Bahamas News
North Eleuthera International Airport to get $55 million upgrade
By LINDSAY THOMPSON
Bahamas Information Services
NORTH ELEUTHERA, The Bahamas –– The country’s third busiest airport is set to get an economic boost through a multi-million-dollar upgrade to its facilities.
(Prime Minister addressing)
On Monday, September 9, 2024 scores of excited residents witnessed the formalization of a $55 million Loan Agreement between the Government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and Saudi Fund for Development.
The Signing Ceremony took place just beyond the runway of the North Eleuthera International Airport, which is set for massive expansion and upgrade to adequately service the outlying districts of Harbour Island and Spanish Wells, as well as a growing private jet air traffic schedule.
Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis led a delegation of high-ranking government officials including Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation the Hon. Chester Cooper; Senator the Hon. Michael Halkitis, Minister of Economic Affairs; the Hon. Clay Sweeting, Minister of Works and Family Island Affairs; Dr. Kenneth Romer, Deputy Director General of Tourism and Acting Director of Aviation; and Paul Bevans, chairman, Airport Authority.
Also present was His Excellency Mr. Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, Chief Executive Officer, Saudi Fund for Development, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and his delegation.
(Residents & Officials)
“Today marks an important chapter for this island, and it is a privilege to witness Eleuthera’s tremendous progress firsthand,” said Prime Minister Davis.
Eleuthera, historically known as the ‘Land of Freedom,’ is rich in heritage and tradition, and acknowledged by the government as one of the fastest-growing economies in the country.
“You’ve seen the changes all around — new businesses, thriving tourism, and a brighter future on the horizon. But what truly matters isn’t just the numbers we celebrate, it’s the people. It’s the hardworking families who have called Eleuthera home for generations and the younger ones who now see even greater possibilities for their future,” said the prime minister.
He observed that the steady rise in air arrivals and international interest isn’t just about visitors coming to enjoy the beauty of Eleuthera; but all that the people, economy, culture, and environment have to offer.
(Signing Ceremony)
“This partnership with the Saudi Fund for Development marks a turning point for Eleuthera and its people. For years, there has been talk about upgrading the North Eleuthera International Airport, but today we are moving from talk to action. This $55 million investment is about unlocking Eleuthera’s potential and ensuring that its people can fully benefit from the island’s rapid growth.” He said.
Deputy Prime Minister Cooper also thanked the Saudi Fund for Development for being a dedicated partner in The Bahamas’ journey toward infrastructural and economic development, and said its continued support is deeply appreciated.
“The commitment you have demonstrated toward our development goals as laid out in our Blueprint for Change has been impactful and we know that this partnership will blossom in the many years to come,” he said.
The loan comes at “favourable terms” including a low interest rate of 2.5 percent, and twenty-five (25) years to repay with the first installment due in five years.
(Handshake)
In March of 2023, the Davis Administration embarked on the Family Islands Airport Renaissance Project. This far-reaching programme is part of the broader vision outlined in the Government’s Blueprint for Change, which places a strong emphasis on the importance of investing in the Family Islands.
The Family Islands Airport Renaissance Project aims to transform not just the North Eleuthera International Airport, but 14 airports across the archipelago, marking the largest and most comprehensive development effort in the history of Bahamian aviation.
“We committed to engage Public Private Partnerships to finance, build and manage key airport infrastructure. This loan signifies the benefits and progress of international partnerships in this regard,” Deputy Prime Minister Cooper said.
He noted that the North Eleuthera International Airport serves as the gateway to the island and is a major driver of tourism and commerce.
As of June 2024, there was a 32 percent increase in foreign air arrivals to Eleuthera compared to the same period in 2019, and a 2 percent increase over record-setting 2023 figures.
(Minister Clay Sweeting)
“The existing infrastructure at North Eleuthera is no longer sufficient to accommodate the rising number of passengers and aircraft. The adding of the trailer facility for departures provided some much-needed temporary relief,” he said.
The planned upgrades to North Eleuthera Airport will encompass a complete overhaul of the terminal facilities, as well as airside improvements that include the revamp of the runway, and an expanded apron space. On completion, it will be capable of accommodating 400 passengers in the departure lounge, plus significant retail opportunities.
These upgrades will ensure that the airport is capable of handling larger aircraft, accommodating more passengers and offering a level of service that meets international standards as mandated by International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The project will also incorporate sustainable and resilient solutions, designed to withstand storm surges and hurricane winds of up to Category 5.
