The Bahamas

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

noun:

Bahamian(s)

adjective:

Bahamian

at birth:

1.03 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.03 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.03 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.81 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.62 male(s)/female

total population:

0.96 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

conventional long form:

Commonwealth of The Bahamas

conventional short form:

The Bahamas

etymology:

name derives from the Spanish "baha mar," meaning "shallow sea," which describes the shallow waters of the Bahama Banks

name:

Nassau

geographic coordinates:

25 05 N, 77 21 W

time difference:

UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November

• previous 1964 (preindependence);
• latest adopted 20 June 1973, effective 10 July 1973;
• amended many times, last in 2016 (2016)

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a citizen of The Bahamas

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

6-9 years

chief of state:

Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Dame Marguerite PINDLING (since 8 July 2014)

head of government:

Prime Minister Hubert MINNIS (since 11 May 2017)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by governor general on recommendation of prime minister

elections/appointments:

• the monarchy is hereditary;
• governor general appointed by the monarch;
• following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the governor general;
• the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister

description:

• bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (16 seats; members appointed by the governor general upon the advice of the prime minister and the opposition leader to serve 5-year terms) and the House of Assembly (39 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 5-year terms);
• note - the government may dissolve the parliament and call elections at any time

elections:

last held on 10 May 2017 (next to be held by May 2022)

election results:

percent of vote by party - FNM 57%, PLP 36.9%, other 6.1%; seats by party - FNM 35, PLP 4

• Democratic National Alliance or DNA [Branville MCCARTNEY]
• Free National Movement or FNM [Hubert MINNIS]
• Progressive Liberal Party or PLP [Philip "Brave" DAVIS]

chief of mission:

Ambassador Dr. Eugene Glenwood NEWRY (since 3 December 2013)

chancery:

2220 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 319-2660

FAX:

[1] (202) 319-2668

consulate(s) general:

Atlanta, Miami, New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d' Affaires Lisa A. JOHNSON (since 9 July 2014)

embassy:

42 Queen Street, Nassau, New Providence

mailing address:

local or express mail address: P. O. Box N-8197, Nassau; US Department of State, 3370 Nassau Place, Washington, DC 20521-3370

telephone:

[1] (242) 322-1181, 328-2206 (after hours)

FAX:

[1] (242) 356-7174

• three equal horizontal bands of aquamarine (top), gold, and aquamarine, with a black equilateral triangle based on the hoist side;
• the band colors represent the golden beaches of the islands surrounded by the aquamarine sea;
• black represents the vigor and force of a united people, while the pointing triangle indicates the enterprise and determination of the Bahamian people to develop the rich resources of land and sea

name:

"March On, Bahamaland!"

lyrics/music:

Timothy GIBSON

note: adopted 1973; as a Commonwealth country, in addition to the national anthem, "God Save the Queen" serves as the royal anthem (see United Kingdom)

agriculture:

3%

industry:

11%

tourism:

49%

other services:

37% (2011 est.)

lowest 10%:

1%

highest 10%:

22% (2007 est.)

general assessment:

modern facilities

domestic:

• totally automatic system;
• highly developed;
• the Bahamas Domestic Submarine Network links all of the major islands;
• Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) privatized in 2011, but the government reacquired 51% share in 2014

international:

• country code - 1-242;
• landing point for the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) and two additional fiber-optic submarine cables that provide links to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US;
• satellite earth stations - 2 (2017)

• The Bahamas has 4 major TV providers that provide service to all major islands in the archipelago;
• 1 TV station is operated by government-owned, commercially run Broadcasting Corporation of the Bahamas (BCB) and competes freely with 3 privately owned TV stations;
• multi-channel cable TV subscription service is widely available;
• there are 31 licensed broadcast (radio) service providers, 28 are privately owned FM radio stations operating on New Providence, Grand Bahama Island, Abaco Island, and on smaller islands in the country;
• the BCB operates a multi-channel radio broadcasting network that has national coverage;
• the sector is regulated by the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (2017)

number of registered air carriers:

4; inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 16

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

587,516

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

172,730 mt-km (2015)

total:

2,700 km

paved:

1,620 km

unpaved:

1,080 km (2011)

country comparison to the world: 170

major seaport(s):

Freeport, Nassau, South Riding Point

container port(s) (TEUs):

Freeport (1,116,272)(2011)

cruise port(s):

Nassau