citizens?? soon there will be more these citizens than born Dominicans

Post a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

:) :-D :wink: :( 8-O :lol: :-| :cry: 8) :-? :-P :-x :?: :oops: :twisted: :mrgreen: more »

 characters available