Carib Scope

分类： business

  • Cultivate a clean desk culture

    Cultivate a clean desk culture

    For organizations and teams just beginning to build out their data protection compliance frameworks, one question arises more frequently than any other: where do we even start? According to Brandy Evans, a seasoned data protection officer and practicing attorney, the answer is far simpler than many compliance teams expect: begin by embedding a robust clean desk culture across every level of the organization.

    Contrary to common assumption, this practice is not just a superficial office tidiness policy. When implemented correctly, it stands out as one of the fastest, most accessible, and budget-friendly strategies to cut down organizational privacy risks, regardless of a company’s size or industry. A comprehensive clean desk culture stretches far beyond clearing physical clutter from work surfaces—it covers digital workstations, company-issued mobile devices, and every routine interaction that involves personal or sensitive data.

    At its core, this cultural shift prioritizes intentional, responsible data handling by eliminating one of the most common avoidable privacy gaps: leaving sensitive documents exposed in public or semi-public workplace areas. Evans outlines that organizations should train staff to regularly audit the documents kept at their workstations, categorizing materials based on how long they need to be retained, whether for temporary access, medium-term use, or long-term archiving. Any file containing personal identifiable information must always be locked in secure cabinets or drawers when it is not actively being used.

    Printed confidential materials represent an often-overlooked privacy vulnerability, so rigorous protocols for physical documents are non-negotiable. Staff must be instructed to collect sensitive print jobs immediately from shared printers and photocopiers to prevent unauthorized access. Outdated drafts, handwritten notes, and obsolete documents containing personal data should never be tossed in general waste or open recycling bins—they require secure shredding to eliminate risk of data exposure.

    The digital component of a clean desk culture is just as critical as physical safeguards. Evans emphasizes that employees must lock their computer screens any time they step away from their desks, and organizations should enforce automatic screen lock activation after short periods of inactivity to block unsupervised access. When not in use, laptops should be secured with heavy-duty cable locks or stored in locked storage spaces. External storage devices, including USB flash drives and external hard drives, must be kept in secure locations, and company policy should explicitly ban saving sensitive personal data on unapproved personal devices.

    Work-issued mobile devices represent another growing privacy risk for modern organizations, requiring clear, consistent protocols. All work phones and tablets must be protected with multi-factor authentication, including PIN codes, strong passwords, or biometric login such as fingerprint or facial recognition. Employees should be trained to position device screens out of sight of unauthorized personnel, and never leave work emails or sensitive files open and accessible on unattended devices.

    Even basic credential management is tied to a strong clean desk culture. Evans notes that login passwords and access codes should never be written down on sticky notes or left visible in open areas of the workplace. Employee ID badges and restricted access key cards should be removed and secured when not in use, and organizations must enforce a strict no-sharing policy for all login credentials to prevent unauthorized access to sensitive systems.

    Beyond these tangible physical and digital safeguards, building a sustainable clean desk culture requires ongoing staff awareness and consistent discipline. Organizations should mandate that all employees clear their workspaces completely at the end of each business day. Any conversations that involve discussion of personal or sensitive data should be held in private meeting rooms rather than open office areas, and all visitors must be continuously supervised when moving through workspaces. Access to departments that handle high-volume sensitive data, such as human resources or finance, should be restricted exclusively to pre-authorized personnel.

    Ultimately, a clean desk culture is about far more than organizational neatness—it is about building a foundation of data accountability across every team member. It sends a clear signal that an organization takes its privacy obligations seriously, and reinforces that protecting personal data is a shared responsibility for every employee, from entry-level staff to C-suite leadership.

    For organizations that are just starting their data protection compliance journey, this simple, low-cost intervention can deliver immediate reductions in privacy risk, while creating a strong base for more complex, organization-wide compliance initiatives down the line. As Evans reminds us, the most effective organizational changes often start with the simplest actions—for data protection, that action might just be clearing your desk at the end of the workday.

    This commentary comes from Brandy Evans, a qualified data protection officer and attorney-at-law. Readers can send comments to the Jamaica Observer or reach Evans directly at evansbrandy649@gmail.com.

  • Final Day of Zero ABST on Food and School Supplies Underway

    Final Day of Zero ABST on Food and School Supplies Underway

    Shoppers across Antigua and Barbuda are racing against the clock to lock in savings, as the second and final day of the government’s temporary zero-rated Antigua and Barbuda Sales Tax (ABST) initiative on food and school supplies enters its final hours. Launched yesterday, this two-day tax relief program was crafted as a targeted intervention to ease mounting cost-of-living pressures for households across the twin-island nation, putting much-needed financial relief within reach for families stocking up on daily essentials and back-to-school necessities.

