advantage of economic opportunities offered at the Bases.

"You can lead a horse to the trough, but you can't make him drink,'' said Community Affairs Minister the Hon. Wayne Furbert, who is responsible for the Small Business Development Corporation.

With the US Navy pulling out of St. David's by September 1, the Bermuda Government is hiring foreign and local firms to do the Navy's work.

Mr. Furbert was upset that only 45 representatives of small companies interested in Base infrastructure work signed up for a bus tour of the US Naval Air Station held on Tuesday. A second bus tour planned for Wednesday was cancelled due to lack of interest.

The Minister described the turn-out as "a slap in the face''.

"There are hundreds of small businesses out there that should have taken this opportunity,'' he said.

The tour for sub-contractors interested in air conditioning, mechanical, pest control, custodial, painting, and building maintenance work had been heavily advertised in The Royal Gazette .

Of those businesses that did attend, only ten were small black firms, Mr.

Furbert said. "I was very disappointed. Small black business didn't come forward.

"Here we have a new frontier that is opening up where small businesses could get a slice of the pie, and they don't want to take advantage of it,'' he said. "There's only so much you can do.

"At the end of the day, I don't want people to come crying to me. The only people who should be crying are those who have been down there and didn't get the contract. We're doing our best to open up the system.'' Nine overseas companies have been invited to bid on a huge three-year contract to handle the Base infrastructure -- from water and sewage service to runway lighting. The deadline for tenders is January 16, with the winning contractor to be named in mid-February.

Local companies interested in working as sub-contractors have been encouraged to contact the foreign firms invited to bid on the main contract. The SBDC has offered to help contractors with their inquiries and presentations.

If more interest is expressed, "it's possible'' another Base tour will be organised, Mr. Furbert said.