NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC) is moving to directly address long-standing concerns about the ease of doing business by convening a one-stop, multi-agency business expo this Friday at the Andre Rodgers baseball stadium, aimed at helping entrepreneurs move beyond survival and into sustainable growth.
Dr. Leo Rolle, chief executive officer of the BCCEC, said the initiative reflects the chamber’s long-standing role as a champion of business development and enhancement, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises navigating the most vulnerable stages of their growth cycle.
“We have been, as a chamber, champions of business development and business enhancement—measures to ensure that businesses first survive when they reach that proverbial wall, which is usually a year or two years into being in business, and then, beyond surviving, also thriving,” Rolle said.
While acknowledging the government’s role in creating a supportive business environment, Rolle said the chamber believes it also has a responsibility to equip entrepreneurs with the tools needed to succeed.
“While the government does have a fiduciary responsibility to curate an environment that allows for businesses to survive and then thrive, we at the chamber believe that we too have a level of responsibility to teach entrepreneurs—especially fledgling entrepreneurs—the principles, the ideals, and the wherewithal that help them get to the next level,” he said. “That transition is from a fledgling entrepreneur to what we consider a serial entrepreneur.”
Rolle said one of the most persistent concerns raised by the business community is an ongoing unease about doing business in The Bahamas, driven largely by fragmented and cumbersome processes.
“One of the cries the business community continues to alert us to is that there is an unease of doing business in the country,” he said. “That’s for a number of reasons, but one primary reason is the disjointed processes that entrepreneurs have to go through—not only to get a business licence, but to get things done.”
He pointed to a wide range of essential business functions that often require entrepreneurs to navigate multiple agencies independently.
“When you think about clearing products and services, paying taxes, getting basic needs like water and sewage, getting help with financial statements, grants, business plan vetting or business plan writing—all of these aspects are the lifeblood of a business or an entrepreneur,” Rolle said.
In response, the chamber curated an event designed to centralize these services and make them accessible in real time.
“What the chamber decided was to curate an event that allows all of these various stakeholders to be in one centralized location and accessible to entrepreneurs in real time,” he said.
Under the format, entrepreneurs will be able to initiate and advance key processes during the event itself.
“An entrepreneur should be able to walk through the door and start the process of getting a business licence because you have Town Planning, you have Immigration, Inland Revenue, the SBDC, and all of these different agencies under one roof,” Rolle explained. “Yes, it’s only for a couple of hours for a day, but you’re able to speak to between 15 and 20 different agencies to get what you need done.”
Rolle said the event was also deliberately timed to coincide with peak tax and business licence renewal season.
“We wanted to ensure that it happens before—or in the peak of—the tax and business licence renewal season,” he said. “We also want to ensure that it happens annually because we’ve heard the cry of entrepreneurs, and even seasoned entrepreneurs, who have issues with the processes and procedures of getting licences renewed, paying taxes, and remaining compliant.”
By providing direct access to regulators, service providers and support agencies, Rolle said the chamber hopes to reduce both the friction and cost of doing business.
“By providing this avenue—this outlet—for entrepreneurs to get all of these services done, we are doing our part to elevate the ease of doing business while hopefully alleviating some of the costs of doing business in the country,” he said.
Participants will have access to a wide range of agencies and service providers, including the National Insurance Board, compliance and payment-plan services, the Water and Sewerage Corporation, the Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA), the Small Business Development Centre (SBDC), and private-sector providers offering marketing, public relations, financial statement compilation and business planning support.
“All of these avenues are available to entrepreneurs,” Rolle said. “Whether you need to renew a business licence, check on compliance, arrange payment plans, apply for a loan or grant, prepare a business plan, or even look at marketing and public relations campaigns—this is about doing things in real, live time.”
Importantly, Rolle emphasized that the event is open to the wider business community, not just chamber members.
“We didn’t relegate it specifically for chamber members only,” he said. “Any entrepreneur, any business owner—large, small, medium, or micro—is able to come out, get their concerns met, meet with stakeholders, and leave with a tangible, measurable response that helps them along their entrepreneurial journey.”
Ultimately, Rolle said the initiative reflects the chamber’s commitment to strengthening the business environment in practical, hands-on ways.
“For too long, entrepreneurs have had to muddle through these processes on their own,” he said. “This is about providing real support, real access, and real solutions that strengthen entrepreneurship and improve the ease of doing business in The Bahamas.”
