US AMBASSADOR Herschel Walker sits with Prime Minister Philip ‘Brave’ Davis and Deputy PM Chester Cooper during the Bahamas Business Outlook on January 15, 2026. Photo: Shawn Hanna
By HERSCHEL WALKER
US Ambassador to The Bahamas
WHEN I arrived in Nassau, I made a simple promise: the United States wants to partner with The Bahamas. Nowhere does that promise matter more than on Grand Bahama. American companies have stayed with Freeport through hurricanes, downturns and decades of uncertainty. Right now they are putting real money behind the island's comeback: a $120 million redevelopment of the Grand Lucayan resort, the opening of Celebration Cay, the establishment of Western Atlantic University School of Medicine, and much more.
So, I read Prime Minister Davis's recent announcement on a new governance framework for Grand Bahama with real concern.
The Hawksbill Creek Agreement is not a technicality. Since 1955 it has served as the foundation of Freeport. It created a Port Area of about 230 square miles, put the Grand Bahama Port Authority in charge of running it, and promised investors a stable set of rules in exchange for their capital. Generations of Bahamians found jobs because businesses trusted that promise. Investors from the United States and around the world built factories, shipyards, hotels and homes on it.
The government now proposes to consolidate regulatory and licensing authority in the Port Area under a single government-led framework and revise the role of the GBPA. Nobody disputes that Grand Bahama needs better results. For years, American businesses on the island have told us about overlapping approvals, unclear fees and slow decisions. If the goal is one transparent process with one clear point of accountability, we welcome it.
But the way the government makes this change matters just as much as the goal. The Bahamian government has published a beautiful website, an impressive green paper, and a consultation period. We hope that these will continue to address the following critical points:
Right now, investors on Grand Bahama have more questions than answers:
- What happens to existing rights? Licensees signed up under the Hawksbill Creek Agreement. Will the government honor their tax and duty treatment, their licenses and their contracts?
- Who sets the fees, and how? Investors need to know who will charge them, on what basis, and how they can appeal.
- What is the timeline? "Changes are coming, details to follow" is the most expensive message a government can send to anyone deciding where to put their capital.
- Who got a say? The businesses and workers who keep Freeport running deserve a real role in shaping the rules before the government finalizes them.
This concern is not new for me. Earlier this year I raised the overflight fees charged to American airlines and the new tax demands facing cruise lines. Each issue looks narrow on its own. Taken together, they send investors one message: in The Bahamas, the rules can change after you have already made the investment. Grand Bahama cannot afford to send that message, because the island needs patient, long-term capital more than anywhere else in the country.
Let me be clear about what the United States is asking for. We are not asking The Bahamas to give up its sovereign right to govern Grand Bahama. We are not asking for special treatment for American companies. We are asking for what Secretary Rubio called for after the Prime Minister's reelection this May: "transparent and reliable economic and infrastructure partnerships that support sustainable growth." That means three things:
1. Honor existing commitments. Businesses that invested in good faith under the Hawksbill Creek Agreement deserve to keep what they were promised.
2. Publish the details. Release the full framework, the legal basis and the timeline before anything takes effect.
3. Consult before deciding. Bring licensees, investors and Grand Bahamian workers to the table now, not after the fact.
The United States wants Grand Bahama to succeed. We want more American visitors in Freeport, more American ships in its harbor and more American investment in its future. I have told Bahamian leaders many times that we are ready to do more. But investors go where the rules hold steady.
The people of Grand Bahama have waited long enough for the island's comeback. I am asking the Davis government to make sure this new framework speeds that comeback up rather than putting it at risk.