Bahamas News
BAHAMAS: Minister Thompson says Grand Classica launch is timely
#UnitedStates, April 18, 2018 – West Palm Beach, FL -Minister of State for Grand Bahama in the Office of the Prime Minister, Senator the Hon. J. Kwasi Thompson, says the introduction of the Classica comes when government is taking steps to revitalize the tourism industry in Grand Bahama. Minister Thompson was in West Palm Beach on Friday, April 13, for the official launch of the Grand Classica’s sail between West Palm Beach and Freeport, Grand Bahama. The Classica will be joining the Grand Celebration and will now provide daily sailings between the two ports. The Classica left West Palm Beach on Friday, and arrived at Freeport’s harbour on Saturday morning.
When congratulating Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line on the addition of the Classica to the service provided between West Palm Beach and Freeport, Grand Bahama, he said, “This venture could not be timelier as the government is focused on re-energizing our tourism and investment product in Grand Bahama. The addition of this new vessel provides an invaluable link and service to the island of Grand Bahama. The Government of Bahamas remains committed to the continued service of BPCL and its unique cruise-&-stay offering. We believe that it will further enhance the number of cruise-&-stay passengers and have a large positive economic impact for the region as a whole.”
The Minister added that government is working to get the Grand Lucayan fully opened again. “The government is concluding negotiations on the sale, renovation and full opening and re-branding of the Grand Lucayan. We are taking this opportunity to create a truly enjoyable and unique destination that your customers will enjoy. We are truly embarking upon a new era in Grand Bahama.”
The recent approval in principle of the project in West End which will revitalize the area was also mentioned. “The government recently approved in principle a project in the settlement of West End which proposes to construct, repair, revitalize, develop, and operate 246 rooms in three hotels, a banquet facility, 116 branded hotel residences, 1,000 other residences, a hotel/casino site, approximately 150,000 square feet of shops and restaurants, a spa and wellness retreat, two marinas, an 18-hole golf course including driving range.”
The island’s tourism’s numbers continue to improve, explained the Minister, and while tourism is the number one industry, the government is eager to get the message out that Grand Bahama is a 
great place to do business as well, a place suited to become an internationally recognized science, technology and innovation hub.
“We possess modern and superior infrastructure, modern roads, constant and reliable electricity supply of North-American standards, and high quality high-speed internet. We also have a wide variety of public and private schools. Bahamians are also among the most technologically savvy people in the Caribbean. Our recent Technology Summit highlighted several Bahamians who are at the cutting edge of innovation and technology and our government embraces their experience and expertise to advance this promising industry.
“Grand Bahama has proven to be an attractive place for manufacturing cutting-edge technology. The Bahamas is currently finalizing programs for blockchain-based solutions, fin-tech and crypto-currency companies and intend to promote blockchain as a sub-industry within ICT.
“We are also becoming H1B visa-friendly and actively working to assist US companies, who employ foreigners through the H1B visas program. We remain open to tailor-making packages specific to a company’s needs, allowing them to retain their talent without increasing cost. Legislation has been passed in our Commercial Enterprise Act which will streamline business applications and adapt immigration policy to facilitate new technology businesses.”
The Minister continued, “Freeport, Grand Bahama is the digital paradise you’ve been looking for. Our nation’s second city has superb communications infrastructure so you are always connected. Freeport has two major ISPs with independent terrestrial, subterranean, sub-sea and wireless networks. The city also boasts diverse network paths, self-healing metro, inter-island and international networks.”
Explaining some of the benefits of doing business in Grand Bahama, Minister Thompson noted that Freeport is managed by the Grand Bahama Port Authority, a private city management organization, in conjunction with the national government. Additionally, business owners enjoy the benefits of a tax neutral jurisdiction, and there is no capital gains, real property or corporate income tax.
Additionally, he continued, The Freeport Container Port, a 24-hour facility serving as a major transshipment hub between the US, Latin America and Europe, has the deepest container terminal in the region.
“The government is highly enthusiastic about the unique service that BPCL will continue to provide in Grand Bahama. Your cruise line provides this open-leg provision cruising: an enjoyable, cost-effective cruise and vacation experience in one.
“For Bahamians and visitors alike, BPCL provides a fantastic service that can be tailor-made to suit each passenger. The government is pleased that Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line recognizes the value and promise that remains in Grand Bahama. I wish to extend our appreciation to BPCL CEO, Oneil Khosa. Kevin Shea Mr. David Johnson and the entire Team. BPCL is certainly a respected partner of the Bahamas that plays a significant role in our tourism industry.”
It is hoped that with the additional ship, BPCL will be able to deliver some 400,000 passengers to Grand Bahama each year, which will have a “tremendous and direct impact”.
By Robyn Adderleya
Photo captions: Minister of State for Grand Bahama in the Office of the Prime Minister, Senator the Hon. J. Kwasi Thompson, on Friday participated in the activities for the inaugural sailing of the SS Neo Classica. The Grand Classica will join the Grand Celebration and now provide daily sailings between West Palm Beach and Freeport.
Photos show the ribbon cutting, and Minister Thompson (right) with Mayor of Riviera Beach, Thomas Masters, and Mayor of West Palm Beach, Jeri Muoio.
(BIS Photos)
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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