    Regulated by the Inland Revenue Department, the tax break applies to a clearly defined set of qualifying goods. All food products falling under tariff codes 1000 through 2501, plus biscuits, are eligible for the zero-tax designation. The extensive list of qualifying school supplies covers nearly every item students need for the academic year: writing tools including pencils, pens, markers, highlighters, crayons, and colored pencils; classroom accessories such as erasers, sharpeners, rulers, glue, glue sticks, scissors, and pencil cases; paper goods and organization supplies including construction paper, notebooks, index cards, binder sheets, folders, binders, and graph paper; along with larger necessities like geometry sets, calculators, school uniforms, school bags, art supplies, information technology supplies, and home economics supplies. Footwear for students is also included in the tax-free eligible list.

    Just as the eligibility parameters are clearly outlined, so are the exclusions, which have remained unchanged since the program was announced. Products excluded from the tax relief include all beer and other alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, manufacturing extracts, animal feed, and live plants.

    To ensure compliance with the program’s rules, local retailers have received formal guidance to log all qualifying sales under the dedicated zero-rated line on official ABST filing forms. Tax officials have also encouraged consumers to double-check whether an item is eligible for the tax break directly at the point of sale to avoid confusion at checkout.

    With the entire initiative set to expire at midnight local time, industry observers anticipate a significant surge in foot traffic and sales across supermarkets, office supply stores, and general retail outlets, as thrifty consumers rush to make last-minute purchases and maximize the savings offered by the temporary tax break.

  • Staatsolie en Belastingdienst bundelen krachten voor betere controle oliesector

    Staatsolie en Belastingdienst bundelen krachten voor betere controle oliesector

    Suriname’s state-owned oil and gas company Staatsolie has entered into a landmark three-year public-private partnership with the country’s Tax and Customs Administration to upskill government officials working in the rapidly expanding offshore energy sector, a move designed to strengthen regulatory capacity and secure public revenue from one of the nation’s most critical growing industries. The partnership agreement for the Tax Administration Capacity Enhancement Program 2025–2028 was officially signed on Friday, with Staatsolie CEO Annand Jagesar and Tax Director Marita Lautan-Wijnerman marking the occasion to formalize the collaboration.

    As Suriname’s offshore oil and gas industry continues to expand at an unprecedented pace, public regulators face growing pressure to keep up with the sector’s evolving technical complexity and rapid market changes. Stakeholders on both sides of the agreement note that accurate tax assessment, revenue collection and regulatory oversight require specialized, up-to-date expertise that many existing government staff currently lack. Without targeted training, the Surinamese government risks failing to capture the full economic benefits of the country’s natural energy reserves, undermining national development efforts.

    Under the terms of the new program, targeted training will be delivered to tax and customs officers directly engaged with oil and gas sector operations over the three-year timeline. The initiative will prioritize building both foundational technical knowledge and hands-on practical skills tailored to the unique needs of energy sector regulation. Training modules will be rolled out in phases, with most initial sessions hosted within Suriname, and supplementary international knowledge exchanges arranged when advanced global expertise is required.

    This capacity building effort forms part of the lead-up activities for Staatsolie’s 45th anniversary celebration scheduled for December 2025, and aligns perfectly with the company’s core anniversary motto: “empowering communities and institutions.” By investing in stronger government regulatory capacity, Staatsolie aims to ensure that oil and gas revenues are managed transparently and responsibly, channeling returns into inclusive national development that benefits all Surinamese citizens.

  • From Stake Bank to Olo Caye; Big Promises, Big Plans

    From Stake Bank to Olo Caye; Big Promises, Big Plans

    For years, the abandoned Stake Bank development project left Belize’s tourism sector grappling with uncertainty about the coastal site’s future. Today, that uncertainty is giving way to optimism, as a revitalized, rebranded initiative called Olo Caye steps forward to reshape Belize’s position as a top Caribbean travel destination.

    Unlike the previous stalled effort, Olo Caye is built around a core promise of long-term, inclusive growth that centers local communities rather than external returns alone. The mixed-use development combines a purpose-built deep-water cruise port with a high-end luxury resort experience, a strategic design crafted to help Belize hold its own alongside competing Caribbean hotspots while opening new doors for local small businesses and workers.

