~ Non-Antilleans must apply for a business license when registering a sole-proprietorship in St. Maarten ~ PHILIPSBURG — Ministers and parliamentarians swear allegiance to the Kingdom Charter and the Constitution of St. Maarten when they take office. However, history shows that when it comes to making rules and regulations, politicians have a tendency to forget this and basically do whatever they like. A case in point is the violation of article 16 of the Constitution. This article states: “Everyone who is in St. Maarten will be treated equally in equal circumstances. Discrimination based on religion, political affiliation, race, skin color,…
Author: The Publisher
PHILIPSBURG — The Ministry of Public Housing, Urban Planning, Environment and infrastructure (VROMI) gets a very bad report card in the 2021 annual report of the Ombudsman. “The Ombudsman continues to be extremely concerned about the functioning of the ministry of VROMI,” the report states. “The growing inability to address inquiries, applications and concerns is alarming.” In a letter of concern, addressed to the minister of VROMI, the Ombudsman states that “the ability for the ministry to respond to letters, applications and concerns has come to a virtual halt.” Furthermore, the annual report notes that investigations and reports by the…
2. Getting credit PHILIPSBURG — Establishing a business in St. Maarten is an at times an expensive road littered with stumbling blocks. The Ministry of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations and the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Tourism, Transport and Telecommunication commissioned a report to assess the local business climate, identify bottlenecks and recommend solutions. The report is produced by the Foundation Economic Research (SEO), the Economic Bureau Amsterdam (EBA) and Tackling Law. Read Part 1. The Licensing System online here>>> In this second episode in a series of articles based on the report we take a look at the troubles…
PHILIPSBURG — Acting Minister of Tourism and Economy Omar Ottley signed a service level agreement with A&A Accounting for a training program that aims to help 25 aspiring and existing entrepreneurs to bring their business skills to the next level. A & A Accounting, was founded in 2011 by financial analyst and small business coach and instructor Ann Marlin-Evans, who will lead the training program. The objective is to teach entrepreneurs how to start a business or how to sustain an existing enterprise through structural training. Participants will develop entrepreneurial abilities and skills. Paricipants will also be able to apply…
POND ISLAND — The Ministry of Finance is launching a pilot program for corporate governance and supervisory board member traineeship. The Ministry of Finance hopes to attract young professionals interested in learning about good corporate governance, becoming a member of a Supervisory Board or Managing Board and we have developed a tailor-made program by Themis Institute for Governance & Leadership. This pilot program is the first of its kind within the Dutch Caribbean Countries. It entails developing theoretical knowledge of corporate governance and on-site learning experiences of the functioning of board practices by attending a supervisory board meeting(s). The Government…
By Hilbert Haar Maybe it is just me but I was severely scratching my head when I read the questions in the survey launched by Prime Minister Jacobs as part of her electoral reform campaign. I mean, if you intend to gather information from the public about the topic, why ask them stuff like: do you know what electoral reform is? Or: would you like to know more about electoral reform? How are answers to such questions going to be helpful? Related article: PM Jacobs launches electoral reform campaign I lost it already when I read question number four: Does…
PHILIPSBURG — More than half of the respondents in a Central Bank-survey into the effect of red tape on business performance and economic development said that the costs of regulatory compliance have increased between 2015 and 2019. Businesses spend on average more than 2.5 hours per week on it. The top-5 most costly administrative procedures are resolving insolvency, establishing permits, contracting with government, dealing with construction permits and obtaining credit. The survey was conducted by Reggie Martes, an economic and research specialist at the Central Bank. The in-depth analysis of his findings will be published in the fourth quarter of…
PHILIPSBURG — Making St. Maarten less dependent on tourism? But how? That is the headline above an article published on the website of the Dutch newspaper NRC. The author, Denise Retera, poses the question but does not come up with a useful answer. Retera spoke with two employees of Say Yes Jewelers on Front Street, Coconut man Omar McGregor, port-director Alexander Gumbs, former Minister of Tourism and current Member of Parliament for the United People’s party Ludmilla de Weever and (via telephone) with acting Tourism Minister Omar Ottley. While the article does not come to a definite conclusion, it does…
PHILIPSBURG — The Princess Juliana International Airport Exploitation Company (PJIAE) installed three new members to its supervisory board this week: Marion Kan, Justin Woods and Anisa Dijkhoffz. This was confirmed by Minister of Finance, Ardwell Irion, in an invited comment. Dijkhoffz is a project manager at the St. Maarten National Recovery Program bureau. Woods is the managing director and chief financial officer at Nagico Insurances and Kan is an investment manager at the Caribbean Mercantile Bank with a career that spans more than thirty years. Kamla Besancon, Clarence Derby and Alain Maca stepped down as members of this supervisory board.…
PHILIPSBURG — The boys and girls at Teen Times are having a lot of fun with their annual evaluation of local politicians. They do their homework on this topic, and they don’t mince their words either. For the electorate, their findings come across as a breath of fresh air. Click here to review their 2022 grading of MPs and Ministers>>> Evaluating politicians is tricky business, as we learned from several position papers posted on the website of Lawrence Talks! This is an interdisciplinary media platform for the community of the town of Lawrence in the state of Kansas. Why is…
