By L. K. Hewlett
St. Kitts Reporter
Chairman of the St. Christopher and Nevis Social Security Board, Halva Hendrickson has said that it is not a requirement for the Board to publicise its investment activities including the acquisition of property or business entities.
“Decisions regarding investments where property or companies are acquired are made by an investment committee which is set up by law. The 1977 law states that the investment committee is to determine the investment policy of the board.
By law, the chairman of the board is also the chairman of the committee and the other members would be one nominee from the ministry of finance; usually the financial secretary or the deputy financial secretary, one member from the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, one member form the Trades and Labour Union, and the financial controller of the Social Security Board.
“The Social Security Board runs the fund and therefore we are not required to make investment proposals or decisions public. We may choose to issue a public release on a matter. The board is a part of the society so if there is strong public objection to a proposal or acquisition then I suppose the Board will listen to what society is saying and will evaluate whether it is economically feasible or is just based on emotion. But of course, the final decision rests with the Board,” he said.
In 2006 the SSB backed out of a multimillion-dollar proposal to acquire the privately held S. L. Horsford and Company Limited after much public uproar against the investment proposal.
The Board purchased the Kawaja building in 2003, a property situated immediately in back of the Social Security’s Robert Llewelyn Bradshaw Building which houses the institutions offices. A ground-breaking ceremony was held in early March to mark the commencement of construction for the expansion of the RLB Building which will incorporate corporate rental space and underground parking. The purchase was challenged by the St. Christopher Heritage Society who expressed concern over losing a landmark building which was over 100 years old.
According to the SSB official, the building was not structurally sound as termites and weathering had severely weakened its walls and foundation. He said that exterminators had to be called in both before and after the two and a half day demolition to eradicate termite infestations in the old building.
Hendrickson said that the SSB was diversifying its investment portfolio and moving into other areas aside from the regular fixed deposits. He said that with a fixed deposit total of about half a billion dollars, the diversification project would enable the Board to earn greater returns on its money than the 6% interest paid by commercial banking institutions.
“We put a lot of money in the banks, in National Bank, Bank of Nevis, Scotia Bank, and credit unions here and in Nevis, to name a few. But the returns from the fixed deposits are small. We are now trying to up the rate of returns. We are thinking of getting into more investments where you can get more on your money. If you buy property, it can either be rented or you get returns from the increased appreciation value. Of course all of the money will not be put into property,” Hendrickson said.
In 1995, the institution’s tangible savings amounted to $240 million and have increased to $764 million.
