The Cellular Liberalization Task Force (the Task Force) advises that the Evaluation Committee, appointed by the Government, has completed its assessment of the Proposals received for the award of licences to a second cellular mobile operator in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.

Proposals were received from Cable Bahamas Limited, Digicel (Bahamas) Limited and Virgin Mobile Bahamas Limited on February 11, 2015.

Prior to the conclusion of the evaluation process, Digicel (Bahamas) Limited voluntarily decided not to proceed with its participation in the selection process. The remaining applicants, Cable Bahamas Ltd. and Virgin Mobile (Bahamas) Limited, have satisfied the eligibility requirements to move to the next phase of the selection process, the spectrum auction, which is scheduled to take place in May. This spectrum auction phase will be administered by the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA).

Following the completion of the spectrum auction a successful applicant will be chosen and the relevant licences awarded subject to the requirements of the Request for Proposals document. The successful applicant will be required to launch its services and provide network coverage in phases, with complete national coverage expected within a maximum of three years from the date of the grant of the licences.

Further information about the selection process and key contacts is available on the website of the Cellular Liberalisation Task Force, http://www.bahamas.gov.bs/cellularliberalisation.

I note CIBC's first quarter assessment of the region published recently in one of the local dailies. As Bahamians are aware, CIBC is the parent of First Caribbean bank in the Bahamas and Caribbean.

The article points that the reform efforts of the Christie government have been praised by CIBC FirstCaribbean's Canadian parent that believes The Bahamas' sovereign rating measures up pretty well against others in the region.

"The Bahamas measures up pretty well against other credits in the region, and we expect the government to reverse the trend of higher debts and deficits of the last few years" said the report prepared by the capital markets unit of CIBC.

CIBC joins a number of reputed international institutions including Standard and Poors, Moodys, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in giving The Bahamas government high marks for its fiscal consolidation plan which is designed to arrest unsustainable borrowing and huge budgetary deficits year after year.

CIBC went as far as to encourage international investors to purchase any outstanding Bahamas government bond issue with a maturity date of 2029 and a yield of 6.95%. They referred to the government's successful implementation of Value Added Tax that CIBC believes "should improve fiscal finances significantly over and above what was surely on route to the completion of the Baha Mar resort" as the principal reasons.

This improved national fiscal health is supported by recent Ministry of Finance data which reported that at $28 million per month in VAT collection, the government will beat its initial collection target by 20%. This reversal of fortunes for The Bahamas gives increasing credibility to the government's fiscal consolidation plan and underscores the strength of the Christie government in competently managing the country's fiscal and economic affairs.

The report also highlighted continued improvement in the performance of our number one industry Tourism.

"The Tourism Association reports that room revenues increased 11%, in line with an 8.2 percentage point rise in the average occupancy rate of 70.5 percent, and an 8.9 percent increase in the average daily rate to US$268.11." This is in addition to an increase of 4.5 percent in stopover visitors to The Bahamas.

These positive key performance indicators (kpi) and repeated international endorsements based purely on sound economic and fiscal principles - free of political and other selfish hidden agendas - serve to further entrench public trust in the PLP government to responsibly manage our public finances specifically and the national economy generally all to the benefit and in protection of the interests of all Bahamians. This cannot be understated.

Notwithstanding substantive and measurable improvements, there remain challenges that our government and our people can overcome by working together. Crime and energy reform are some of the challenges. It is however regrettable that there are persons and organizations in this country that only see doom and gloom and simply refuse to see the national picture on balance.

Even in our imperfections, there is a great opportunity for us to restore and advance The Bahamas in real and discernible ways. We can move mountains together, but without unity of purpose and all hands on deck, simple bumps in the road become stumbling blocks and immovable objects.

The Christie Administration continues to dig the Bahamas out of the deep economic hole the Ingraham government left behind in May 2012.

Bradley B Roberts 

National Chairman 
Progressive Liberal Party

NASSAU, Bahamas -- Local Organizing Committee (LOC) Events Director, Fred Ferguson said everything will be timed, and precision will be first and foremost.
"The opening sets the tone for everything that is going to be happening. It is going to be short and sweet and it is going to showcase The Bahamas in its best light," Ferguson said. "From the moment the military bands take the center field they are going to bring the full majesty to the opening of the event.
Ferguson added that the military band will compose of members of the Royal Bahamas Police Force, the Royal Bahamas Defense Force, and Her Majesty Prison. The Bahamas Music Academy will be the supporting orchestra.
Revealing that Bahamian artist singing sensation, Alia Coley will sing the national anthem Ferguson said the ceremony will end with a spectacular Junkanoo parade and lots of wonderful surprises.
"We cannot begin anything in the Bahamas without the spirit and sound of the heartbeat of the Bahamian people which is junkanoo. This year it is going to be fused with some of the junkanoo carnival groups. It is going to be a burst of colors, the rhythm, and the sounds. We must make sure The Bahamas is remembered for what we are has a people," he said.

NASSAU, Bahamas -- As part of the cultural exchange between Cuba and the Bahamas, a group of circus artists members of Circuba, acted for the second time in this country, presenting their performances in Nassau. Previously the Cuban artists had acted in Freeport, second largest city of this Caribbean archipelago.
The presentations of the Cuban artists are delivered as part of a project that aims, among other things, to expand and develop bilateral cooperation in the cultural area between the two countries, took place mainly in schools and where delivered to entertain primarily at younger generations of Bahamians. This project intends to take the Cuban circus to other territories of the Bahamian archipelago in 2016.
On this occasion, the circus "EL Grande", delivered two final shows for the general public on Friday 24th and Saturday 25th, which allowed Bahamian families and the Cuban community based in this country, to enjoy the talent and creativity of Cuban circus performers whose key principle is to make smile everyone, regardless of age.
(Photo courtesy Cuban Embassy)