By the Organization for Responsible Governance (ORG) As The Bahamas ushers in 2022 amid the current social and economic crises brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, there are many immediate needs that the current Bahamas government should address. However, the challenges that have emerged from the current crisis lie upon decades of issues with governance, […]

By Senator Michael Halkitis, minister of economic affairs In 2022, the Davis administration is laser-focused on moving The Bahamas beyond recovery into a period of robust, broad-based economic growth. This means building an economy that widens the circle of opportunity and lifts all Bahamians — not just a few. In the first 100 days of […]

By Derek Smith Jr From the onset of the global pandemic, business communities have received shockwave after shockwave, resulting in a constantly evolving landscape. Despite the seemingly moderate progress, corporate leaders must overcome various challenges for success in 2022 before they are able to establish a new work environment. In February 2021, I was invited […]

By Tanya Wright The new attorney general (AG), Ryan Pinder, came out guns blazing, according to an Eyewitness News post online on November 1, 2021, with headline “UNBUDGETED AND UNFUNDED: AG says judgments against govt ‘have to be paid’”. I could not agree with him more. I am fully on board with the attorney general […]

By Derek Smith Jr Those who don’t know the language of cybersecurity may think the topic is foreign. However, compliance professionals should not forget that conversations about compliance, dripping in apparently infinite acronyms, can also sound foreign to those unfamiliar with the subject. Our lives are increasingly dependent on the internet, so it is now […]

By Derek Smith Jr The compliance function has been working tirelessly to assist organizations in avoiding money laundering, terrorist financing, corruption and other mistakes even before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, for my Caribbean compliance practitioners who have oversight of multiple jurisdictions, it has been an even more daunting task as the cycle […]

By Arianne S Richardson Without clear and intentional cultural policy, administrations will continuously drop the ball on cultural development, and by extension, the orange economy. In my previous op-ed piece on the orange economy, I referenced a draft cultural policy that was written in 2006 and never formally adopted. This lack of adoption is significant […]

By Nadav D Goren, deputy chief of mission, Embassy of Israel in Mexico accredited to The Bahamas and Belize Climate change and natural disasters have had a massive impact in The Bahamas, Central America and the Caribbean region, threatening food security, health, water systems and livelihood. It then does not come as a surprise that […]

By Derek Smith Jr Changing economic conditions, access to a global market, evolution of information technology and an increased demand for enhanced corporate governance are all contributing factors to the growth of the board’s role in governance. I had the opportunity to discuss governance with the Institute of Internal Auditors Bahamas Chapter last week. I […]

By Arianne S Richardson At one point or another, you may have heard the term “orange economy” and even if unknowingly, you may have been either directly or indirectly involved in the orange economy as well. Also called the “creative economy”, the orange economy is a concept that we rarely take the time to explain. […]

By Derek Smith Jr Globally, many organizations struggle to meet investor expectations and remain competitive after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, statutory environments have been enhanced both globally and locally to simultaneously protect stakeholders while cultivating the atmosphere for innovation and growth. Locally, a recent example of creating attractive and robust legislation is […]

By Royann Dean Back in March 2020, when the world was trying to figure out how to deal with the pandemic and the economic fallout it caused, governments were busy creating committees of their best and brightest to find solutions to a phenomenal challenge. In The Bahamas, an economic recovery committee was formed. The word […]

By Joey Gaskins Jr It’s time to pull out all the stops for a public education campaign to get Bahamians vaccinated Now that The Bahamas has sufficient supplies to vaccinate a large percentage of the population, vaccine hesitancy and anti-vaccine sentiment are going to be the most significant obstacles to realizing the full potential of […]

By Royann Dean Even if you aren’t a storyteller, there’s no denying how captivating and fascinating storytelling is. We cannot always remember details of stories but very often we remember the meaning and the message. We use our imaginations to visualize the story at the same time we use logic to follow the details. This […]

By Derek Smith Jr Managing political risk was the subject of a column I wrote over a year ago. However, since then, COVID-19 has transitioned from a disruptor to a consistent and daily reality for the world. The political risk landscape has changed, as have all other risk categories, and businesses face a fragmented and […]

By Derek Smith Jr Without a doubt, it costs to be compliant in what appears to be a never-ending cycle of regulatory reengineering. Over $200 billion in compliance costs are expected to be paid by financial services companies around the world by end of 2021, according to LexisNexis research. The aforementioned statistic may surprise some, […]