In keeping with its mandate to promote and influence the economic growth and development of Dominica the Aid Bank has organized a special investment forum for the Dominican Diaspora.
The forum, which is expected to take place on Friday at the Fort Young Hotel, is dubbed “Help here from there- Exploring local investment opportunities for overseas Dominicans”.
Special Projects/ Communication Co-ordinator at the bank, Josephine Dechausay Titre, explained that the institution has recognized the diaspora as a rich resource with the relevant expertise to birth viable projects. She said the main aim of the forum is to facilitate local investment and encourage sustainable economic growth by engaging the diaspora in investment efforts.
“Another aim is to increase our visibility as the financier of choice for investors, to impress upon Dominicans residing abroad that we want to engage them wherever they are, they do not have to leave the life that they have built for themselves and come back, they can help here from over there,” she said.
Titre added that the forum will help the those in the diaspora know that they can assist in market expansion by introducing Dominican products in the area that they reside and through mentoring young local entrepreneurs.
“We want to encourage brain gain …very often we hear that a lot of our intellectual people are going overseas and building up the communities where they have settled. We want to draw them back, we want them to increase the export potential of Dominica, we want to increase their contribution to the economic well being of Dominica,” she noted.
General Manager of the Aid Bank, Julius Corbett, added that the forum will impress upon the diaspora that there is an enabling environment present for them in Dominica to make investments.
“We want to impress upon the diaspora that it is okay to be back home, it is okay to be out there and still put your money where your mouth is,” he said. “On Friday we will impress upon them that there has been an enabling environment that has been created here in Dominica over the past few years….”
Dominica’s investment opportunities, overview of investment experience, Diaspora policy are some of the topics that will be addressed.
Minister of trade, Collin McIntyre, is expected to be present at Friday’s forum.
Real money and concessions to move us forward. Dominica Diaspora will come? Wait and see.
Gary stay off and allow people to comment am warning you people under stress
that bank should be named bank of labour…. can only get a loan if those labourite board members approve, if you are a workers and get a loan is because you have your eggs already.
Thanks AID Bank for my education. I wish I could open an account with my balance on the loan. Make it easier to open bank accounts.
Aid bank investments should be : international airport, boats to take off agricultural produce or agro-processing, fish project from sea farm to supermarkets and other fish stuff, parking terminal,marina; without these projects waste of time and money going down the drain.
“Another aim is to increase our visibility as the financier of choice for investors, to impress upon Dominicans residing abroad that we want to engage them wherever they are, …,” Titre said.
Don’t make me laugh!!! A good friend of mine returned to Dominica some 10 month ago with the aim to invest in an upmarket tourism project with a prospect of creating in access of 50 jobs for locals. He decided to get in touch with the AID Bank to arrange a small credit line (less than 5% of the investment as a whole). Telephone calls were made, emails were sent and finally a visit to the head quarters of the AID Bank was made. Up until today my friend is waiting for an answer to his questions, never mind a meeting with the General Manager. The staff in this place is arrogant, ignorant and totally disinterested in their customers. This is the worst place my friend has ever encountered in his long business career. The end result: he decided to let them keep their money and equally he will keep his money in his bank abroad. Shame that, this are the investments Dominica needs but due to the utter incompetence of this institution the entire project fell at the first hurdle. So Madam Titre, there is some food for thought. Get your house in order first before you make big speeches and disappoint potential customers and thus jeopardising the future development of Dominica. In my opinion one useless organisation if I have ever seen one!!!
Miss Titre.
Hello and good morning my people. We’ll Miss Titre I hope this forum will be successful because we need our citizens in the Diaspora to invest in our country. It’s very difficult to open an account in Dominica and I am saying that because I tried. I came home in 2010 and I tried to open an account and they gave me an appointment date which was two days after I was scheduled to leave Dominica. I told the lady that I won’t be in Dominica but she still refused to changed the date. I am a retired person and I brought my pension papers and tax return but I still wasn’t able to open an account which forced me to return to NYC with my money. Also why can’t our United Nation Ambassador hold an investment seminar in NYC and have banks representatives from Dominica be present where we can open an account with any institution we choose. We must also raise the insurance guarantee for accounts in the credit unions because at the current insured amount this is preventing many of us from keeping more funds in our credit union accounts. If the credit union in my village fold then I will lost ninety percent of my money so we need better insurance coverage. I hope you will visit us in NYC and present to us how we can invest in our country and be assured that our accounts and investments will be safe.
Aid bank under water it seems because of bad investment for the past couple years, example large sum of money for a hotel on the dark side of the island and a ferry in possie that cannot move aid bank stop being a puppet and do some profitable investment before you sink.
Why are you writing such nonsense.It seems you are one of those who are indoctrinated. The AID Bank has recorded a profit of $1.01-million for the financial year ended June 30, 2012.Does this sound like a bank underwater.
