Florida will reap substantial benefits from the investment boom that is underway in The Bahamas, the Minister of Financial Services and Investments Allyson Maynard Gibson told a luncheon of business leaders here in the presence of Florida Governor Jeb Bush this week.
“A significant amount of the raw material to be used in construction in The Bahamas will be imported from Florida,” said the minister at the luncheon at the British Colonial Hilton in downtown Nassau.
Late last year, Minister Maynard-Gibson said total investments approved and on the drawing board amounted to $12 billion.
She also spoke highly of the close ties that the state has forged with The Bahamas.
The one-day visit by Mr. Bush, younger brother of U.S. President George W. Bush, was considered pivotal in light of the concerns that were being expressed in the Florida community about the treatment of detainees at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre.
He held crucial talks with Prime Minister Perry Christie on the matter, but also discussed the proposed liquefied natural gas projects and engaged Education Minister Alfred Sears in discussions about collaboration on education pilot programmes.
The Bahamas and Florida remain linked through strong cultural and family ties, Minister Maynard-Gibson said.
The latest figures obtained up to October 2005 show that the total amount of exports from the U.S. to The Bahamas was approximately $1.448 billion and the import amount from The Bahamas to the U.S. was approximately $624 million. It represented a trade imbalance of $823 million, according to the data gleaned from the data dissemination branch of the U.S. Census Bureau’s Foreign Trade Division.
The U.S. Ambassador to The Bahamas John Rood has given a commitment that his government wants to address the trade imbalance by promoting Bahamian entrepreneurship and trade with Florida.
Additionally, Minister Maynard-Gibson revealed that based on the dollar value, The Bahamas is ranked 14th out of the top 25 countries in total U.S. exports via Florida.
This country ranks 26th on the list of top 50 merchandise imports origins and is ranked 19th on the list of Florida’s top 50 merchandise trading partners.
“These statistics are significant given the size of our country and its position when compared to other countries on the same lists. Furthermore, these figures do not take into account the vast number of Bahamians in schools or colleges in the United States,” Minister Maynard-Gibson pointed out.
She also referred to the fact that many of the five million tourists who came to The Bahamas last year traveled through Florida.
The joint luncheon of the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and local Rotary clubs was one in a series of events that the Florida Governor attended in a hectic agenda that marked his first official visit to The Bahamas.
Prime Minister Perry Christie has continually referred to the good faith reciprocal relationship between Florida and The Bahamas.
The minister said the country looks forward to building on the strong relationship between the two sides.
By: Tameka Lundy, The Bahama Journal
