Archive for April, 2011
Jury asked to pick between defendant and witness
(CNS): As the lawyers for both the prosecution and the defence made their closing speeches to the jury this week they told the twelve men and women that they had to decide between the key witness or the defendant who it was that actually killed Brian-Rankine-Carter.
Coles appointed new voice for finance sector
(CNS): The chair of the Human Rights Commission is about to add to his workload by taking on another challenge. Aside from championing the cause of the country’s vulnerable in the face of rights abuses by authorities, he will now also be the voice of the islands’ financial services sector. Former attorney general Richard Coles was officially appointed the new chairman of Cayman Finance at its annual general meeting last month. Aside from chairing the HRC, Coles is currently an independent director for hedge funds, structured finance vehicles and investment and financial sector companies.
Speaking about his new position, Coles said, “This organisation has developed an impressive history of working with Government to achieve its mission of promoting Cayman’s financial services industry. It is my intention to further build upon this relationship and to take the activities of Cayman Finance to a new level.”
Stepping into the role previously held by Anthony Travers, who took every opportunity presented to counter criticisms of the jurisdiction, Coles takes on the post at a time when there are persistent calls from onshore countries to block what are seen as loopholes that allow multinationals to use offshore centres.
Thanks were given at the meeting to outgoing chairman Anthony Travers, who members said had worked tirelessly to raise the profile of the Cayman Islands.
Dax Basdeo, Chief Officer of the Ministry of Finance, acknowledged the efforts of Cayman Finance and encouraging more collaboration and partnership between the public and private sectors going forward.
“The competitive environment in which we work makes it imperative that Cayman is unified in its approach to maintain its position in the marketplace. Cayman Finance has government support to achieve this objective,” Basdeo stated..
A new board was also elected and the directors are as follows: Peter Cockhill (Ogier), Nick Freeland (PWC), Gonzalo Jalles (HSBC), Mark Lewis (Walkers), Roy McTaggart (KPMG), Conor O’Dea (Butterfield), David Roberts (Cayman Management), Daniel Scott (Ernst & Young), Henry Smith (Maples and Calder), Ian Wight (Deloitte).
Special thanks were also offered to Cayman Finance founders, the late Eric Crutchley and Eduardo D’Angelo Silva.
Green fingers students needed for schoolyard gardens
(CNS): A new project is taking ‘root’ in the community in an effort to help educate children about food and nutrition. Project Grow is the brainchild of insurance firm Generali Worldwide, HSBC Bank (Cayman) Limited and Vigoro Nursery, who have teamed up to offer local schools the chance to start growing their own food on campus with the introduction of schoolyard gardens. The goal, organizers said, is to help young people connect the food they eat with its production. The school garden pilot project first started with John Gray High School in 2009 but it is now being offered to all schools in the Cayman Islands.
“Over the last few decades food has become more and more industrialized, packaged and processed. Much of this processed food is unhealthy and causing problems to our overall well-being and the well-being of the planet,” said the organisers. “As a society we have lost our connection with food and its origin. Project Grow aims to repair this connection using food through sustainable agriculture as a vehicle to educate children about healthy foods and nutrition.”
With dedicated teachers and students, the development and maintenance of sustainable schoolyard gardens will go some way to creating an appreciation for the need to develop healthier eating habits, the organizers say.
In order to take part in the project the schools will need an open area in which a grow box can fit or a patch of land that can be used and a dedicated faculty and student body to develop and maintain the garden throughout the 2011-2012 school year. Schools will be chosen based on their willingness and ability to support the programme for the long-term.
“Generali Worldwide is really excited to see Project Grow properly launched with partners HSBC Cayman and Vigoro Nursery”, said Maureen Cubbon, Marketing and Health & Wellness Manager for Generali Worldwide. “Health and wellness for the community has always been a focus for Generali Worldwide and we are really pleased to be a part of such a unique and important initiative.”
Project Grow will help children learn the principles of gardening. The hands-on experience helps familiarize children with the many relationships and cycles within nature providing a link to healthy eating and nutritional choices. The gardening experience itself brings other health benefits like exercise, time spent outdoors in the fresh air and a sense of well being. It also offers new and exciting ways to address nutrition.