    Leading the project is Piero Dibattista, a veteran tourism industry executive with a proven track record of transforming regional travel landscapes. Dibattista previously played a key role in turning Roatán, Honduras, from a little-known coastal spot into one of the Caribbean’s most popular cruise and leisure hubs. Project backers highlight that decades of on-the-ground experience as a guarantee that the Olo Caye team understands both the complexities of managing large-scale cruise operations and the non-negotiable need for strict environmental protection standards.

    According to project leaders, the mission of Olo Caye extends far beyond just increasing visitor numbers. The development’s core goal is to grow tourism responsibly, ensuring that local communities are direct beneficiaries of the sector’s expansion rather than bystanders. That forward-looking vision is already moving from planning to action: developers confirmed that preliminary work on a staging and operations hub along the George Price Highway is set to kick off within the coming weeks. That initial construction will clear the way for full island development, which is on track to be completed by 2028.

    The full buildout includes a range of purpose-built infrastructure: new cruise and ferry piers, open-air retail and dining spaces curated to showcase authentic Belizean art, food, and culture, dedicated affordable commercial space for local entrepreneurs, and modern facilities capable of hosting large international events. Beyond these physical assets, the project’s most transformative impact is expected to be on Belize’s workforce. Olo Caye is projected to create thousands of construction jobs during the build phase, followed by hundreds of stable permanent positions once the development opens. That scale makes it one of the most ambitious private tourism investments in Belize’s recent history.

    For supporters of the initiative, Olo Caye is more than just a new development—it is an opportunity to rewrite the story of the site and reimagine what sustainable, inclusive tourism can look like for Belize’s economy and its people.

  • PM Briceño Hails Port Expansion as Economic Milestone

    PM Briceño Hails Port Expansion as Economic Milestone

    In a landmark decision that paves the way for decades of stalled infrastructure development, Belize’s National Environmental Appraisal Committee (NEAC) has granted conditional approval for the long-awaited expansion of the Port of Belize, a project Prime Minister John Briceño has hailed as a transformative turning point for the small Caribbean nation’s economic future.

    The project, which will add expanded cruise ship berthing and modern container handling facilities to the country’s primary maritime gateway, has been more than 20 years in the making. Early attempts to develop a new cruise and container port at the site dating back to the early 2000s fell through for a range of regulatory, financial and political reasons. Under the current administration, the government moved to purchase the port assets from previous owner Waterloo Group, launching a new formal review process that has now reached its key approval milestone.

    Briceño pushed back firmly against circulating claims of political interference in NEAC’s approval decision, calling the entire regulatory process transparent, professional, and led by independent qualified experts. “It is nonsense,” Briceño said of allegations that the government pressured the committee to approve the project. “These people are highly qualified professionals and they did what they believe is right. They addressed most of the issues. That is why when they gave the approval, they gave the approval with certain conditions they want to add.” He clarified that the decision is a formal approval with binding environmental and community safeguards, not a conditional approval that leaves the project in regulatory limbo.

    Addressing questions about potential future legal challenges from competing developers or previous stakeholders, Briceño noted that the government already purchased the port from Waterloo Group, and followed all formal regulatory procedures to reach the current decision, leaving no clear basis for legal pushback. He also thanked his cabinet for their early support in taking on the high-stakes project, crediting the administration’s deliberate, methodical approach for putting the project on track for success.

    “We took our time and made sure we had a good board of directors. We put a public execution unit, headed by Doctor Gilly Canton, people that know what they are doing, made sure that we prepared a proper environmental plan,” Briceño explained. “We had the advantage of seeing what went wrong with the previous one and made sure we take those corrective measures to ensure we get the support.” Now that regulatory approval is secured, the government will move forward to partner with private firms for the dredging and construction phases of the project.

    Regulators confirmed that the approval process reflects the project’s large scale and complexity. Chief Environmental Officer Anthony Mai told reporters that the review launched in May 2025, with regulators immediately flagging the need for a full Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) to identify potential risks. Following a screening process and months of deliberation, NEAC delivered a final recommendation to approve the project, which the Department of the Environment (DOE) has formally accepted.

    The approval does not mean construction can begin immediately, however. Developers are now required to finalize a comprehensive Environmental Compliance Plan that will lock in legally binding measures to avoid, prevent and mitigate potential negative environmental impacts. The plan also must address key socioeconomic concerns raised by communities and stakeholders, including improved traffic management, flood mitigation and drainage infrastructure, local job generation, support for small local entrepreneurship, and the establishment of a formal public grievance mechanism to address community concerns throughout the project’s development and operation.

