Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis returned to the Bahamas yesterday where he said the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of The Bahamas is skewed.
Dr. Minnis who meet the media after his return from the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London, England, said, “our average income would be reflected to over $26,000, that would be skewed because of the Lyford Cay and Old Fort Bay, but in actuality our real average income would be around $12,000. The $26,000 would put you in a first world nation category and therefore you don’t qualify for certain grants.”
The Prime Minister said while The Bahamas is one of the smaller countries that contributes the least to global warming, we are one of those who feel the greatest impact from it.
Dr. Minnis said that small island states like the Bahamas should be treated differently in terms of receiving grants and being able to borrow.
The Prime Minister’s comments are similar to those made by Environment and Housing Minister Romauld Ferreria at CHOGM.
Minister Ferreria hoped Commonwealth Heads would have had a change of heart when it comes to post disaster relief funding.
When addressing the issue of climate change at CHOGM, the minister suggested donor states evaluate The Bahamas based on a vulnerability index or GDP index that takes in vulnerability as opposed to just the country’s GDP.
Mr. Ferreria said, “we live in a country where our GDP is skewed. By that I mean we have a number of millionaires and billionaires that live in the country that aren’t necessarily Bahamians and that drives up the GDP. It may not reflect the country’s ability and the country’s true GDP.
“So when we go out into the market and we’re looking for assistance to rebuild after hurricanes, to strengthen our infrastructure, to install the green infrastructure, to develop renewal energy or for whatever, we want to look for a lot of times we don’t qualify because of the GDP.”
The Bahamas’ GDP was pegged at just over $9 billion in 2016. That represents 0.01% of the global economy.
