Cooper: Significant progress in ease of business for FDI

Replying to criticism of the foreign investment processes in The Bahamas by the US Department of State, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation Chester Cooper said yesterday that while things are not perfect, they have markedly improved, evidenced by $13 billion in new investments. “I am satisfied that we have made significant progress,” said Cooper. “There is more to be done... the reality is that we’re putting in place the requisite reforms, and we are receiving many positive reviews from many of our investors who have come to our country.” The US State Department recently released its 2025 Bahamas Investment Climate Statement, which states that while The Bahamas remains a top nation for US foreign direct investment (FDI), there are challenges for investors when attempting to conduct business, including approval delays and a lack of transparent investment procedures. The statement further explains that The Bahamas lags behind other countries when it comes to starting a business, registering property, acquiring construction permits, accessing credit, and resolving property disputes. Cooper, who spoke to reporters on the sidelines of the official opening of King’s College’s boarding facility, said the government has upgraded systems at the Bahamas Investment Authority specifically to streamline investor processes. “We have automated much of the processes. We have a mechanism for inter-agency collaboration to improve the overall process of improving investment projects,” he said. “We have streamlined the National Economic Council’s approval guidelines. We meet on a weekly basis. This had not happened before. There have been infrequent meetings, perhaps with months in between. But, we have made the types of reforms to streamline this process.” The US report questioned whether the government had launched a new project called Bahamas Invest, which was designed to cut through the red tape impeding FDI. The report said while the government has promoted plans to launch Bahamas Invest as an “independent agency intended to fast-track FDI, streamline approvals, and increase transparency”, there has been “no visible progress on this initiative, and it remains unclear whether it remains a government priority”. Cooper said the Cabinet determined not to proceed with Bahamas Invest, but still proceeded immediately to upgrade the systems required to ease the processes of FDI. Cooper explained, though, that some processes related to developments do take time. “Oftentimes there is a process where, once there’s approval in process, in principle, there still needs to be the requisite environmental impact assessments, etc. And those are non-negotiable,” he said. “So, they may get a swift approval in principle, and then it might appear that the process is taking long. But the reality is that we are very intentional about what we do in our country. “We want to ensure that we are protecting our environment for future generations, and we are uncompromising whilst we work to speed up the process.”