Constitution Of

Barbados Apiculture Association

 

ARTICLE I

NAME

This Organization shall be known as and hereinafter referred to as the Barbados Apiculture Association

ARTICLE II

OBJECTS

  1. To promote and develop the apicultural INDUSTRY as a viable commercial industry to the economic benefit of its members.
  2. To encourage its members in the highest levels of production and to set standards where necessary to enhance the reliability of the product or products on the local or export market
  3. To work towards a planned production, costing and marketing with any Government agency or other corporate body wherever possible.
  4. To be an active member of the Barbados Agricultural Society along with other agricultural producer groups who believe in united action in establishing policy decisions and in speaking to Government.
  5. To seek cooperation from and offer advice to the Ministry of Agriculture and other institutions on matters pertaining to the development of the Association and the industry.
  6. To participate in and assist with the organisation of agricultural shows, exhibitions and demonstrations in association with other producer groups.
  7. To maintain records of actual and planned production so as to assist members in the overall development of their farm enterprises.
  8. Generally to perform whatever functions that are necessary for the economic good and satisfaction of  the industry.

ARTICLE III

NON-POLITICAL STATUS

The Association shall not be or become a political organisation nor shall the Association or any part thereof deal with any matter from a partisan viewpoint. It shall be the duty of the Committee of Management to preserve the non-partisan status at all times and to give’ immediate attention to, deal with as they see fit, any action by any officer or member of the Committee of Management which in their opinion acts in any manner which is prejudicial to that purpose.

ARTICLE IV

OFFICE

The Office of the Association shall be situated at the Headquarters of the BAS or such other place as the Committee of Management of the Association may from time to time decide.

ARTICLE V

MEMBERSHIP

Membership of the Association shall be open to any person actively engaged in the apicultural industry.

  1. Application for Membership
    • i. Application for Membership shall be made to the Office of the Association at the BAS on the Form prescribed by the Association. All applications must be approved by the Committee of Management before the applicant may be admitted to membership.
    • ii. The Committee has the full authority to refuse membership to any applicant whose membership in their opinion/discretion, they deem would not be in the best interest of the Association.
  2. Membership Fee
    • i. There shall be an annual membership fee which shall be specified from time to time by the Committee of Management and confirmed at the Annual General Meeting. The first payment shall be due within one month of the official acceptance of the application for membership. Renewal of annual membership fees shall become due not less than three (3) months after the beginning of a new financial year.
    • ii. Members who fail to pay their dues shall be liable to forfeiture of their rights as members until such fees and arrears have been paid.
  3. Cess
    • Members may be required to pay a cess based on production, or sales or any other system as may be prescribed by the Committee of Management from time to time. The level of such cess shall be ratified at a special General Meeting of the Association.
  4. Cessation of Membership
    • Any member may withdraw from membership by written notice to the Office of the Association at the Barbados Agricultural Society (BAS), but any member so doing shall be liable for the current year’s membership fees. On receipt of such notice the individual forfeits all rights of membership in the Association.
  5. Expulsion
    • i. A member may be suspended or expelled from the Association by the Committee of Management for conduct which, in the opinion of the Committee of Management, is or has been detrimental to the welfare of the Association. Provided that verbal and written notice of such proposed action and of the time and place of meeting of the Committee of Management to consider his conduct shall have been mailed by ordinary post to such member at least fourteen days prior to such meeting, and provided further that the said member be given an opportunity to appear at such meeting.

      At such meeting the quorum shall be four members and a member may be suspended or expelled or action thereof be postponed, by a two-thirds majority vote of those present at the meeting. If the above quorum is not present, final action shall be postponed. The notice required, by this section shall be sent to the Office of the Association at the BAS.

    • ii. Any member of the Association who has been expelled or whose name has been removed from the Register of Members in accordance with section 8 or who has withdrawn in accordance with section 7 may be re-elected as a member on such terms as may be determined by the Committee of Management.

ARTICLE VI

MEETINGS

  1. The Annual General Meeting of the Association shall be a meeting of all members in good financial standing at the date of that meeting.
  2. The Annual General Meeting shall be held at such time and place as the Committee of Management shall determine but such meetings shall be held within four (4) months of the end of the financial year of the Association and not later than the 31st of October in any one year.
  3. The Annual General Meeting of the Association shall have the authority to receive the annual statement of accounts and to elect the members of the Committee of Management for the ensuring year.
  4. The Office of the Association at the BAS shall give not less than ten days’ notice in writing to each member of the time, date and place of the Annual General Meeting and of Special General Meetings. Such notice shall be deemed to have been given if it is posted to the address as recorded in the membership register.
  5. Special General Meetings of the members of the Association may be held upon the call of the President, the Executive Committee or upon the written requisition of not less than ten members stating the reasons for the necessity to call such a meeting. The agenda of a Special General Meeting shall state the matters to be discussed and only those matters may be discussed at such meeting.

ARTICLE VII

COMMITTEE OF MANAGEMENT

The affairs of the Association shall be managed by a Committee of Management comprised of a President, one Vice-President, Secretary and four members who shall be elected from among the membership and shall be elected annually.

Any member who has a conflict of interest shall not allow his/her name to stand for membership of the Committee. Should any member succeed to the Committee and subsequently be found to have conflicting interests, such persons shall be immediately disqualified. In the event of a disqualification the Committee may appoint a replacement whose term shall expire at the Annual General Meeting. The person who acted as a replacement, if otherwise qualified, shall be eligible for nomination.

