34th annual Bahamas Business Outlook to highlight inclusive, sustainable growth

Joan Albury, BBO Founder and President emphasized the significance of the event theme: “Our theme for 2025 has been chosen with great deliberation and the collaboration of key stakeholders. We believe that for The Bahamas to continue flourishing, we must ensure that each island and every citizen has the opportunity to benefit from the nation’s development. This means fostering economic opportunities that are accessible to all. This means implementing sustainable practices that can adapt to change. This means ensuring that the path to growth is both equitable and responsible.”

The Honourable Philip Davis, Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, will deliver the keynote address on the conference theme. Additional speakers will include Yan Jiarong, Chinese Ambassador to The Bahamas – Expanding Trade; Leslie Lee Fook, Founder, Business Intelligence & ICT Director, Aliv – Artificial Intelligence; Kimberly Furnish, Chargé d’Affaires, US Embassy – Strengthening Opportunities for Foreign Direct Investment in The Bahamas;  Nicholas Reese, Chairman & Co-Founder, Kanoo Pays – Digital Technology and Toni Seymour, CEO of Bahamas Power and Light – Delivering Quality Sustainable Infrastructure.

The event will also cover a range of pressing issues, in five panels:

• Creating a Competitive Investment Climate Through Tax Reform, moderated by Hubert Edwards, Principal, Next Level Solutions, with panelists Simon Wilson, Financial Secretary; Timothy Ingraham, Chairman, Bahamas Chamber of Commerce & Employers Confederation and Kevin Moree, Partner, McKinney, Bancroft & Hughes

• Luxury Tourism: Inclusive and Sustainable, moderated by Royann Dean, Managing Director, Onwrd Advisors Ltd, featuring Latia Duncombe, Director General, Ministry of Tourism; Robert Sands, Senior Vice President, Baha Mar; Joy Jibrilu, Chief Executive Officer, Nassau Paradise Island Promotion Board and Felipe MacLean, CEO, Sampson Cay Bahamas Limited

• Culture as an Economic Powerhouse, moderated by Rowena Poitier-Sutherland, Founder, Bahamas Artist Movement, with panelists Yan Jiarong, Chinese Ambassador to The Bahamas; Amanda Coulson of TERN Gallery; Obafemi Pindling, Managing Partner, Pindling & Co, Counsel & Attorneys at Law  and Ian Ferguson, Chief Executive Officer, Tourism Development Corporation

• Developing Sustainable Solutions for Affordable Housing, moderated by Sonia Brown, PE, Principal, Graphite Engineering Limited, with panelists Sharlyn Smith, Principal, Sharon Wilson & Co and Nik Dean, Principal & Director of Risk Management & Resilency, Integrated Building Services

• Shaping a Resilient Adaptation Plan, moderated by Mark Daniels, Principal of Environmental Services, BRON & Co-host, Bahamas @ Sunrise, with Dr Rhianna Neely-Murphy, Director, Department of Environmental Planning and Protection (DEPP) and Rupert Hayward, Founder & President, Blue Action Lab and Blue Action Ventures, and Principal & Director, Grand Bahama Port Authority, Grand Bahama Disaster Relief Foundation

The Bahamas Business Outlook is expected to bring together top policymakers, business leaders and industry experts from both the public and private sectors. The opening and closing sessions will be moderated by Ria Christina, Host of You and Your Money, and Tameka Cartwright, Co-host of Bahamas @ Sunrise. A prayer will be led by Rev Dr Father Kari Marcelle and the National Anthem will be performed by Kevin Tomlinson.

Registration is open at tclevents.com. Vendors may call 242.322.1000 to secure a booth.