His Excellency Mr. Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, also spoke of the significant milestone reached with the signing of the agreement. He deemed it a “new chapter” in relations between both countries and underscored the shared commitment in advancing aviation in the country.
The partnership between The Bahamas and the Saudi Fund has already proven successful in the past. In July 2023, the $10million facility for the Tourism Development Corporation’s incubation centers in Nassau, Grand Bahama and Exuma was implemented. And in June 2024 another loan agreement was entered into on favorable terms for the construction of the Exuma International Airport.
(BIS Photos/Kemuel Stubbs)
PHOTO CAPTION
(Signing Ceremony)
On Monday, September 9, 2024 scores of excited residents witnessed the formalization of a $55 million Loan Agreement between the Government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and Saudi Fund for Development at the North Eleuthera International Airport. Pictured seated L-R: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation the Hon. Chester Cooper; Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis; His Excellency Mr. Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, Chief Executive Officer, Saudi Fund for Development; and Paul Bevans, Chairman, Airport Authority. Standing L-R: the Hon. Clay Sweeting, Minister of Works and Family Island Affairs; Dr. Kenneth Romer, Deputy Director General of Tourism and Acting Director of Aviation; Senator the Hon. Michael Halkitis, Minister of Economic Affairs; and Sylvanus Petty, Member of Parliament for North Eleuthera.
(Handshake)
A $55 million Loan Agreement between the Government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and Saudi Fund for Development was signed at North Eleuthera International Airport on Monday, September 9, 2024. Pictured L-R: the Hon. Clay Sweeting, Minister of Works and Family Island Affairs; Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation the Hon. Chester Cooper; Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis; His Excellency Mr. Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, Chief Executive Officer, Saudi Fund for Development; and Paul Bevans, Chairman, Airport Authority. Second row L-R: Dr. Kenneth Romer, Deputy Director General of Tourism and Director of Aviation; Senator the Hon. Michael Halkitis, Minister of Economic Affairs; and Sylvanus Petty, Member of Parliament for North Eleuthera.
(Prime Minister addressing)
Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis speaks at the Signing Ceremony of a $55 million Loan Agreement between the Government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and the Saudi Fund for Development at North Eleuthera International Airport on Monday, September 9, 2024
(His Excellency & PM Davis)
His Excellency Mr. Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, Chief Executive Officer, Saudi Fund for Development, and Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis share a moment.
(Minister Clay Sweeting)
The Hon. Clay Sweeting, Minister of Works and Family Island Affairs speaks at the Signing Ceremony of a $55 million Loan Agreement between the Government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and the Saudi Fund for Development at North Eleuthera International Airport on Monday, September 9, 2024.
(Residents & Officials)
Residents and Officials at the Signing Ceremony.
PM: Project delivers on promise and invests in youth, sports and national development
GRAND BAHAMA, The Bahamas — Calling it the fulfillment of a major commitment to the island, Prime Minister Philip Davis led the official groundbreaking for the Grand Bahama Aquatic Centre, a facility the government says will transform sports development and create new opportunities for young athletes.
Speaking at the Grand Bahama Sports Complex on February 12, the Prime Minister said the project represents more than bricks and mortar
— it is an investment in people, national pride and long-term economic activity. The planned complex will feature a modern 50-metre competition pool, designed to meet international standards for training and regional and global swim meets. Davis said the facility will give Bahamian swimmers a home capable of producing world-class performance while also providing a space for community recreation, learn-to-swim programmes and water safety training.
He noted that Grand Bahama has long produced outstanding athletes despite limited infrastructure and said the new centre is intended to correct that imbalance, positioning the island as a hub for aquatic sports and sports tourism.
The Prime Minister also linked the development to the broader national recovery and revitalisation of Grand Bahama, describing the project as part of a strategy to expand opportunities for young people, create jobs during construction and stimulate activity for small businesses once operational.
The Aquatic Centre, he said, stands as proof that promises made to Grand Bahama are being delivered.
The project is expected to support athlete development, attract competitions, and provide a safe, modern environment for residents to access swimming and water-based programmes for generations to come.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
The Bahamas, February 15, 2026 – For the better part of three years, Bahamians have been told that major Afreximbank financing would help transform access to capital, rebuild infrastructure and unlock economic growth across the islands. The headline figures are large. The signing ceremonies are high profile. The language is ambitious. What remains far harder to see is the measurable impact in the daily lives of the people those announcements are meant to serve.
