ROSEAU, Dominica (CMC) — The Government of Dominica has announced that it has agreed to establish a US$5.5 million special loan facility to meet the needs of the manufacturing sector.

The announcement was made by Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit during the recent 2017/2018 Budget address.

In his presentation, Skerrit, who is also finance minister, noted that for many years, only one company dominated the sector and made an appeal for “other companies begin making a more substantial contribution to manufacturing”.

“To be eligible, the manufacturer should be engaged in manufacturing in Dominica and such eligibility will include new and existing manufacturers who are currently in active production. Start-ups will be channelled through the Invest Dominica Authority.”

The prime minister said he hopes that the measure will yield substantial benefits to the manufacturers and to the economy as a whole.

“The terms of the special loan facility are: an interest rate of three percent; maturity of five to twelve years and; a grace period of up to twelve months for investments and three months for loans contracted for working capital.”

Funds available via the special loan facility will be accessed via the island’s Agricultural Industrial and Development (AID) Bank for unlending for working capital, expansion and/or improvment of manufacturing plants; construction of facilities; purchase of equipment/machinery and; systems updates.