By ANDREW COAKLEY
FREEPORT, Grand Bahama, April 11, 2019 — During one of the opening sessions at the Seatrade Cruise Global 2019 conference held at the Miami Beach Convention Center April 8-11, Carnival Cruise Line President Christine Duffy told the over 11,000 participants at the conference about her company’s major development in Freeport, Grand Bahama.
Senator the Hon. Kwasi Thompson, Minister of State for Grand Bahama, who attended the conference, said Ms. Duffy announced that for the first time in the company’s history, Carnival will be investing significantly in one of the largest port investments to date in Freeport. She also spoke about the major impact the development was going to have on Freeport and its citizens.
“What was very exciting for us is that Grand Bahama was mentioned on the world stage for cruise line development and for the cruise port,” Minister Thompson said.
Minister Thompson, along with Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister Harcourt Brown and Felix Brown from the Investment Unit in the Office of the Prime Minister, all attended the conference in Miami, Florida.
Representatives of Grand Bahama Shipyard also were active participants in the conference, as were representatives of Fowlco Marine and Logistical Management company.
Minister Thompson said that attending the conference was in keeping with the government’s commitment to establish Grand Bahama as a maritime centre.
“I was also very pleased that we had continuing discussions with executives from the cruise line and from the maritime industry,” Minister Thompson said. “The real purpose of attending was for us to continue to promote Grand Bahama as a maritime center. We are uniquely suited in Grand Bahama to promote ourselves, not just because of the capabilities of the Grand Bahama Shipyard, but because of the GB Container Port, because of the new developments that are coming on stream with respect to the additional cruise port that’s coming with Carnival, and also because of the redevelopment of our Freeport Harbour by Royal Caribbean and ITM Group.”
Minister Thompson also noted that a second “plus” for the Office of the Prime Minister’s attendance at the sea trade conference was that it allowed him, as Minister for Grand Bahama, to speak at a significant conference segment hosted by Grand Bahama Shipyard.
Over 100 people attended that particular function, including executives from the cruise lines and maritime industries, as well as customers, partners and subcontractors with the Shipyard.
“Again, that event and the opportunity to speak there, gave us another opportunity to promote Grand Bahama as a maritime center,” Minister Thompson said. “We were also promoting Grand Bahama as a place where industry that supports the shipyard could be built. So we spoke to those individuals who outfit the cabins while the ships are on dry dock, including those who repair engines and even those who are sub-contractors for those ships while they are on dry dock. We want to promote Grand Bahama as a place where those industries can set up and do business with the shipyard.”
Also attending the conference were representatives of the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, the Grand Bahama Port Authority, and the Bahamas Maritime Authority.
