Updated January 24, 2018
The Bahamas
Political and Economic Environment
Fund. Economic growth returned in 2017 by an estimated
The Bahamas, a Caribbean nation of some 700 islands off
1.6%, spurred by strong U.S. economic performance and by
the southeast coast of the United States, has been a stable
the phased opening of the Baha Mar project.
parliamentary democracy since its independence from the
United Kingdom (UK) in 1973. The country’s bicameral
legislature has a 39-seat House of Assembly directly elected
for five-year terms and a 16-member appointed Senate.
Since independence, the political scene has been dominated
by two political parties, the center-left Progressive Liberal
Party (PLP) and the center-right Free National Movement
(FNM). The PLP was formed in 1953 as an opposition
party to the United Bahamian Party (UBP), which governed
the Bahamas when the country was under British rule. In
1967, the PLP won control of the government and oversaw
the country’s independence from the UK. It ruled
continuously from 1967 until 1992 under the leadership of
Lynden Pindling, commonly referred to as the “father of the
nation.” The FNM was formed in 1971 by former members
of the UBP and dissidents from the PLP. Under the
leadership of Hubert Ingraham, the FNM won the 1992
general elections, governing until 2002. The PLP returned
to power in 2002 under the leadership of Perry Christie, lost
in 2007 to the FNM (still led by Hubert Ingraham), and won
again in 2012, with Perry Christie as prime minister.
In the most recent elections of May 2017, the FNM
returned to power in a landslide, capturing 35 House of
Assembly seats compared to 4 for the PLP, with new FNM

party leader Hubert Minnis becoming prime minister. At
Source: CRS.

