Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of Works and Urban Development (Ministry of Works and Urban Development)

The Caribbean is a highly attractive yet competitive destination for FDI with, for example, Cuba opening up in terms of tourism, the British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands making strides in the area of finance and Jamaica securing large investments in renewable energy and the ICT/BPO industry. In your opinion, what does The Bahamas offer that makes it the regional investment destination of choice?

I believe that is connected to its history and the fact that it has continuously been in the forefront of attracting investments. I believe that is attributed to our stable government, a stable steady hand at the wheels of governance over many many years, the foresight to identify the quickest means of growing an economy that was started with tourism and building on that and connecting that chassis of our economy to almost every other facet of the economy through that growth. Also of course, no doubt the beauty of our islands coupled with what I have said, makes the Bahamas the destination of choice for tourism, investment and any other facet of growth. When I talk about history it’s all underpinned by strong legislative regime and the fact that we do adhere to and hold dear the rule of law, and so the certainty of how this impacts business and how they are to operate is all regulated in a fashion that inspires investor confidence that in the event of disputes or challenges, they have the proper legislation framework to solve these challenges.

As you know, the Bahamas relies strongly on FDI to fuel economic growth. Do you think the country is reaching its full potential in terms of FDI?

Not to seem greedy but I believe we are getting our share of FDI, however, as I always say there is still much for us to do to attract more direct investments. The challenges of bureaucracy and the previous meltdown in the world economy have caused foreign investors to not be as bullish as they were, which also is hampered by what we call the developed states wanting to ensure that they get their fair share of these investments within their jurisdictions and so a lot of FDI is now being guarded because of all these new rules, regulations and treaties that are now being implemented by OECD and other blocs of developed countries to try to keep funds within their jurisdictions. So the challenge has always been to identify new products that are acceptable to these regimes and to have those products sold to the potential investors.

In what areas do you see the biggest opportunities for FDI in the Bahamian economy?

We have embarked on a developmental strategy that will welcome public private partnership involvements. So the area that I would identify that has as a strong, attractive possibility for FDI is partnering in some our infrastructural developments particularly those are what I call investment  grade. So for example, we need to redevelop a number of airports in the family islands. An investor can come and make a proposal to redevelop that airport for us to certain standards, they could manage it, put their funds in and have a management arrangement to be able to recoup their capital investment and run the airport. What we call the 3P project is an attractive means for FDI.

The growth of any country and its economy is heavily reliant on its infrastructural development. How would you describe the infrastructure in the Bahamas today?

I think the infrastructure is adequately situated for the growth of our economy. We just completed, for example, in New Providence, an improvement of all our roads and networks. Our telecommunications have also been improved through BTC and we are now in the process of liberalizing that sector, which will do well to enhance the telecommunication infrastructure.

Of course as you well know, in respect to our country, the Bahamas is spread over 100,000 square miles of water and we have 700 odd islands and cays, of which about 29 are inhabited. So when we speak about infrastructure, we are challenged in that we have to duplicate so many whereas other countries may not. You mentioned that you have done a case study on Jamaica, when they speak of infrastructure specifically airports, they will speak about two. When the Bahamas speaks about airports we have to think about 29. Of course, when persons come to a country they want to know that the health services are of a standard that they would feel comfortable with should anything go wrong with their health. They would need to have access to professional and effective health services so again when we speak about hospitals, we cannot just speak of one or two and so, so when I say the infrastructure is adequate, we say that with the cautionary view of how we have to duplicate all of these and the challenge it brings to governance about prioritising where infrastructure is best suited.

Minister Davis you sworn in as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Works and Urban Development in 2012. Three years later, what you would say have been your biggest achievements over this time?

One would be bringing closure effectively and efficiently to the road improvement project in New Providence, which had approval of close to $100 million dollars. In my view, when I was sworn in, this was wobbling without direction or without a clear plan of when it would be completed. It  has caused much pain and interruption to businesses in the community so I see that bring that to conclusion was one of my major accomplishments. It was started by the previous administration but the handling of it in my view when I came had a lot to be desired so we remained focused on that project.