Tom Balon of Vigoro Nursery says it is exciting to see projects of this nature materialize. “There can be so many benefits from them. Awareness of health and lifestyle is always important, and gardening, especially edibles can be very rewarding in all aspects of well-being. We are very excited at Vigoro Nursery and look forward to being a part of this exciting project,” he added.
HSBC Cayman and Generali Worldwide will support the program by providing the grow boxes, soil and other needed equipment along with a tailored approach to a sustainable garden plan for the chosen school. Vigoro Nursery will provide the needed expertise and direction for growing and maintaining the school garden throughout the year.
“Agriculture is an important part of the Cayman Islands and Project Grow uses an “out of the box” approach to engage children so that they can understand the direct relationship between the food on their plate and the impact on the environment,” added Gonzalo Jalles, HSBC Cayman CEO, “We are honored to become part of such an important project.”
Project Grow is making an “open call” to all schools in the Cayman Islands and is accepting applications for the September 2011 school year. For those who are interested in becoming a part of the programme email: caymanprojectgrow@gmail.com for an application form, applications are open until 20 May.
Joanna Clarke nominees focus on special education
(CNS): Many of the projects selected for this year’s Joanna Clarke Excellence in Education Award (JCA) focus on special education needs and are projects mostly outside the mainstream school curriculum. The finalists for the education initiative created by dms Organization Ltd (DMS) are Catch Up Literacy, Speech and Language Therapy Department, the Harmony Learning Centre, the School Counsellor’s Group and the Early Years Task Force. The five finalists were selected from twenty applications that qualified and one or more will receive up to KYD $12,000 to fund their project. Chairperson of the JCA Committee Joanna Clarke said there was a wider range of applicants, with more non-profit associations this year in addition to schools.
“While it is challenging to determine between such impressive initiatives, ultimately we determined the finalists due to them being the strongest in aligning with our distinct criteria, particularly that of sustainability,” she explained. “We have always been inclined to offer grants and support initiatives that we are confident will continue to grow and flourish for many years. Interestingly, three of our five finalists were literacy initiative candidates, which is key to children’s education and development. We certainly have a hard decision ahead of us.”
Catch Up Literacy requested funding for its programme addressing the problem of underachievement that is often rooted in literacy and numeracy challenges. In 2010 literacy coaches underwent training to offer the programme which is based on a proven literacy model that enables and supports the sustainable use and embedding of the Catch Up Cayman intervention for ‘at risk’ students across Cayman’s public schools.
The Speech and Language Therapy Department is seeking funding to set up a Training Assistance Programme, which is intended to train and support parents and caregivers of children with language delays to understand how they can assist with language development. They will undergo a 12-week training programme to become language facilitators and understand how to maximize children’s daily routines and playtimes.
The Harmony Learning Centre, based in Cayman Brac, is dedicated to supporting people with developmental disabilities and their families through increasing their opportunities to make choices and decisions about the quality of their lives and responding to their changing needs. The centre requested funding to launch its Day Programme.
The School Counsellor’s Group applied for the grant to support its mission to use guidance counselling to expose and build awareness in social skills, human development, self-identification and how to make decisions based on facts.
The Early Years Task Force is seeking help with its Preschool Educational and Training Assistance Programme to provide literacy and phonics kits to all 30 registered preschools throughout the Cayman Islands. The project will also provide the relevant professional development and training workshops for teachers.
Last year’s JCA recipients were Cayman Prep and High School for its Marine Science Programme, George Town Primary School for its Digital Visual Media Club and John Gray High School for its Scuba Diving Club.
The five finalists for this year will now have the opportunity to present their project and partake in a question-and-answer session, which will be considered against the award’s criteria previously established by the committee members.
DMS Vice President and JCA Committee Member Krista Pell said the award was one which DMS holds in the highest regard as it draws attention to the number of deserving local initiatives that need private sector support. “Corporate social responsibility is key, and we take that responsibility seriously,” she added.
