Bahamas
The Bahamas’ education system is to undergo a significant transformation through the USD43 million Bahamas Education Sector Transformation (BEST) project launched by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the Government of The Commonwealth of the Bahamas at the Grand Lucayan Resort Convention Centre in Grand Bahama on Monday, May 6, 2024.
Funding will go towards constructing a new state-of-the-art comprehensive school in East Grand Bahama and rehabilitating and retrofitting two primary schools damaged by Hurricane Dorian in 2019.
Since the hurricane, students in East Grand Bahama have faced commutes of up to 100 kilometres. The COVID-19 pandemic further disrupted the local education system, causing learning losses and exacerbating existing inequities in access to technology. The new and refurbished climate-resilient schools will be designed to improve student achievement, increase access and completion rates, and enhance community life.
The BEST project goes beyond building schools. The Ministry of Education will also benefit from enhanced data accessibility and information technology processes, and improved staff recruitment and development programmes.
CDB Acting Vice President, Operations, Mrs. Therese Turner-Jones, said the project will uplift the learning environment, improve teaching methods, and strengthen the education system’s governance.
“The CDB is proud of its partnership with The Bahamas. Education is key to making sure all Bahamians have a better than fighting chance of competing in the global labour market. No child, whether he or she is on Sweeting Cay, High Rock, West End, or Freeport should be deprived of learning. Education is the single most important investment a government can provide to its population. No one should be left behind. This means including special needs in the education strategy, making use of technology, and ensuring that teachers are equipped to do their jobs,” Mrs. Turner-Jones said.
“The Bahamas has special challenges in that the population is spread across many islands with small populations. This requires additional resources to cope with the needs of children in remote areas who are entitled to good education. We are here to help the Ministry of Education work through these problems and arrive at ways to resolve them in the interests of giving every child a chance,” Mrs Turner-Jones added.
Prime Minister of the Bahamas, Hon. Philip Davis, said the BEST project would help to make the Bahamian education system more inclusive, resilient and gender-responsive.
“By investing in infrastructure, curriculum development, teacher training and technological innovation, we will create an environment where every learner can thrive and reach their full potential. BEST is an investment in quality education for all learners,” Prime Minister Davis said.
The BEST project launch is among a series of activities being carried out by a CDB team currently on mission in the Bahamas. During the visit, the Bank representatives will also visit sites of ongoing interventions including the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI) Enhancement Project and the Bahamas Water Supply Improvement Project. Additionally, the CBD team will meet with officials to discuss future support for Skills Development and Technical and Vocational Education programmes to enhance employability and workforce readiness in The Bahamas.
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Guyana
The Public Procurement Commission (PPC) last December rejected a complaint by a bidder over the award of a project for the extension of the Fort Wellington Secondary School but the procuring entity, the Ministry of Local Government never provided any of the requested information for the investigation.
Bickram Motiram trading as Motiram Construction wrote a letter of complaint dated September 1, 2003 which was received by the PPC on September 6, 2003.
According to the PPC’s Summary of Findings dated December 29, 2023, Motiram alleged that at the tender opening, his bid was the lowest and that he had fulfilled all administrative requirements. He further submitted that he was “a well rounded and seasoned contractor with vast experience and resources which were all demonstrated and attached with [his] bid document.”
Motiram further acknowledged in the letter that he was cognizant that the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) does not always award the lowest bidder but expressed frustration that his bid was overlooked for a higher bid and requested the reasons for this.
The commission said it reviewed the tender proceedings to determine whether there was any irregularity in the award of the tender.
In accordance with Article 212DD of the constitution, the commission on September 13, 2023, requested that the NPTAB submit to the commission within five days –
i. a copy of the record of the tender proceedings, including the Evaluation Report;
ii. confirmation as to whether the tender was awarded and if so, the date of publication on NPTAB’s website in accordance with S. 11 of the Procure-ment Act. If awarded but not published, the reason for not so doing;
iii. whether a copy of the Evaluation Report had been sent to the procuring entity for compliance with S. 39(3) of the Procurement Act, Cap. 73:05.
The Ministry of Local Government & Regional Development was similarly asked to submit-
i. a copy of the tender proceedings and Evaluation Report. If not in the possession of the procuring entity, why not.
ii. whether the procuring entity complied with S. 39(3) of the Pro-curement Act, Cap. 73:05, and it not, why not;\
iii. confirmation as to whether the tender has been awarded;
iv. if the tender has been awarded, confirmation as to whether the contract had been entered into and if so, a copy thereof;
v. if the contract had been entered into, confirmation of whether the tender award decision was published on NPTAB’s website prior to entry into the contract;
vi. confirmation as to whether any work had commenced on the subject tender.
“The commission did not receive a response from the procuring entity whether within the requested timeline or at all”, the PPC said. In previous investigations, the PPC has complained about receiving incomplete information or receiving a response very late. In this case nothing came from the ministry
On or about November 10, 2023, almost two months after the commission’s request, the PPC said that it received a copy of the tender proceedings including the Evaluation Report from NPTAB. The commission did not receive a response from NPTAB to the other requests.
In its examination, the PPC said that the bids for the tender were opened at the office of the NPTAB on June 27, 2023. Twentythree bids were received of which five were deemed responsive. The Engineer’s Estimate was given as $23,209,723 and the contract was awarded to Safraz Construction & Supplies which was deemed the lowest evaluated tenderer at $20,416,000.
