| New CFO named; DFID negotiating loan to boost economy | | Print | |
| Thursday, 23 September 2010 12:13 | |||
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Government finances continue to be a weakness for the interim government, but new U.K. Foreign Minister Henry Bellingham says help is on the way. A new chief financial officer (CFO) has been appointed to the Turks and Caicos Islands government and will be responsible for shaping up the finances of the country. Caroline Gardner took up the newly created post Sept. 20, just three days after the position was announced. The post was created as part of a requirement by the U.K. Department for International Development (DFID) for the emergency loans being provided to the TCI. Gardner was selected by DFID and will report back to them regularly on her progress. According to a statement by the government, the CFO will take responsibility for all financial decisions of the TCI government under the authority of the governor. “The chief financial officer will work to strengthen the government’s capacity and systems to manage its public finances and balance its budget within the next three years,” government CEO Mark Capes said in a press statement. “Her appointment follows the announcement earlier this year about the temporary package of financial support from the U.K. government.” Gardner, currently Deputy Auditor General and Controller of Audit for Audit Scotland, brings significant financial expertise to the role. She has extensive experience of overseeing the turnaround of public bodies facing serious financial and governance problems, and has a strong track record of working with stakeholders to identify and implement sustainable strategies for the future. Delton Jones, who will continue in his role as Permanent Secretary Finance, and the rest of the financial team in the ministry, will work together with Gardner to shape up the governments finances with some much needed help from the U.K. A second emergency loan is about to be approved by DFID to cover shortfalls in the finances for the coming months. Negotiations are also underway in the U.K. for a bigger loan that will take the TCI into the next three years, when a balanced budget is expected to be reached, according to Bellingham. He said the loan is “absolutely vital in getting the country’s finances on track.” Comprehensive details about the loan are expected to be released sometime soon, he said, but future government spending on projects will be targeted at creating jobs and saving money in the future. In addition to the financial underwriting of support from the U.K. government, Bellingham said he will continue to put pressure on other organizations such as the U.K. Lottery — which currently is not permitted to invest money in the overseas territories — to find ways of putting money into the TCI. To date the U.K. Lottery has generated more than $37 billion for the “good causes” across that country. According to the organization, more than 330,000 grants have been given out across the arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment at an average of $37 million per week. Bellingham says he wants to help the TCI reach financial freedom. “I want TCI to stand on its own two feet and be sustainable,” he said. “I am personally very confident about the future. This is a remarkable country. It’s got phenomenal potential. The tourism industry is first class.” “Global economy will soon start picking up, and if we get the right governments in place, and then in due course restore elected government to the TCI, then I think that signal it will send will be a really positive one and the country can move forward and have an extremely bright future.”
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