NASSAU, BAHAMAS — A well-known banker is urging The Bahamas to adopt a more strategic, long-term approach to economic development, emphasizing the need for proactive preparation to navigate future challenges and seize growth opportunities.
Gowon Bowe, the CEO of Fidelity Bank (Bahamas), told Eyewitness News that the country must shift from reactive measures to deliberate planning, ensuring sustainable growth amid global uncertainties and economic volatility.
“I think that the Bahamas has been fortunate, certainly in the last 12 to 18 months as it relates to the weather patterns, and I’m not sure that we have learned to put ourselves in a position where we make hay when the sun shines. We tend to, you know, make the hay and eat it at the same time as opposed to having the barn full for when we are going to need it in the future, and that’s not to be pessimistic, but we have spoken about a lot the potential for a recession in the United States, and if you listen to the incoming president, a lot of his narrative more recently since winning the election is, you know, he can’t control prices. Some of the things that he may have promised on the campaign trail, the reality is it will not be quite the same, and so I think the Bahamas really has to take a pause and really say what is it that’s going to put us in the best position to be fruitful and productive for the longest period of time. That to me means that we have to stop reacting to events that take place and start proactively developing our long-term goals and strategies, and that’s not to bring it back solely to the national development plan, but I think that we have had a significant run, certainly in the last 12 to 15 months, of good fortune generally, and we haven’t started doing things differently.”
Bowe added: “I think we have a tremendous tourism product, but are we building it for future growth, or are we just repeating the same things we’ve had in the past and not taking into consideration that travelers are now becoming more demanding and discerning about where they spend their funds, so what are we creating around the resorts and in terms of entertainment and how we will attract people to our shores.”
Bowe described 2025 as a “shake-out” year. “I look at 25 as really a shakeout year, and I think as it will be leading into an election year, some even muse that it could be the election year, but certainly as we move closer and closer to the next general election, I think it’s important that the government of the day, as well as the opposition, now start talking about the next generation and things that are going to be done to make hay whilst positive things are happening and not relying on our good fortune.”
He continued: “I think that it’s not that there aren’t clouds ahead of us, I think there have been for a long period, it’s not that there are no hurdles in front of it, but again, we’ve had several hurdles in front of us for an extended period, but it is now around how do we stop reacting and start preparing.”
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