and others at the MOU signing ceremony
The signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Tuesday, October 23, 2018, between Anguilla’s Chief Minister, Mr. Victor Banks, and Mr. Luc Allary, of the Canadian Commercial Corporation
(CCC), has moved the expansion of the Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport closer to reality.
Speaking at the event, Mr. Banks told media representatives: “We are here at a signing ceremony with the Canadian Commercial Corporation which is an agency of the Canadian Government involved in development support for territories, like ourselves, around the world. Mr. Luc Allary, who is the Principal involved in this exercise, is here to do the signing on behalf of the Canadian Commercial Corporation. He will be witnessed by Mr. Rupert Jones who is no stranger to many of us because he worked on the last airport as the Project Manager. He now works for a company called JV Driver. I will be signing on behalf of the Government of Anguilla, and my signature will be witnessed by none other than Mr. Curtis (Love) Richardson who is the Minister of Infrastructure and is very much involved – and has a passion for this project and its development.”
Chief Minister Banks continued: “The delivery of the airport requires that we get a number of entrustments and approvals from the UK Government to make sure that we meet their requirements in terms of contingent liability for large projects like this; and that they are confident and feel secure in what we are agreeing to. The process will involve a number of Letters of Entrustment – and as you know we had one before. This one now is because we have changed course just a little bit, and we have got to recognize the fact that this agreement is with the Canadian Commercial Corporation which is an agency of the Government of Canada. Therefore, it is a government to government agreement that requires our input at this level. The Canadian Commercial Corporation is a company which guarantees the delivery of projects and provides an opportunity to ensure that they meet certain standards; that they are delivered on time; and that the method in which the development, design, and all those issues are taken into account in the process.”
Mr. Allary, the Principal of the Canadian Commercial Corporation, described the Memorandum of Understanding as a very important step forward. “We have been collaborating for some time now with the authorities here, and we are very glad to be involved – and in support of this very important critical project for Anguilla. CCC is a wholly-owned Government of Canada agency. We have been around for over seventy years. We have done projects all around the world; we have a lot of experience in this kind of project as well; and we are very glad to be working with a Canadian company that we have a lot of experience and knowledge with in this particular project. I think this is for us something that we will be very supportive of ,and we understand the process that the Government here has to go through…, and we hopefully will get there as soon as we can – in the most cost-efficient way for everybody – so that all of us can benefit from this particular new infrastructure that will serve the development of the country for some time to come.”
Mr. Allary added: “Our High Commissioner was here a couple of months ago. She noted the collaboration between Anguilla and the Government of Canada. I think this is another further example of how the Canadian Government can assist Anguilla with its development efforts. This is another step forward in this collaboration we have started. It is a small step, but a giant step for us to go forward, making sure that we deliver on this project.”
Anguilla’s Minister of Infrastructure, Mr. Curtis Richardson, was very happy that there was another milestone in the advancement of the airport project, and thanked a number of persons for their assistance. “My real joy will be to see when we are airborne, and I look forward to the day when we can have the groundbreaking ceremony. I have every confidence that we are making the right strides to get something that the people of Anguilla have desired for the last fifty years, but I feel good about where we are.”
Mr. Richard Jones of JV Driver said his company was a privately-owned construction group, in Western Canada, involved in infrastructure projects in Canada, North America and the Caribbean and elsewhere. “We like working with the Canadian Government, and other friendly Governments, with a priority of projects and the right vision – and are able to work in a team framework that we like working with,” he stated. “We are very pleased to be working with the Ministries of the Governments of Anguilla and Canada on delivering this priority project. I have worked here before and I am delighted to come back to deliver this phase of the new airport development. Our intention is to move quickly, working with your other partners, such as CFAS, and your other colleagues – and deliver this project in the most timely fashion, meeting all the criteria that are required by your Government, your colleagues and also the Canadian Government.”
Mr. Marcel Fahie, Chairman of the Anguilla Air and Sea Ports Authority drew a contrast stating that on August 21, 2016, the Certificate of the Clayton Lloyd International Airport was downgraded by its regulators, Air Services Support International (SSI). Now, on October 23, 2018, was the signing of a MOU for the expansion of the airport. “I think we have come 180 degrees as far as the Anguilla Air and Sea Ports Authority is concerned,” he said. “I think, having achieved that, I have every confidence that we will see the full realization of this project.”
Mr. Nick Vanden Brul, Senior Adviser with CFAS, a UK-based company, said his organization had a lot of airport experience including the very successful development of the Donald Sangster Airport in Montego Bay, Jamaica, and was also involved in other major airport expansions. “I personally have been involved in financing the expansion of Vienna and Paris Airports, so we have a very big background of the financial aspects – and the preparation of the work necessary to set up the financing and therefore the development of airport projects,” he stated. “We think that this is finally a very good start. We are very confident that this project will happen. We are working very hard. We have a very tight timetable to get the work done before the end of the year for the Letter of Entrustment, and hopefully finalize the project with the necessary studies in the course of 2019. There is a huge amount of work but it is a very excellent start today.”
Anguilla’s Director of Social Security, Mr. Timothy Hodge, commented that the signing of the MOU was “truly a great and momentous day for the airport. It was also a personal dream and the dream of every forward-thinking Anguillian that we will have an airport that gives us access,” he observed. “The expansion of the airport is the most important thing that we need in our development to really catapult our island forward. I am really pleased and I look forward to this becoming a reality and for the Social Security Board to play whatever role it can in that.”
In rounding off the signing ceremony, Chief Minister Banks noted: “As I said before, this is a step in the process going forward. But we could not have been here were it not been for at least two other groups – the landowners, part of the estate owned by the Conch Bay Development as well as ICA, a company also involved in the development. We have had various discussions in the very early phases as to how we can accommodate that development as well as the expansion of the airport. There are a lot of issues to be resolved but there is a lot of goodwill and we are confident that that aspect of it will be dealt with in a way that is acceptable to all concerned.
The Chief Minister added: “It is critical that we have this project; it is critical that we have the entire Anguillian community, including the stakeholders in the tourism industry, as well as Anguillians on a whole, as part of understanding the critical importance of the project and supporting us in whatever way they can.”