What is wrong with trying to reverse their bad past judgements
Good initiative from the bank but future forums should be online where one can participate via audio or video. There has been so much talk already now is the time for action and we should begin by starting to raise capital for the International airport and how much the aid bank will contribute and the Dominicans in the diaspora. If we only think that donors will build it then they will put their conditions but if we as a people see the need and fail to do something history will not forgive us. I am ready to contribute one month salary towards building the international airport.
the event will be streamed live via comesee tv
http://www.comeseetv.com/streams/aidbank
Reacting i suppose !
it is easier for a non national ,some with no ties to Dominica to get a loan at AID bank than a diaspora.one would think the employees do not want us coming here. I am talking from experience.
Please put your actions where your mouths are. From this story I just read nothing was said about ways to ease the red tape and road blocks we face to get an investment loan even when we have a solid business plan they liked combined collateral, above all employing minimum ten people
In my view AID Bank has lost its way and its relevance to Dominicans a long time ago…..
I guess it is waiting for the Dream Team to bring it to relevance.Your view based on Political partisan and facts are two different things.
shows how idiotic you are……my statements were never based on any political affiliation to any man jack or child…..
what investment opportunities on the island where no normal medicine, police phone number is always off, governmental officials skip your email and open bank account is a nightmare…investment opportunities, seriously?
Why are you using your negative field of vision and Political beliefs as your vision for Dominicans.it is very sad.
its not a negative vision…its just my observation of Dominica. Main job of every government is to increase attractiveness of economy through implementing:
1) transparency
2) accountability
3) enforcement of contracts
4) independent judges and rule of law
in all aspects mentioned above Dominica failed miserably:
1) nobody really knows what are the island finances look like…
2) your politicians and public officials are a group of people who are not accountable to anybody
3) how private contracts can be enforced if in your society no rule of law but primitive tribal justice…if you have connection to the chieftain you are doing good..if not you are s##t…
4) rule of law….you can sell drugs or kill people…get caught and next day get on bail…you have certain cast of people who literally spit on the law and continue to do whatever they want
So Dominica is not attractive place for investments because a lot of administrative nonsense, police doesn’t work, government and people exist in parallel dimensions, workforce is not qualified and taxes are high
So am I negative or you are like ostrich hidden your head in the sand and react only when you heard that somebody bashing the island?
To MZUNGU
Describing me as an ostrich hidden with my head in the sand,I can say this to you, some of us can turn a blind eye to to the positive things happening in Dominica, but who knows what the ostrich sees in the sand.Yes, it does bother me when someone bashes my country especially when it is based on perception which are negative and ignorance of Politics, which you are doing.
I must say you are indoctrinated very well,I say this because of the words and phrases you use to portray The Government and believing such things without asking your self questions as whether such things are true.Transparency, there is no Government on Planet Earth right now who is transparent to it’s people that is a myth perpetrated on people and you have bought into that myth,you also have to understand transparency can be relative to The Country and it’s Political system.
Do really think nobody knows what the finances of Dominica looks like.The Director of Audit and The Permanent Secretary in The Ministry of Finance knows.There is also the Public Accounts Committee of which The Opposition Leader is part of, he can get that information.Now if you are trying to be subtle,The personal fiances of Government Ministers based on allegation of fraud is quite a different story and should not be related to the finance of The Country. Accountability,Why is it you believe it is only in Dominica that Politicians not accountable.To believe such thing is very naive of you,it is a major problem all over the world.I`m sure there are accountability problems with many Countries in region.Why do you think Dominica is the worst or should be singled out.Regarding private contracts you sound so arrogant and ignorant that gives me hint you are not from Dominica.Where do get the idea That Dominica operates on tribal justice.Why would Dominica be rated the third best country to do business in The region by the World Bank,have you not seen the acolytes Dominica has gotten from The EU and other Countries who are it partners and friends globally when it comes to doing business and honoring contracts.
Again, you have shown how ignorant you are with your statements regarding the rule of Law in Dominica.Regarding drugs, is it only in Dominica people are selling drugs and dying of it.There are Countries in the region who have far greater drug problems and more people dying from violence and much more disregard for law and order and by the way we do not have a caste system in our Country who spits on The Law, it just shows how ill informed and ignorant you are spewing such nonsense. As to skilled workers,we have a growing Call Center Industry in our Country and the work force was given a high rating for their excellence in service they are providing.There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact you are not from Dominica and ill-informed.
that more like it positive move, unlike the lobour party and Dr mac kintyre who said he dos not want the Dominican aborad running dominica by reomto control
WHAT AN INSECURE STATEMENT TO HAVE MADE. in fact skerritt and his bunch of desperadoes don’t like educated and independent people at all. you will remember clearly SKERRITT said in the parliament that DOMINICA are too free and he said it three timer for empathises
This is an excellent endeavor.There are many talented Dominicans abroad who are able to participate in this venture.
The current Chairman of the Aid Bank was the manager of DUTC that failed miserably under his watch. What Confidence is there for persons like me that i can trust this chairman to consider a second investment under his watch