The Government’s push to secure up to $100 million from Afreximbank for roughly 200 miles of Family Island roads dates back to 2025. In
its February 11 disclosure, the bank outlined a receivables-discounting facility — a structure that allows a contractor to be paid early once work is completed, certified and invoiced, with the Government settling the bill later. It is not cash placed into the economy upfront. It does not, by itself, build a single mile of road. Every dollar depends on work first being delivered and approved.
The wider framework has been described as support for “climate-resilient and trade-enhancing infrastructure,” a phrase that, in practical terms, should mean projects that lower the cost of doing business, move people and goods faster, and keep the economy functioning. But for communities, that promise becomes real only when the projects are named, the standards are defined and a clear timeline is given for when work will begin — and when it will be finished.
Bahamians have seen this moment before.
In 2023, a $30 million Afreximbank facility for the Bahamas Development Bank was hailed as a breakthrough that would expand access to financing for local enterprise. It worked in one immediate and measurable way: it encouraged businesses to apply. Established, revenue-generating Bahamian companies responded to the call, prepared plans, and entered a process they believed had been capitalised to support growth. The unanswered question is how much of that capital has reached the private sector in a form that allowed those businesses to expand, hire and generate new economic activity.
Because development is not measured in the size of announcements.
It is measured in loans disbursed, projects completed and businesses expanded.
The pattern is becoming difficult to ignore. In June 2024, when Afreximbank held its inaugural Caribbean Annual Meetings in Nassau,
Grand Bahama was presented as the future home of an Afro-Caribbean marketplace said to carry tens of millions of dollars in investment. What was confirmed at that stage was a $1.86 million project-preparation facility — funding for studies and planning to make the development bankable, not construction financing. The larger build-out remains dependent on additional approvals, land acquisition and further capital.
This distinction — between financing announced and financing that produces visible, measurable outcomes — is now at the centre of the national conversation.
Because while the numbers grow larger on paper, entrepreneurs still describe access to capital as out of reach, and communities across the Family Islands are still waiting to see where the work will start.
And in an economy where stalled growth translates into lost opportunity, rising frustration and real social consequences, the gap between promise and delivery is no longer a communications issue.
It is an inability to convert announcements into outcomes.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
A hardline strategy that reduced murders, gunfire, and collateral deaths
The Bahamas, February 8, 2026 – What happens when police stop routinely granting bail to high-risk suspects and aggressively execute outstanding warrants? In The Bahamas, the answer in 2025 was fewer murders, fewer gunshots, and safer communities.
The Royal Bahamas Police Force arrested 4,337 individuals on outstanding warrants last year, ensuring suspects were brought directly before the courts instead of being released back onto the streets. At the same time, police significantly curtailed the use of police bail for high-risk and repeat offenders, particularly those already entangled in violent disputes.
Police Commissioner Shanta Knowles said the shift was informed by hard lessons from previous years. Intelligence reviews showed that
many homicide victims were not random targets, but men already wanted by law enforcement and — critically — by other criminals. When released on bail, those individuals often became targets themselves, triggering retaliatory shootings that spilled into neighbourhoods, roadways and public spaces.
By keeping high-risk suspects in custody pending court appearances, police say they disrupted that cycle — removing both potential offenders and potential victims from the streets.
The impact was stark. Murders declined by 31 percent in 2025, falling from 120 in 2024 to 83, the largest percentage decrease in homicides since national tracking began in 1963 and the lowest murder count in nearly two decades.
Police leaders say the strategy also reduced the collateral damage that had increasingly alarmed communities. Innocent residents had been caught in “sprays of gunfire” as targeted attacks unfolded in residential areas, at traffic stops, and in public settings.
Gun-violence indicators reflected the change. Gunshot reports fell by 35 percent, while incidents detected by ShotSpotter technology declined by 29 percent, confirming that fewer shots were being fired across the country.
“Gunshots ringing out and cutting through our peaceful paradise were down remarkably,” Commissioner Knowles said, attributing the improvement to decisive enforcement, tighter bail practices, and sustained pressure on offenders.
Police also intensified enforcement against breach of bail conditions, charging and detaining more suspects than in any previous reporting period. Officers say the approach removed the opportunity for repeat offending while matters were before the courts.
Police leadership said the results go beyond statistics. By limiting bail for high-risk suspects and executing warrants at scale, the strategy saved lives, protected bystanders, and restored confidence in public safety.
In 2025, fewer people were hunted, fewer bullets were fired, and fewer families were left grieving — a shift police say was no accident, but the result of deliberate, hardline choices.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
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