    “The process is still not ended because we are in the process of preparing the Environmental Compliance Plan,” Mai explained, noting that the rigorous multi-month review ensures that all potential risks are addressed before construction breaks ground.

    Briceño also moved quickly to address ongoing environmental concerns and clarify confusion surrounding potential private investors for the project. He acknowledged that non-governmental environmental organizations will likely never offer full support for the development, but emphasized that the government is committed to responsibly minimizing environmental harm. “If you build a house, you change your environment. So obviously there are going to be some effects, but what we need to do is mitigate them and try to minimize them as best as we can, and that is my commitment and the commitment of our government,” Briceño said. “We are going to do our best to mitigate the environmental issues, but to ensure we can build a world-class port for the people of this country.”

    On the topic of investment, Briceño clarified that the government intentionally delayed negotiations with potential private partners until environmental approval was secured, to avoid uncertainty for all parties. Multiple major international port development groups have already expressed interest in partnering on the project, including global industry leader SSA Marine, whose parent company is investment firm Black Rock, Turkey’s Global Port Holdings, and a Mexican development group. The government will now hire consulting firm Nicols and Mofat, which developed the project’s original master plan, to set negotiation terms and select the partner that delivers the best outcome for Belize.

    The expanded port is projected to act as a game-changer for Belize’s economy, boosting the country’s regional trade capacity, drawing increased cruise tourism traffic, and driving long-term inclusive national development. Briceño framed the approval as a long-awaited breakthrough that unlocks critical new investment in Belize’s maritime sector, positioning the country for stronger economic growth in the coming decades.

  • Fuel Hikes Continue, PM Briceño Points to Tax Relief

    Fuel Hikes Continue, PM Briceño Points to Tax Relief

    Motorists across Belize are grappling with another round of financial pressure at fuel pumps, as the country announced its third fuel price increase in just a few weeks, marking a continued stretch of upward pricing that is straining household and business budgets.

    With global fuel markets continuing their upward trajectory, Prime Minister John Briceño has moved to clarify the government’s mitigation strategy, explaining that the administration has already absorbed tens of millions of dollars in foregone revenue by rolling back fuel taxes to shield consumers from the full brunt of global price gains.

    Speaking publicly on the policy, Briceño confirmed that the government has already forgone roughly $60 million in tax revenue from fuel cuts, with an additional recent tax reduction on premium gasoline bringing the total amount of foregone revenue close to $80 million. These cuts mean consumers do not face the full weight of ongoing global fuel price increases, Briceño emphasized.

    The revenue sacrifice is already taking a notable toll on the government’s public finances, he noted: the government currently collects only $200 million in total fuel excise taxes, making the near-$80 million in foregone revenue a substantial fiscal hit. To offset this lost income and accommodate the tax relief, Briceño has ordered a wide-ranging review of government spending to identify non-essential expenditures that can be curtailed amid the volatile fuel market.

    Domestic cost-cutting measures for public operations are already being rolled out. Briceño announced that the government is encouraging carpooling among public sector employees to reduce agency fuel consumption. A vehicle tracking system that restricts unauthorized after-hours use of government vehicles is already in place, and the initiative has generated several million dollars in savings to date. Looking forward, the Prime Minister confirmed he has asked the Ministry of Finance to draft a formal cabinet paper outlining spending adjustment options, so all government officials can align on the need for targeted spending cuts to sustain fuel tax relief for consumers, at least until global fuel market conditions stabilize.

  • John Mencias Leaves Transformed BEL Behind

    John Mencias Leaves Transformed BEL Behind

    In 2019, John Mencias took the helm as Chief Executive Officer of Belize Electricity Limited (BEL) at a critical juncture for the national utility. At that time, the company was grappling with two major interconnected challenges: decades-old, deteriorating infrastructure that struggled to keep up with rapidly growing consumer and commercial energy demand across the small Central American nation.

    Seven years into his tenure, as Mencias prepares to step down from his leadership role, he leaves an organization that has been fundamentally remade from the inside out, positioning BEL to support Belize’s ongoing national development for decades to come. Under his strategic guidance, BEL prioritized large-scale infrastructure modernization, pouring resources into updating outdated generation and distribution systems to strengthen the entire national power grid. This massive overhaul has translated to tangible improvements for end users, with far more consistent energy reliability across every region of Belize, even as overall energy demand has continued to climb.

