The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

FOREIGN Affairs Minister Fred Mitchell has defended two trips where he travelled abroad on government business.

Earlier this week, FNM Montagu MP Richard Lightbourn questioned the purpose of Mr Mitchell’s visits to South Africa and 
Morocco. Both trips took place last year. He suggested that the trips were unnecessary and a waste of public funds at a time when the country is financially strapped.

However, according to Mr Mitchell, not only were the costs of both trips undertaken by the countries hosting them, but the government attended in an effort to consult with foreign officials on how to advance the Bahamas.

Mitchell said: “I don’t really understand what all of this rhetoric is about travelling because that seems intrinsic to what a foreign minister does. It is Minister of Foreign Affairs.

“We thought it was edifying for Bahamians to be represented at the conference and there were some important conclusions to it. So it wasn’t a waste of time.

“As far as costs are concerned, the South African government picked up the cost of the travel of the Bahamas’ heads of government.”

He said a summit had been hosted at South Africa in June with leaders from countries largely consisting of people of African descent. While in Morocco, Mr Mitchell said officials met with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to seek advice on the financial services sector in the Bahamas.

“If Cabinet approves, there will be a subsequent visit to the UAE. Because there are business people in the Bahamas who keep pressing us to do something with the relationship between UAE and themselves as there’s a source of capital in the UAE for the financial services sector to be able to survive.

“Thousands of Bahamians work for the financial services sector, but you would just rather us sit here and do nothing.”

Since the government determined that the country’s finances would take a while to recover, political pundits have urged the Christie administration to not only practice fiscal prudence, but to cut back on unnecessary diplomatic trips. They believe that the country’s debt can be better managed if the government gets a grip on such spending.

Mr Mitchell says his department will not take part in reckless spending of public funds.