In addition, the Water and Sewerage Corporation is in my portfolio. When I came in they were having what we call non revenue water, which is water that is produced but never gets to the consumer and there’s a loss. We were able to enter into a contract for $80 million dollars to have that corrected and since that was done, we’ve had a lot of savings. I think we were losing about 10 million gallons per day and now it is down to about 5 million gallons per day (figures to be verified).

There is also Bahamas Electricity Corporation, which was also under my portfolio when I came into office in 2012. It was recognised that electricity was one of the handicaps to growth and development because of the cost of electricity was around 40-44 cents per kilowatt hour. After sustained efforts, even before the cost of oil started to drop, we are making significant progress  in bringing that down. I am pleased to say that today that number is now about 33 cents per hour and we have just successfully negotiated a management contract for BEC to be managed by a company called PowerSecure out of the US and it’s anticipated that in short order the management contract is likely to be signed. Upon the signing of that, we ought to see a significant decrease in the cost of electricity that will be sustainable for several years.

The Urban Renew Commission, which also falls under my portfolio, aims to transform the lives of persons particularly in the city. We go to the inner city and have what we call the small home repairs program for the elderly to make their living conditions more habitable. We have repaired about 700 homes to make a little more comfortable and that is rewarding and is what I call our human side. We also have programs for the young people such as the Urban Renewal Youth Band, which in 2012 had 13 young men and today it has around 1,000 young people involved in it and no doubt many more knocking at the door.

One of the other accomplishments I could talk about is BahamasAir, which is also under my portfolio. The subvention of government used to be around $33 million per year. When I came in to office in 2012 it was $28 million and I am proud to say that today it is $15 million per year. So we have seen a turn around there.

The Bahamian government is focusing on creating a Stronger and more safe and prosperous Bahamas. In your role as (DPM and) Minister of Works and Urban Development, what are your current priorities in terms of further strengthening the country?

The role my Minister plays in this of course starts with infrastructure, specifically making sure it is conducive to assist in the growth of the economy. More importantly, with the Urban Renewal Program, the transformation of lives and in that program there is an element of information gathering to assist with crime fighting, there’s the element of identifying positive activities for young people, and an element of after school programs to ensure that we have sustained efforts that are touching the lives of our youth.

As you know, the mandate of our ministry is to provide technical services and architectural civil engineering services to other client ministries and entities of government and also maintaining and ensuring government buildings. Our role is to effectively execute those mandates and once that is done, the Bahamas will become stronger, safer and more prosperous.

The government of the Bahamas is striving to create an economy based on PPPs. To what extent have you embraced these in your sector?

We are actively pursuing it, in fact, the BEC model is a 3Ps model. We are actively involved with other Ministries to find and identify persons who will be prepared to redevelop and manage the family island airports. I know the Ministry of Finance has a list of persons who have made it known that they are prepared to provide funding and expressed interest in becoming 3Ps partners. So identify the projects and ensure they are investment-grade, and then the Ministry of Finance will identify the funding to facilitate the project.

On a more personal note, prior to your appointment as DPM and Minister, you enjoyed a career that spanned a number of domains, for example, the not-for-profit sector with your work at the Toastmaster Club, sport as Vice President of the Bahamas Swim Federation and in law in the area of litigation. What is the most valuable lesson you have learnt over the years that you still apply today in your role as Minister?

Over the years and the experience gained, the important lesson for me is to listen, think and speak, and to do so in that order. Also, that the least amongst us have much to offer. There is an essential goodness in all of us and it’s only for someone to touch and bring it out of them. I’ve always attempted to identify what is good about a person and try to promote that.

Minister, to conclude the interview, Harvard Business Review’s readers include many of the world’s most influential business and political figures. What final message would you like to send to send them about The Bahamas and your Ministry?

You will not find a more accommodating, more stable and more welcoming jurisdiction in which to do your business. We have the technical expertise to assist and guide in whatever endeavor you wish to do.