While Motiram’s bid was the lowest submitted at $19,386,930, the PPC said that the Report of the Evaluation Committee disclosed that the bid was deemed non-responsive for not being compliant with two of the seventeen evaluation criteria:
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Belize
During Friday’s protest in front of the Prime Minister’s Office in Belmopan, the President of the Public Service Union, Dean Flowers called for the removal of the auditor general. He contends that an audit of the Department of Lands and the procurement process within the Ministry of Health and Wellness are long overdue.
Dean Flowers, President, P.S.U.
“I have said to this nation, the Auditor General Ms. Dorothy Bradley must go. We have been asking since 2010 for an audit of the lands department. We can’t get that audit which was done by officers in the audit department. We would have been able to uncover by successive governments the corruption that has been occurring in the lands department from king hatchet was a hammer. Yet this administration refuse to commission and audit of the lands department and Dorothy Bradley refuse to do it. And I am saying to all our partners, the U.S. Embassy, the British, all of them I understand supported her reinstallation. She needs to go. She is doing the people of Belize a disservice and I am calling on the prime minister if unu serious, commission and audit of the lands department. Commission an audit of procurement in the ministry of health. We need an audit of procurement in the ministry of health. We need an audit to understand how the money the spend in health. These are the ministries with the biggest budgets.”
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Belize
In January, we heard the Chief Engineer Evondale Moody describe how much infrastructural work the court building that once housed the Treasury Department underwent. Moody also spoke of the level of intervention that the other court building that faces the Battlefield Park also needs to undergo. Well, the construction of a brand new court complex will get underway next to the Eleanor Hall Finance Building on Chetumal Street, as soon as the procurement of funds and the design of the building are done.
Chris Coye, Minister of State, Finance
“I think that’s in its final stages with the Social Security Board. So far as I understand, the transaction documents as it relates to the equity subscription by Social Security. Those have been approved by the board and so the next, I believe the next step is towards concluding those. I believe if I recall correctly was around $50 million. It was contemplated [that] two additional structures similar to the existing one – the existing finance building – so it would be about a hundred thousand square feet additional space that would then consolidate, the government offices. One building would be used for the judiciary, so the judiciary will have a new home that includes the different levels of the judiciary. So that would have to be more customized. And then the second building would be for other government facilities.”
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Guyana
In the wake of Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha’s July meeting with the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA), Chairman Lionel Wordsworth has yet to provide a promised update on the status of documentation required by the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) on the Belle Vue Pump Station project.
Wordsworth, who spoke with Stabroek News (SN) yesterday, said that he first needs to “update” himself before he can offer any new information on the matter. The last communication from Wordsworth had assured an update by August 26, 2024, but no new details have been forthcoming.
The PPC has confirmed to SN that the NDIA has still not submitted the necessary documentation. This issue stems from a controversial contract awarded to Tepui Inc. for the Belle Vue pump station, which has faced scrutiny over the violations of procurement guidelines. Mustapha had previously promised to address the situation and ensure the NDIA’s compliance with documentation requirements.
On July 17th, Wordsworth had informed SN that the NDIA was in the process of reviewing its response to the PPC’s inquiries. However, despite the PPC’s April 16, 2024 Summary of Findings highlighting deficiencies in the bid evaluation process and recommending close monitoring—and potential termination—of Tepui’s contract, the NDIA has yet to act on these recommendations.
The PPC said “…on the entry into a contract, privity of contract issues arise. There is nothing within the statutory framework which permits the commission to revoke, rescind, recall and or in any way alter, suspend or stop the contract once entered”.
The award of the $865m Belle Vue Pump Station to Tepui Inc had raised questions from the outset as its key principal, Mikhail Rodrigues was not involved in construction.
In its 35-page summary of April 16, 2024, the PPC elicited answers from the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) – whose evaluation committee made the choice of Tepui – and the procuring agency, the NDIA. Not only were both tardy in answering the PPC, they only provided some of the documents requested.
Tepui was required to have had the experience of having completed one project of a similar nature within the past five years. Similar projects “shall include pump stations, sluices and drainage structures”. Having been incorporated less than a year before, Tepui did not have these qualifications, yet the evaluation committee of the NPTAB found its bid to be responsive.
When the PPC asked the NPTAB and the NDIA to justify their decision, they cited what they described as similar-type of works which Tepui had done for other clients. They also admitted that two other tenderers for pump stations were similarly not qualified but that “lenience” was showed.
The summary of findings said that Tepui itself submitted as part of its tender, a letter addressed to the NDIA and dated June 13th, 2023, under the hand of “Winston Martindale, Director” captioned “Record of Past Work Experience” in which it is stated – “Our company was registered in August 2022 and has now commenced the process of bidding for projects, hence we do not have any past work experience but our team of personnel have years of experience under upgrading and rehabilitation of roads as indicated on their respective resumes.”
Tepui also did not provide a bank line of credit. It provided a line of credit issued by Puran Bros. Later, a letter of credit issued by Caricom General Insurance Company also appeared but this also was ineligible.
Tepui did not submit – as required – an audited financial statement as it was not in existence for a year.
In terms of equipment requirements, Tepui, the summary of findings said, did not show evidence of three pieces of equipment.
It also fell short of its bid security requirement.
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