    Beyond physical infrastructure, Mencias spearheaded a cultural and operational shift to center customer experience, a departure from the utility’s more traditional service model. He led the rollout of a suite of new digital self-service tools and comprehensive service upgrades that cut wait times, streamlined common customer interactions, and made accessing BEL support faster and more convenient than ever before.

    Internally, Mencias centered his leadership on BEL’s most valuable asset: its people. He implemented initiatives to foster a culture of innovation across all levels of the organization, made targeted investments in ongoing talent development and upskilling for employees, and built a more inclusive, collaborative workplace culture that aligned with the company’s modernization goals.

    The cumulative impact of these changes is a utility that is far more closely aligned with the needs of its customers, the priorities of its workforce, and the broader economic development goals of Belize. As Mencias departs, he leaves with gratitude for his time at the organization and confidence in the path BEL has forged. Stepping in to provide continuity for the ongoing transformation is Ambassador Lynn Young, who returns to the role of Executive Chairman, bringing decades of deep institutional experience and a steady hand to guide the utility through its next chapter of growth.

  • Delegation of Chinese investors in Cap

    Delegation of Chinese investors in Cap

    In a development that highlights growing cross-continental investment interest in underserved regional markets, a delegation of business investors from mainland China held a landmark meeting with the Cap-Haïtien Municipal Commission on Thursday, April 9. This exploratory visit was coordinated with logistical and diplomatic support from the Haitian Embassy based in the Dominican Republic, marking a unique channel for direct engagement between local municipal leaders and international business groups.

    Headlined by Caleli Decorative Materials Co. S.R.I. Group, the investment mission has a clear core objective: to map out and evaluate viable commercial and infrastructure investment openings across northern Haiti. The scope of the delegation’s assessment covers both private sector commercial projects and large-scale public infrastructure developments, many of which fall under the broad framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, a global infrastructure and economic cooperation program launched by China. Notably, the delegation opted to hold direct talks with the Cap-Haïtien Municipal Commission instead of engaging with Haiti’s national government, which maintains official diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

    During the closed-door discussions, participants focused heavily on the practical feasibility of two major proposed developments: a dedicated regional industrial park and a large-scale integrated commercial complex. Beyond these flagship projects, talks also centered on designing investment activities that would deliver long-term tangible benefits to the local population, specifically through the creation of sustainable local employment opportunities and increased economic value added for the northern Haitian region.

    For the Cap-Haïtien Municipal government, this exploratory visit aligns with its long-term strategic push to rebrand the coastal city as a dynamic, competitive investment destination that can attract international capital. If the proposed projects move forward to implementation, they are projected to generate more than 1,000 new local jobs. What’s more, the initiative plans to integrate innovative environmental solutions, with a key focus on developing plastic waste recovery systems that address local pollution challenges while supporting circular economic goals.

  • Port of Belize Expansion Gets Environmental Clearance, PM Calls It a “Game Changer”

    Port of Belize Expansion Gets Environmental Clearance, PM Calls It a “Game Changer”

    After decades of stalled attempts and contentious regulatory review, the long-awaited expansion of the Port of Belize has crossed a critical threshold, earning conditional environmental approval from the country’s top environmental assessment body that clears the way for the project to move into its investment sourcing phase.

    Prime Minister John Briceño framed the green light as a transformative milestone for Belize’s economic development in an interview with local outlet News Five, describing the planned facility as a game-changing world-class hub that will serve both cruise tourism and container cargo shipping. The project has a decades-long history of failure, with multiple previous attempts to launch the expansion dating back to the early 2000s never coming to fruition.

    Briceño credited coordinated support from his cabinet and careful preparation led by a dedicated public implementation unit headed by Dr. Aguile Canton for finally advancing the project past this key regulatory hurdle. “We had the advantage of seeing what went wrong in the previous attempts, so we were able to implement targeted corrective measures to address past gaps,” he explained.

    The approval was issued with specific binding conditions by the National Environmental Appraisal Committee (NEAC), the independent body tasked with reviewing the project’s environmental impact. Amid circulating claims that the government exerted political pressure to force a favorable vote from NEAC, Briceño rejected the allegations as baseless nonsense, emphasizing that NEAC is composed of highly qualified independent professionals who operate free from political interference.

    The Prime Minister also downplayed expectations of upcoming legal challenges from private sector entities, including the Waterloo Group, a firm that has previously raised objections to the project. Briceño noted that the government has already completed the acquisition of Waterloo’s stake in the project, putting that potential source of dispute to rest. “We have followed every regulatory step required by law, and we are on solid legal ground moving forward,” he said.