the outset of 2017, many observers thought it was likely
that the PLP under Christie would win a majority. This was
The Bahamas at a Glance
largely because of disarray within the FNM, which faced a
Population:
372,000 (2017, IMF)
chaotic party leadership challenge in 2016. Once the
election was called, however, observers predicted the
Area (square miles):
5,359, slightly smaller than
elections would be close, in large part because of the
Connecticut (CIA)
growing unpopularity of the PLP due to the country’s
difficult economic environment. Ultimately, the poor state
GDP (current prices):
$9.2 bil ion (2017 est., IMF)
of the economy along with rising crime and controversies
Real GDP Growth:
1.6% (2017 est., IMF)
associated with the Chinese-financed Baha Mar resort in the
capital of Nassau led to the PLP’s thrashing at the polls.
Per Capita Income:
$24,631 (2017 est., IMF)
Problems with the Baha Mar project included construction
Life Expectancy:
75.6 years (2015, UNDP)
delays, the use of Chinese laborers, and reported sweetheart
business deals.
Key Leaders:
Dr. Hubert Minnis, Prime
Minister; Darren Henfield,
With a per capita income level approaching $27,000 (2017),
Minister of Foreign Affairs
the Bahamian economy is classified by the World Bank as
Sources: International Monetary Fund (IMF); Central Intel igence
high income. Tourism and related construction and
Agency (CIA); United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
financial services are the key sectors for the service-based
economy. The Bahamian economy was hard-hit by the
High rates of violence have afflicted the Bahamas for
global financial crisis and registered economic contractions
several years. A May 2017 Inter-American Development
of 2.3% and 4.2% in 2008 and 2009, respectively. Although
Bank (IDB) study on violence in the Caribbean reported
economic growth returned from 2010 through 2012, the
that the murder rate in the Bahamas was one of the highest
economy stagnated after that, contracting 1.7% in 2015 and
in the region (IDB, Restoring Paradise in the Caribbean,
0.2% in 2016, according to the International Monetary
Combatting Violence with Numbers, May 2017). The study
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The Bahamas
pointed to gangs (although these are less pronounced in the
The Bahamas also receives U.S. assistance under the
Bahamas than in other Caribbean countries), the availability
Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI), a regional
of firearms, and the prevalence of domestic violence in the
program begun in FY2010 that focuses on advancing
home (which spurs violence later in life) as key factors
citizen security and reducing illicit trafficking. Congress
contributing to high levels of violence in the region. In
has appropriated a total of about $500 million for the CBSI
2017, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit, the
from FY2010 through FY2017, with $57.7 million in each
homicide rate in the Bahamas increased 11% from the
of FY2016 and FY2017, benefitting 13 Caribbean
previous year, to 31 per 100,000.
countries, including the Bahamas. The Trump
Administration’s FY2018 request for the CBSI is $36.2
Some 40,000-80,000 Haitians or persons of Haitian descent
million, about a 36% decrease from FY2017. (See CRS In
live in the Bahamas, according to unofficial estimates cited
Focus IF10789, Caribbean Basin Security Initiative.)
in the State Department’s Country Reports on Human
Rights Practices for 2016. The report noted that anti-
According to the State Department, benefits to the Bahamas
Haitian prejudice and resentment regarding Haitian
under the CBSI have included the purchase and repair of
immigration is widespread and that many persons of
maritime interdiction and patrol assets to increase the Royal
Haitian origin live in shantytowns with limited sewage and
Bahamas Defense Force’s capacity to control national
garbage services, law enforcement, or other infrastructure.
territory and waters; training and equipment to reduce the
cultivation, production, and trafficking of illicit drugs; and
U.S.-Bahamian Relations
technical assistance, training, and equipment to law
The United States enjoys close economic linkages and
enforcement institutions to strengthen information-
cooperative relations with the Bahamas, with the nearest
collection capabilities, tactical techniques, and narcotics
Bahamian island, Bimini, just 45 miles from Florida. A
investigations. Police officers also have received anti-gang
majority of the estimated 5-6 million tourists visiting the
operations training and homicide investigation training.
Bahamas are from the United States, according to the State
Department, highlighting the dependency of the tourism
The State Department’s 2017 INCSR notes that drug
sector on U.S. economic conditions. Most of the country’s
traffickers and other criminal organizations take advantage
trade is also with the United States. Because the Bahamas
of the large number of International Business Companies
has a largely service-based economy, the United States
and offshore banks registered in the Bahamas to launder
historically has run a large merchandise trade surplus with
money. Although the State Department maintains that the
the country. According to Commerce Department statistics,
Bahamas has the adequate legal and institutional framework
imports from the Bahamas amounted to $298 million in
to combat money laundering, it urges the government to
2016, whereas U.S. exports to the Bahamas totaled almost
place greater emphasis on enforcement and effective
$2.2 billion (with oil accounting for 29%).
implementation of its anti-money laundering regime.
Because the Bahamas is a major transit country for illicit
Among other aspects of bilateral cooperation, CBP
drugs bound for the United States and other markets—
maintains pre-clearance facilities at airports in Nassau and
largely marijuana from Jamaica and cocaine from South
Freeport for those traveling to the United States. The port of
America—cooperation on antidrug efforts has been a
Freeport participates in the Container Security Initiative, a
central component of bilateral relations. U.S. agencies such
CBP-run program that uses a security regime to ensure that
as the Coast Guard, the Drug Enforcement Administration
all containers that pose a potential risk for terrorism are
(DEA), and the Department of Homeland Security’s
identified and inspected before they are placed on vessels
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) assist the country in
destined for the United States. The port also participates in
drug interdiction efforts, and the Royal Bahamas Police
the Megaports Initiative run by the Department of Energy’s
Force cooperates closely with U.S. law enforcement.
National Nuclear Security Administration, which involves
the use of radiation detection equipment to deter, detect,
The Bahamas participates actively in Operation Bahamas,
and interdict illicit trafficking in nuclear and radioactive
Turks and Caicos (OPBAT), a combined Coast Guard,
materials. According to the State Department, the United
DEA, and government of Bahamas partnership to combat
States and the Bahamas actively cooperate on civil aviation,
drug smuggling to and from the Bahamas. According to the
marine research, meteorology, and agricultural issues, as
State Department’s 2017 International Narcotics Control
well. The U.S. Navy also operates an underwater research
Strategy Report (INCSR), operations under OPBAT in
facility on Andros Island in the Bahamas.
2016 led to the seizure of almost 4.45 metric tons of
marijuana and 1,543 kilograms of cocaine, with 91 arrests
President Trump nominated businessman Doug Manchester
made. OPBAT also eradicated three marijuana fields on
to be U.S. Ambassador to the Bahamas in May 2017 and
three sparsely populated islands.
again in January 2018. The United States has not had an
ambassador in place since November 2011. President
The United States provides small amounts of training
Obama had nominated Cassandra Butts, a senior adviser at
assistance (e.g., $207,000 in FY2016, an estimated
the Millennium Challenge Corporation, to be ambassador in
$200,000 in FY2017, and a $100,000 requested for
February 2014, but the full Senate never acted on the
FY2018) to the Royal Bahamas Defense Force through the
nomination.
International Military Education and Training program,
enhancing its technical capability to conduct interdiction
Mark P. Sullivan, Specialist in Latin American Affairs
operations by coordinating its maritime and air assets.
IF10666
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The Bahamas


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