The 2011 winner or winners will be announced Saturday, 14 May, at the Grand Old House. The evening is open to the public and money raised from the event funds the Joanna Clarke Scholarship Fund, an extension of the JCA, to support to an aspiring or existing teacher looking to further their education.
“We hope the business community joins us to celebrate and support these amazing candidates who are all working toward a better tomorrow for Cayman,” added Pell. “We also wanted to take the opportunity to express our appreciation to the many local media entities that continue to show support in heightening awareness about this award – it is truly a community effort.”
Cameron tells IMF not to choose Brown as new boss
(AP): Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron insisted Tuesday that his predecessor Gordon Brown shouldn’t become a candidate to lead the International Monetary Fund, and suggested the next chief should be the first from outside of Europe. Cameron said Brown may not be a suitable replacement for Dominique Strauss-Khan, because of his views on what needs to be done to sort out Britain’s public finances. During Brown’s premiership, Britain’s borrowings mushroomed in the wake of the financial crisis and the ensuing recession. The Prime Minister said the next chief must be someone who "understands the dangers of excessive debt."
He suggested the IMF should look to emerging economies in India, China or South Asia for a candidate, instead of a "washed up politician."
"It may well be it’s time actually to have a candidate from another part of the world in order to increase its standing in the world," he said.
That would mark a change of direction for the IMF, which has been headed by a European since its formation after World War II. Frenchman Strauss-Khan is widely tipped to leave the post he has held since late 2007 at the end of this year, and possibly make a run for his country’s presidency in 2012.
Web-based media wins Pulitzer Prize
(The Guardian): For the first time in the history of the Pulitzer Prize – the highest honour in American journalism – the award has gone to a series of articles in an investigation that never appeared on the printed page. ProPublica, the web-based independent investigative news organisation, was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for national reporting for its expose of dubious dealing on Wall Street leading up to the financial crisis, with the judges praising the way journalists Jesse Eisinger and Jake Bernstein used online tools "to help explain the complex subject to lay readers." While ProPublica won its first Pulitzer Prize last year for an article that appeared in the New York Times Magazine – and split the award with the Los Angeles Times – this year it won the award outright.
Techy park needs new law
(CNS): Developers of the proposed special economic technology zone, Cayman Enterprise City (CEC), will break ground before the year-end if a new law is passed in time. Although there are still no anchor tenants or a confirmed location, CEO of Hon Development, Jason Blick, says that if the details of the Special Economic Zone Law and agreements with government are finalised in the next few weeks, the project could be underway by December. The law is expected to define the zone but also offer those inside it specific concessions. During the recent Middle East visit the developers met with several technology firms with the hope that one will become an anchor tenant at the site, which Blick said would be located East of George Town in one of three possible locations.
In Dubai the Hon/CI government delegation met with Oracle, Cisco, Johnson & Johnson, Xerox and Hewlett Packard, said Blick, who stated, “We are keen to launch the project with key anchor tenants.”
The developers are offering a range of concessions to those who will become tenants, including reduced flat-rate work permit fees, a reduced import duty structure, as well as protection of intellectual property, which will, they say, be part of the law the Cayman government will pass to facilitate the project.
The ‘techy park’ or enterprise city will only offer space to very specific types of industries, the developers have said, and it will be designed to accommodate those future technologies.
“CEC is designed to meet the needs of five specific types of industries,” Blick said, which he listed as ICT, biotechnology, commodities exchange, media and complementary academia. “This means the creation of unique infrastructure taking account of the bespoke requirements of these ‘future-proof’ industries. In particular, the IT backbone that supports CEC will be one of the most advanced in the Americas region, propelling the Cayman Islands to the forefront of the high-tech sector.”
Blick said that the developers hope to have the ‘Definitive Agreement with Government’ within the next seven weeks, along with the commitment to pass the Special Economic Zone Law. It is not clear exactly what the law will entail but it is understood that it will provide for the concessions and reductions in the usual permit, duty and licence fees that the tenants of CEC will enjoy.
