NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The recent Blue Economy Think Tank hosted by the Strategic Development and Initiatives Unit of the Bahamas Development Bank (BDB) attracted over 340 registered participants and 20 panelists from The Bahamas and abroad, who examined ways in which Bahamians can benefit from sustainable use of the country’s vast ocean resources.
The event’s overarching theme was “From Small Island State to Big Ocean Nation”, highlighting the fact that the nation’s islands are scattered over an enormous marine area. The Think Tank explored ways to make use of ocean resources in the areas of food, bio extractives, maritime industry and arts/culture and tourism.
As Managing Director Dave Smith pointed out, the country’s economic exclusion zone is 46 times the size of the entire Bahamas, which represents an enormous opportunity for revenue generation.
Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources Michael Pintard echoed these sentiments in his keynote address, saying: “Sustainable use of ocean resources in tandem with economic development is simply a must.”
Among the uses of ocean resources was energy. The energy session demonstrated the wealth of energy potential within Bahamian waters. Christopher Straughn, energy sustainability specialist with the Caribbean Development Bank, highlighted a recent study that found that The Bahamas has the highest renewable energy potential in the region with the biggest opportunity coming from near-shore wind.
Similarly, Mark Legacy, a Canadian businessman, indicated that given the Bahamian geography, pump storage hydro energy could provide sufficient power for the country to become a net exporter of energy. This sustainable energy technology could readily provide power and fresh water for agriculture and residential use in the capital and on the Family Islands.
Despite the country’s energy potential, high energy costs, nevertheless, were identified as a major challenge for commercial ventures like aquaculture development, addressed by Jon Chaiton during the “Food of the Future” panel.
Dr Marah Hardt, director of discovery at Future of Fish, presented on solutions that have successfully increased fisherpersons’ revenues by 20 percent. She pointed out that immediate opportunities exist in waste diversion in the fishing industry.
During the bio extractives segment, Dr Kirk Douglas, from the Center for Biodiversity at the University of the West Indies, expanded on products derived from fisheries waste, including biopharmaceuticals from conch blood and fish-based leather.
Vanessa Haley-Benjamin showcased her work in cell-based food production with mollusks, the next global step after the successful production of chicken and beef.
Michael Bowleg Jr outlined his work to explore how to successfully farm spiny lobster as well as how insect-based animal feed production for aquaculture and other species offers an opportunity for income generation for Bahamian farmers.
Bahamian creatives highlighted opportunities in the arts sector in a panel moderated by Tarran Simms of the Ministry of Tourism.
Award-winning Bahamian director and owner of Conchboy Films Lavado Stubbs spoke about how local history and culture connects to our relation to the ocean, and the intersection of the blue and orange (creative) economies.
COVID-19 has also increased the demand for Bahamian yachting professionals: participants were offered one of five spaces in a training course offered by Katie Storr, aimed at building skills in this area.
To support innovation in the blue economy, BDB is offering a grant of up to $7,500 in each of the four themes.
For more information on the BDB’s Blue Economy Grant, contact sdi@bdb.gov.bs.
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