NASSAU, The Bahamas – During his Budget Contribution Closing 2025/2026, on June 19, 2025, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis pointed out the work that his Government’s Cabinet Ministers and Members of Parliament had done, commending them, as well as expressing his “deep gratitude to the dedicated team at the Ministry of Finance and the countless public servants across Government who continue to carry out the work of nation-building with skill, discipline, and commitment”.
“From designing policy to managing the details of implementation, their quiet dedication is the backbone of our progress,” Prime Minister Davis said in the House of Assembly. “It is because of their tireless efforts that we are able to deliver on the promise of expanding opportunities for Bahamians, island by island.”
He added: “To every officer in the public service, from the custodian to Permanent Secretaries, I want to say from the bottom of my heart, thank you for helping turn vision into reality. This is a team effort. And every step we have taken has been driven by a vision not just of growth, but of fairness. Not just of numbers, but of people. And that’s what we came to do.
“We’ve done a lot. But there’s more to do. And let me say clearly: there’s a lot to lose.”
Prime Minister Davis pointed out that that was because what his Government was building, it was fighting for, was “a different kind of country: one where every child starts with a fair shot; one where a job leads to security; one where a school leads to opportunity; one where government lifts, not blocks”.
“We see that future,” he noted. “We believe in it; and we are building it, together.”
Prime Minister Davis later stated that, in every corner of The Bahamas, one could “feel the stirrings of progress – quiet in some places, bold in others, but always there”.
He said: “A new subdivision in Carmichael. A revamped clinic in Cat Island. A young entrepreneur in North Andros receiving their first grant. A student in Grand Bahama stepping into a state-of-the-art aquatic centre. These are choices. The choices of a Government that believes in its people. The choices of a team that came into office to make change.”
Prime Minister Davis noted that the Budget was part of a plan: a plan rooted in reality and lifted by ambition; a plan that recognised the complexity of the country’s challenges, but also the strength of its people.
He added: “We are building a country where opportunity is not defined by your last name or where you live. A country where a child born on Mayaguana has the same chance to succeed as one born in Nassau. A country where government is not an obstacle, but a partner.”
Prime Minister Davis pointed out that in his Government’s Economic Plan and in its Blueprint for Change, it laid out a “detailed vision for recovering, rebuilding, and revolutionizing our country’s economy”.
“We knew we had a big task ahead of us – we knew that rescuing the country from the worst fiscal and economic crises we’d ever faced was going to be a big lift,” he stated. “But we also knew – as bad as things were – that recovery could not be the ultimate goal; recovery had to be a stop on the way to something better. Because even in the best of times in the past, too many Bahamians have been left out of our economy.”
Prime Minister Davis added: “This work is hard. The road is long. And yes, at times, the opposition will shout and distort and try to sow doubt. But they cannot stop what is already in motion. They cannot unbuild the homes; they cannot untrain the teachers; they cannot unlight the homes, or unhope the people.”
He stated that The Bahamas was on the right path.
“And if we stay steady, stay disciplined, stay true to the people who sent us here, we will finish what we started,” Prime Minister Davis said. “So to the Bahamian people, I say this: we see you. We hear you. And we are working for you. Every school we open, every clinic we staff, every young person we invest in – it is for you.”
He added: “We are not perfect. But we are trying. We are showing up. And we are delivering.
“And we will not stop. I proudly commend this Budget to the House.
“May God bless all of us in here; and may God bless the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.”