The CEC project is being developed by Hon Development Company LLC and it will be based on the models established in Dubai. The developer says it will be a minimum of 500,000 square feet of office space by June 2016, built in three phases. Phase one will include 150,000 sq.ft of leasable office space, which will be completed within 24 months of the commencement date, the developers said.
The project involves an initial investment of approximately $326m between 2011 and 2020. Hon says there will be some 5,000 jobs created by CEC, and a KPMG Report said it would generate almost 10,000 indirect employment opportunities in total. Developers said that while one fifth of the jobs would go to locals, the remaining 80% would be work permit holders.
Cayman CAA gets into helicopter business
(CNS): CHC Helicopter, an offshore helicopter services provider, has entered into a partnership with the Civil Aviation Authority of the Cayman Islands (CAACI), according to a news release on the international wire services. The firm states that this new partnership will provide CHC Helicopter with the opportunity to obtain and maintain a Cayman Islands Air Operator Certificate (AOC) to conduct offshore operations in several foreign jurisdictions worldwide. The Cayman Islands AOC was issued to CHC Helicopter on Monday and two inaugural CHC AS332L2 Super Puma aircraft have reportedly now been transferred to the Cayman Islands Register and will start offshore operations in South America.
The helicopter firm, which is described as world’s largest commercial helicopter company servicing the world’s offshore oil and gas sector, said its operating structure, content and standards are closely aligned with the CAACI Air Regulations. Having issued an AOC to the helicopter firm, the CAACI says it diversifies its base of private and corporate aircraft and will offer an opportunity to expand and diversify the aviation register.
"We are very pleased to be associated with CHC Helicopter, a company whose embedded safety culture exemplifies quality air transport operations that leads the aviation industry," said Richard Smith, Director-General of the CAACI. "Their credible reputation in the global aviation industry underscores the selective nature with which the CAACI accepts registrants to the Cayman Islands Aircraft Registry."
William Amelio, president and CEO of CHC Helicopter, said that CAACI can provide the flexibility and scope needed for its operations."I am proud that the Civil Aviation Authority of the Cayman Islands and CHC has agreed to such a mutually beneficial arrangement," he added.
The CHC Helicopter group of companies said it is the world-leader in the provision of civilian search-and-rescue operations, with major contracts in the UK, Ireland and Australia and a world leader in helicopter maintenance through its Delta, British Columbia-based division, Heli-One.
Artist creates foundation to help those in need
(CNS): Local visual artist Al Ebanks is planning to auction off some of his work to raise money for those who have suffered as a result of the devastating earthquakes and tsunami in Japan. Ebanks, whose work has found success on the international stage, says this initiative also marks the start of his new foundation, From the Art, which will use art to raise money for local and international causes.“It has been difficult for me to watch the devastation in Japan and I feel that this is something I can do to help with the recovery efforts,” said Ebanks. Guests will have an opportunity to bid on the pieces on display at the silent auction on 12 May at 6pm at Camana Bay
There will also be appetizers, champagne, music and dancing, and the opportunity to win various prizes donated by local merchants.
For more information please contact Cindy Jones of Guavaberry Marketing at cindy@guavaberrymarketing.com.
West Bay action group calls follow up meeting
(CNS): The people of West Bay are following up on their recent success in opening recently blocked access ways along Seven Mile Beach and are turning their attention to the North Sound proposed dredging and the port in East End. Joining forces with the Save Cayman group and those opposing the commercial seaport development, the Concerned Citizens group is calling the people to come out again on Tuesday to the John A Cumber school to hear the latest on beach access as well as these other projects. At the meeting last week passions were running high, not just about the short term problem of the barriers appearing along Seven Mile Beach but also about plans to move the West Bay Road and over development in general. (Photo Dennie WarrenJr)
At this second meeting there will be a number of guest speakers, including Wayne Panton, Captain Bryan Ebanks (above) and North Side MLA Ezzard Miller.
The meeting starts at 7pm and will take place John A Cumber Primary School Hall (West Bay Primary School Hall) tonight (Tuesday 19 April).