By OSWALD T. BROWN
WASHINGTON, D.C., February 14, 2021 — The verdict was rendered a long time ago that THE BAHAMAS is “God’s Heaven on Earth.” An archipelago of more than 700 islands and cays, visitors to one of the world’s premier tourist destinations have an array of choices from which to create their perfect vacation – from pristine islands that still exude the natural beauty that enthralled Christopher Columbus when he landed on San Salvador on October 12, 1492 to Nassau and Paradise Island, home to the country’s most extensive array of resorts and hotels.
Of course, although I love each of the islands that collectively comprise the country of my birth with the same degree of allegiance, I am somewhat partial towards Andros, the island where I was born, and Grand Bahama, where I lived for 12 years prior to relocating to Washington, D.C. in 2013 as the Press, Cultural Affairs and Information Manager at the Embassy of The Bahamas for four-plus years prior to the change of government in The Bahamas in May of 2017.
Grand Bahama and Abaco, islands in the northern Bahamas, were the hardest hit by Hurricane Dorian, a Category 5 storm that rampaged across the islands early in September of 2019. They were still gradually recovering from the effects of Dorian when COVID-19 became a world-wide pandemic, which the World Health Organization (WHO) declared — as of February 13, 2021 – “more than 108 million cases have been confirmed, with more than 2.39 million deaths attributed to COVID-19,” according to Wikipedia.
The Bahamas’ tourism-based economy has been severely impacted by both Hurricane Dorian and the ongoing consequences of COVID-19; however, the country’s Ministry of Tourism has been doing as good a job as it possibly can to maintain The Bahamas’ international reputation as one of the world’s leading tourist destinations.
In Grand Bahama, where Freeport, The Bahamas’ second most populous city is located, the challenges likewise have been ongoing for the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA), which has municipal responsibility for the development, administration and management, and provision of services within the “Port Area,” as a result of the Hawksbill Creek Agreement signed on August 4, 2005, which gave birth to the City of Freeport.
Fortunately, the GBPA currently has in place a very effective Executive Management team headed by Sarah St. George, Acting Chairman, that also includes Ian Rolle, President; Henry St. George, Vice President; Deann Seymour, Chief Financial Officer; and Karla McIntosh, General Counsel.
Ms. St. George is the daughter of the late Edward St. George, the visionary co-owner of the GBPA who died in December of 2004 at the age of 76.
As BAHAMAS CHRONICLE noted in a commentary published on October 1, 2019: “The destruction that Hurricane Dorian left behind after it menacingly battered Grand Bahama for more than two days represents the biggest challenge to the continued development of Freeport that executives of the GBPA have been faced with since the signing of the Hawksbill Creek Agreement on August 5, 1955, between the then Government of The Bahamas and American financier Wallace Groves, which granted Mr. Groves 50,000 acres of Crown Land and a raft of tax exemptions that spurred the development of what became known as the Magic City of Freeport.
“Of course, the fact that there are two individuals on the GBPA’s executive leadership team with the last name St. George bodes well for the efforts being made to restore Freeport to its former glory. Acting Chairman Sarah St. George and Vice President Henry St. George are both children of Edward St. George, the late co-owner of the GBPA.
“Edward St. George and Sir Jack Hayward, along with the late Sir Albert Miller as GBPA President, were mainly responsible for the remarkable growth and development of Freeport from 1976 when they purchased all the outstanding shares in the GBPA owned by Wallace Groves and became co-owners of the company that essentially is a government-within-a-government as far as the affairs of Freeport are concerned.
“In critical times like Freeport is now experiencing, Edward St. George, who died in December of 2004 at the age of 76, would have donned his financial wizardry cape and make ‘all the right moves’ to facilitate Freeport’s rebuilding efforts…”
Sarah St. George’s inheritance of her father’s good business acumen did not just happen by chance. She is well schooled in the areas of Business, Finance and Law “and brings with her a wealth of knowledge and experience, as well as a passion for the future development and growth of the City of Freeport and Grand Bahama Island,” according to the GBPA’s website.
“Miss St. George, a Business Executive, has capitalized on opportunities throughout her professional career to work with some of the most prestigious financial firms in the United States,” the website notes, adding: “Miss St. George attended the College of Law in London and in 1976 was called to the London Bar Association as a Barrister in the United Kingdom, and member of the Inner Temple, Inns of Court. Thereafter, Sarah went on to work as a trainee analyst and OTC stock trader with Allen & Co. of New York from 1977 – 1978.”
The website added that she expanded “her professional expertise to the fields of International Markets and Financial Services: following her tenure with Allen & Co. Sarah moved on to work as a Commodities and Futures Trader at Drexel, Burnham & Lambert on Wall Street in New York, from 1978 – 1980. While there, she passed the New York State exam achieving status as a New York State Certified Trader.”
Noting that in 1980, Ms. St. George joined JP Morgan New York, the website adds, “Miss St. George began her tenure with the financial conglomerate as a member of its lending team responsible for large multinational corporations such as General Foods and General Motors. Following a transfer to JP Morgan’s International Financial Management Division, she was promoted to Vice President in 1984.”
