Underscoring the country's vulnerability to climate change and its increasing poverty levels, Deputy Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis called on the United Nations to enhance its support to The Bahamas.
Davis was speaking on Monday at the United Nations Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in Samoa.
"We have been a part of [the] Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) for the more than 20 years of its existence," he told delegates.
"For the 20 years, we have shared visions, ideals and challenges. For 20 years, we have set forth our needs. And for 20 years, we have been denied funding because of our per capita income.
"Mr. President, the UN system could stand to enhance its support to SIDS like The Bahamas, strengthening its institutions where necessary and providing more focused and additional services to SIDS."
The Bahamas is considered to be one of the richest countries in the Caribbean community when ranked by gross national income per capita, which stood at $20,600 as of 2012, according to the World Bank.
But Davis said the country's per capita income does not accurately reflect the reality in The Bahamas.
"We co-exist in a world where assistance is predicated on the basis of per capita income as the sole indicator of need," he said.
"Our per capita income is distorted, and does not properly reflect the economic realities of our citizens and remote island communities, where poverty is the rule and not the exception."
Davis noted that more than 12 percent of the Bahamian population is living below the poverty line.
According to statistics released earlier this year, 43,000 people were living in poverty in The Bahamas at the time of a survey conducted in the first half of 2013. That figure represents an increase of 3.5 percent over the 9.3 percent who lived in poverty when the 2001 survey was conducted.
As it relates to climate change, Davis noted during the conference that The Bahamas is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change and its impacts.
"In fact, a World Bank report indicates that The Bahamas is one of the island states most vulnerable to sea level rise, as approximately 80 percent of our landmass is within 1.5 meters of sea level," he said. "Climate change is not simply about changing our way of life; it is primarily about saving lives."
He added: "Funding for the development or refurbishment of essential infrastructure to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change is a necessity and challenge. If we truly believe that the polluter pays, the developed world must partner with The Bahamas to enhance our resilience."
Davis called for a post-2015 development agenda that recognizes the special needs of SIDS, as well as climate change and disaster risk reduction.

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