By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

NEARLY 200 new micro-businesses are licensed to do business in Freeport following two initiatives launched by the Grand Bahama Port Authority earlier this year.

Derek Newbold, senior manager of business development at GBPA, reported that they welcomed 195 new micro-business licensees up to this July under their Micro Business Licence (MBL) and Business Diversity Waiver (BDW) initiatives.

He stated this included 125 permit vendors who were grandfathered into the programme, 55 traditional businesses and 15 innovative businesses approved through the BDW.

Mr Newbold indicated the BDW licencees operate in diverse sectors including agriculture and fisheries, hospitality/tourism, entertainment, education, retail, industrial-related, health and wellness, real estate, and export. The MBL licencees have enabled growth in the agriculture/fisheries, tourism, food, and micro-retail sectors.

In March, GBPA launched the initiatives to continue to provide opportunities for small business entrepreneurs to launch new, innovative and diverse businesses in the community.

Mr Newbold said they continue to receive interest from Bahamians.

“Since the launch of these initiatives in early March 2021, GBPA has received a significant number of inquiries, including individuals from Nassau and the Family Islands,” he said.

The Grand Bahama Chamber has on record 216 members for the year 2021. Of that number, there were 20 new members with small and medium-sized businesses.

The government has assisted many Bahamians in becoming entrepreneurs through grants available via the Small Business Development Centre (SBDC).

While speaking at the virtual GB Business Outlook Conference via Zoom in April, Minister of State for Grand Bahama Kwasi Thompson indicated that more small businesses would help with the island’s recovery.

He said the government reinforced its commitment to the small business sector.

“The success of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) keep our islands alive. It is in this vein that this government has prioritised initiatives to empower small business owners through the Small Business Development Centre’s Access Accelerator,” he said.

He said the government allocated some $50m for the SBDC this fiscal year alone. The minister also reported that some 192 businesses in Grand Bahama had benefited up to April, representing a total of $1.8 m injected into MSMEs.

Mr Thompson had also noted more and more businesses have begun to shift to technology and digital-based services.

“Lessons from Hurricane Dorian as well as the unprecedented onset of the pandemic made this shift almost a necessity for our local businesses. The government has taken the position to encourage businesses to continue this trend as we aim to digitise our services and improve the ease of doing business and efficiency in our country,” he stated.