Freeport and Grand Bahama in general have made great strides in recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Dorian, one indication being the announcement by GBPA on its Facebook page on December 16, 2019 that the Grand Bahama International Airport, which sustained tremendous damages during Hurricane Dorian, had been cleared for all international flights.
This extremely good news came on the heels of an announcement several days earlier that the GBPA was “pleased to join the Government and the GB Island Tourism Board in welcoming the first International scheduled flight to Freeport by Sunwing, bringing in guests from Toronto and Montreal and staying at Viva Club Fortuna.”
However, the Canadian government recently announced that Canada’s major airlines – Air Canada, WestJet, Sunwing, and Air Transat — will be cancelling air service to all Caribbean destinations and Mexico from Jan 31 until April 30.
In tandem with the impact the restrictions instituted by the government of The Bahamas to control the spread of COVID-19 in The Bahamas, the country’s tourism industry has been teetering on the brink of serious retrenchment for several months. Indeed, as the Miami Herald noted in a July 21, 2020 article written by Jacqueline Charles, “With a surge in COVID-19 cases being traced back to Bahamians traveling from the United States, the Bahamas has announced a two-week lockdown of the island of Grand Bahama, which is leading a wave of new infections after being coronavirus free for months. Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis, speaking before a cabinet meeting Tuesday, said the lockdown will take effect at 7 p.m. Thursday and run until 5 a.m. August 7.”
The Herald’s article added: “The new restrictions come as the Bahamas prepares to re-institute a nationwide travel ban against commercial flights from the United States beginning at midnight Wednesday. Visitors traveling on pleasure crafts, yachts and private aircraft with nine seats or less from the U.S. less will still be permitted, along with commercial flights from Canada, the European Union and the United Kingdom. All visitors are required to provide a negative COVID-19 test taken within 10 days of travel from an accredited laboratory to gain entry into the country.”
But as USA TODAY reported about a month later, “After barring Americans from entry earlier this month as COVID-19 cases resurged, the Bahamas is once again welcoming travelers from the United States. But for those ready to finally get back to the popular vacation destination, you may want to hold your excitement. The reopening likely won’t benefit the average American traveler looking to explore the islands because all travelers are required to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival or face deportation.”
The Herald’s article added, “According to an update posted to the official Bahamas’ website…all visitors and returning residents have the option to spend their two-week quarantine in a private residence or rented accommodation, such as an Airbnb, where it’s possible to isolate in a bedroom with a connected bathroom. Travelers can also quarantine in a hotel room with a connected bathroom or on a private boat.”
The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism has continued to employ similar creative safety measures to encourage more visitors to come to The Bahamas; however, the Canadian government’s recent announcement of flights by its major airlines to all Caribbean destinations and Mexico from January 31 until April 30 will most certainly have a deleterious effect on Grand Bahama, which welcomed the return of Sunwing Airlines last December.
As for Andros, the island of my birth, at 2300 square miles in size, it “is perhaps the largest tract of unexplored land in the Western hemisphere, and also the largest island in the Bahamas,” according to Small Hope Bay (Andros) website. “A coral limestone formation, it is dominated by thick impenetrable bush, sliced in pieces by inland waterways, and edged by mangrove marsh. To the north are hardwood and pine forests–including Pine, Mahogany (Madeira), Horseflesh, and Lignum Vitae. Along the east coast are the fishing and diving grounds of the Andros Barrier Reef. On the West Coast are the pristine fishing flats of the Great Bahama Bank.”
Indeed, the island where my navel string is buried in the Central Andros settlement of Stanyard Creek “holds countless adventures for lovers of the outdoors: World-class scuba diving, deep-sea and fly fishing, national forests and blue holes—and that’s just the beginning,” according to a Ministry of Tourism release.
Yes, indeed, The Bahamas is open for business.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Oswald T. Brown is a veteran Bahamian journalist and former Editor of The Nassau Guardian (1998 – 2002) and the Freeport News (2003 – 2009). Mr. Brown was News Editor of the Washington Informer for more than 12 years when he previously lived in Washington, D.C. for 21 years before returning to his native Bahamas in 1996. He returned to D.C. 2013 as Press, Cultural Affairs and Information Manager at the Embassy of The Bahamas, a diplomatic position he held for four-plus years until there was a change of government in The Bahamas in May of 2017. Mr. Brown currently is President of THE BROWN AGENCY LLC, a public relations and marketing company that publishes the online publication BAHAMAS CHRONICLE.)
Here’s a link to an advertising video promoting Nassau and Paradise Island, home of The Bahamas most extensive array of resorts and hotels. https://www.nassauparadiseisland.com/?gclid=CjwKCAiAjp6BBhAIEiwAkO9Wui37vCNWPmUM0o8frMmigR0hcoYQUOkVTAULArWHFNO3qt_4cR-3vBoC1mQQAvD_BwE&fbclid=IwAR10KhWE1cFEGtHzsQ5DcQV5i1I4wdJDS4SxUFhq04Q5yTXUhLBIu5ZlzW8
