A&B passes Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation Agreement

The Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECPCGC) Agreement was passed in the Lower House of Parliament on Thursday.
The agreement will establish the Eastern Caribbean Guarantee Corporation which will facilitate financing to micro, small and medium size businesses.
According to the mover of the bill, Prime Minister Gaston Browne, “The monetary authority in the Central Bank is seeking to establish a credit guarantee scheme within the Eastern Caribbean region. It is intended that this Act will result in the formulation of the scheme which will be capitalised by all eight countries so that the shareholders of this credit guarantee corporation will be the eight member states and the extent of their shares will be based on their contributions.
 “This bill emanates from an agreement which was signed by all Finance Ministers of the various member states within the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union on March 2nd 2017. What is required now is for the respective member states to pass the bill. When you would have had the subsequent ratification of the instruments of at least five states, then in effect we would have created a guarantee scheme within the OECS sub region.”
Financial Institutions, mainly commercial banks and credit unions, will apply to the corporation to become participatory members of the scheme. In turn such lenders will be bound by the terms of the credit guarantee programme.
“Antigua & Barbuda certainly wants to be on the forefront of putting together this important mechanism in order to make funding available to enterprises in the country,” he stated.
The passing of this agreement is in keeping with the government’s commitment to its Social Entrepreneurship Programme which is designed to empower young business entrepreneurs and to spread wealth among the citizens.
Antigua & Barbuda is the first OECS territory to enact the agreement.