    Not all stakeholders have welcomed the approval, however. Local environmental advocacy groups have raised persistent concerns about the project, arguing that Port of Belize Limited failed to address major unmitigated ecological risks and should have been required to submit a fully revised impact assessment before approval was granted. Briceño acknowledged that any large infrastructure development will inevitably generate some environmental impact, comparing it to the unavoidable footprint of building a new residential home. But he stressed that the government has committed to rigorous mitigation measures to minimize the project’s ecological effects as much as technically and financially possible.

    With environmental clearance now secured, the government is advancing immediately to the next phase: securing a private development partner to finance and execute the expansion. Briceño confirmed that multiple major international firms have already submitted preliminary expressions of interest, including U.S.-based SSA Marine, which counts global investment giant BlackRock as its parent company, Turkey’s Global Port Holdings, and a Mexican investment consortium. To ensure structured, transparent negotiations with prospective partners, the government has re-engaged Moffat and Nichols, the engineering firm that developed the project’s original master plan, to draft formal terms of reference for the upcoming bidding and negotiation process.

  • NBD’s net profit for 2023–2024 signals strong financial performance, says chairman

    NBD’s net profit for 2023–2024 signals strong financial performance, says chairman

    At its 21st Annual General Meeting of Shareholders held Thursday at the St. Alphonsus Parish Hall in Goodwill, the National Bank of Dominica Ltd. (NBD) announced a robust financial performance for the 2023–2024 fiscal year spanning July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024. NBD Board Chairperson Urania Williams revealed the leading Dominican financial institution recorded an 18 million Eastern Caribbean dollar net profit for the period, a result that leadership framed as a major milestone amid challenging market conditions.

    In the bank’s newly released annual report, NBD provided a full transparent accounting of its outcomes and activities delivered to its core stakeholders: shareholders, employees, customers and the local Dominican community. Williams noted that the bank built on the solid foundational growth cultivated in preceding years to advance a broad organizational transformation initiative, all while navigating an increasingly complex and highly competitive regional financial ecosystem.

    “Our strategy remained anchored in five core pillars: strengthening overall financial performance, elevating end-to-end customer experience, enhancing enterprise-wide operational excellence, deepening governance and compliance maturity, and investing in our people and organizational culture,” Williams explained during the meeting. She added that the structure of the 2023–2024 annual report is fully aligned with the institution’s annual performance plan for the fiscal year, ensuring clear connection between core strategic goals, on-the-ground execution, and stakeholder accountability across both sustained finance and market performance initiatives.

    Williams emphasized that hitting the XCD $18 million net profit target is no small achievement, crediting the strong result to the bank’s clear long-term vision, consistent disciplined execution, and its skilled, dedicated team. She noted that strategic decisions implemented in prior years created the stable foundation required for this outcome, and have positioned NBD to deliver even stronger returns in the upcoming 2024–2025 fiscal cycle.

    Key strategic initiatives that drove year-over-year revenue growth centered on expanding income from new and existing product and service lines, most notably new card-based financial offerings, including full credit card services powered by the FISERV digital platform. Williams pointed out that these expansions directly align with the bank’s core priority of diversifying revenue streams to match shifting consumer and business demands across Dominica.

    Improving overall loan portfolio asset quality remains a top organizational priority for NBD, Williams confirmed. The bank has rolled out a series of targeted measures to reduce its share of non-performing loans (NPLs), with the explicit goal of bringing the NPL ratio in line with the institution’s long-term strategic target. These actions include the sale of impaired debt portfolios to external third-party collection agencies, the launch of a standardized early delinquency notification system, and the creation of formal protocols to proactively move high-risk vulnerable accounts to the bank’s in-house Recoveries Unit for accelerated intervention.

    Williams noted that these combined efforts have reinforced NBD’s longstanding commitment to prudent, risk-aware credit management, reduced the bank’s overall credit risk exposure, and strengthened the long-term sustainability of its entire loan portfolio.

    As the largest leading financial institution in Dominica, NBD reported total consolidated assets of XCD $1.77 billion, equal to roughly USD $655.9 million, as of the June 30, 2024 end of the fiscal year. Founded in 1978, the bank has centered its mission on empowering individual consumers, local businesses, and community groups across the island. It has also earned formal recognition from the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) for its standout work as a responsible corporate citizen. For the 2022–2023 fiscal year, NBD reported a net profit of more than XCD $11 million, marking a more than 63% year-over-year increase in net profit for the 2023–2024 period.