ARTICLE VIII

POWERS OF THE COMMITTEE

THE COMMITTEE OF MANAGEMENT

  1. May appoint sub-committees for any purpose that they shall deem necessary. The President of the Association and the General Manager of BAS or their nominees shall be ex-officio members of all sub-committees.
  2. The Committee of management shall be empowered to fill the vacancy created by any of its members who fail to attend three consecutive meetings unless such member has failed to attend through illness or absence from the island. No member of the Committee shall be eligible for re-election who has not attended two thirds of the meetings of the previous year except absence through illness or being out of the island. In the event of the absence of the President and the Vice President the Committee shall elect a Chairman from among the members present for that meeting.
  3. The formula for voting at all meetings shall be one member, one vote except that the President or Vice President may exercise a casting vote in the case of a tie. There will be no proxy voting. A simple majority of those present and voting shall be sufficient to carry a motion except in the case of the expulsion of a member as per article 5 section 8 in which case a two thirds majority is required to carry the motion.
  4. The Committee of Management must outline the policies and guidelines under which they expect the Association to operate on their behalf and such decision must be in the form of a motion or motions proposed, seconded and recorded in the minutes of the Association.
  5. The Committee of Management has the power to purchase assets, borrow money and enter into agreement on behalf of the Association in consultation with the Executive Committee of the BAS. However, in matters/questions of policy the Committee of Management shall be required to call a Special General Meeting of the members of the Association to approve the proposed change.
  6. The President and Vice President, or any other Board members, shall be the representatives of the Association who shall sit on the Board of Directors of the BAS.
  7. The term of office of all individual Committee members should be two years or until recalled by a resolution of the committee of management. The power of recall should be granted to the consideration of any member who is nominated by the committee and put forward as a Director of the BAS.
  8. Meetings of the Committee of Management shall be held AT LEAST every two months. There shall be a minimum of 6 (six) meetings in a given calendar year.

ARTICLE IX

  1. The Executive Committee shall include the President, the Vice President and the secretary of the BAS. The General Manager shall not have a vote in the affairs of the Association.
  2. In the event of a vacancy occurring in either the post of President or the Vice President during the year the office shall be assumed by the person elected from the Committee of Management.
  3. The Executive shall perform the duties designated to them by the Committee of Management.
  4. Meetings of the Executive may be held at any time the President deems it advisable as long as three days’ notice is given or if called on shorter notice provided that all members agree.

ARTICLE X

DUTIES OF OFFICERS

  1. President
    • The President shall exercise all the duties usually pertaining to such office. He shall preside at all meetings of the Association. In the absence of the President the duties shall be assumed by the Vice President or by such person the meeting concerned may elect.
  2. The Secretariat
    1. The Office of the BAS shall become the Secretariat for the Association. The General Manager or his appointee shall attend all meetings of the Association and of the Committee of Management and record the proceedings of the BAA meetings and conduct all correspondence and issue all press releases and reports as directed by the Executive.
    2. The Office of the BAS shall also keep a register wherein a list of all members, their addresses and their subscriptions are recorded. The Office of the BAS shall also give notice in writing to anyone accepted for membership, informing them of their acceptance, along with a request for
      the payment of their fees.
    3. The Office of the BAS shall summon all General Meetings of the Association.
    4. The Office of the BAS shall summon all meetings of the Committee of Management giving written notice by circular to each member of the Committee.
    5. The Office of the BAS shall receive and account for all monies belonging to the Association, pay all bills and accounts that have been approved by the Committee of Management and furnish monthly statements in detail for such receipts and expenditure or wherever required by the Committee of Management.
    6. The Office of the BAS shall present a monthly financial statement to the Committee of Management of the Association.

ARTICLE XI

AMENDMENTS TO CONSTITUTION

Amendments to this Constitution shall only be made on a motion at a Special General Meeting of the Association called for that purpose. Notice of the motion must be in the Office of the BAS at least thirty days prior to the date of the Special General Meeting of the Association at which such amendment is to be considered, and must be forwarded by the Office of the BAS to all members at least fourteen (14) days prior to that special general meeting. Any amendments shall only become effective by a two thirds majority vote of the members present and voting at that Special General Meeting. Such changes must be sent to the BAS’s Board of Directors.

ARTICLE XII

WINDING UP

The Affairs of the Association may be wound up at a Special General Meeting of the Association called for that purpose and the proposal must be carried by a two-thirds majority. The Assets of the Association shall revert to the BAS or any other similar Association.

ARTICLE XIII

INTERPRETATION OF THE ARTICLES OF THE CONSTITUTION

The Committee of Management shall be the sole Authority on the interpretation of the Constitution and their decision on any points of the Constitution shall be binding on the members subject to the approval of the Annual General Meeting.

CONFIDENTIALITY OF PROCEEDINGS OF MEETINGS

  1. No member or officer shall disclose motions, rulings, names of proposers, seconders etc. unless that such meeting rule that such data may be made public nor publish newspaper reports at variance with official reports.
  2. If any member or officer of the Association contravenes any of the Articles of the Constitution, the Committee of Management may, if deemed advisable, suspend such member or Officer pending the decision taken at a special general meeting called for that purpose and arrived at by at least two-thirds of the members at that meeting.
  3. The Association may exercise in conjunction with any other commodity group or association any of its powers or functions through a common officer or officers to be appointed by such association, such officers being employees of the BAS.
  4. The Association may affiliate with any Regional or International Association or Club with such similar objectives or aims.