The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamian Contractors Association’s (BCA) president yesterday said the launch of a public petition is the industry’s “last shot” to persuade the Government to initiate regulatory oversight of the construction industry prior to the upcoming general election.

Leonard Sands told Tribune Business that the petition, urging the Davis administration to finally make good on promises to appoint the Construction Contractors Board, and give effect to proper supervision of the Bahamian building industry, is the BCA’s last attempt to make the issue “front and centre” before policy-related issues are overtaken by political battles.

He added that the typical refrain of administrations, that they will “deal with it in the next term”, is “not good for us” because the BCA and Bahamian contractors heard exactly the same pledge five years ago and, before that, ten years ago but each time such promises go unfulfiled during an election cycle.

“I think we came to a decision with that having got the commitment from the Prime Minister,” Mr Sands told this newspaper of the petition. “In good faith we have been working on having the Board appointed since this administration came to office. While we believe some parts of the administration would like to see this happen, including the Prime Minister, for whatever reason it has stalled and we have an election coming up this year.

“This is a last effort to get this front and centre, and get the Board appointed, before a general election takes place, and the next thing we will be hearing is that they will deal with it in the next term. That is not good for us. We heard it five years ago, and we heard it five years before that. We feel we need to get the public involved in the importance of getting the Board appointed to enact the legislation; that’s it right there.”

Mr Sands said the newly-launched petition has already received “overwhelming support”, and received “a couple hundred signatures already”, after it was released via the BCA website and the Government’s social media channels. It is now almost a decade since the Construction Contractors Act was passed into law in 2016, but the legislation and regulatory regime it introduces have never been implemented.

This is because of the failure to appoint the Board that would oversee the construction industry’s self-regulation. The Board’s role would be to handle the licensing and registration of Bahamian contractors and construction trades persons according to their abilities and the scale of projects and work they are able to perform.

It would also enforce the Act, imposing penalties and sanctions on contractors found guilty of misconduct and defective work, and thus providing Bahamian consumers with protection and a means of redress. This has left construction as the last major Bahamian profession without self-regulatory powers

The BCA, in its petition, asserts: “We, the undersigned residents and stakeholders of The Bahamas, respectfully submit this petition urging the immediate appointment of the Construction Contractors Board as required by the Contractors Act passed by Parliament in 2016.”This important legislation marks a significant step in our nation’s commitment to building a properly regulated construction industry — one where all contractors operating in The Bahamas meet high standards of professionalism, quality and safety.”It added that the Construction Contractors Board “is essential” for overseeing and licensing professional contractors; implementing a standardised licensing system; improving the overall quality of construction work; and protecting consumers from sub-standard practices and safety hazards.”A well-regulated licensing system ensures that only qualified and competent professionals carry out construction activities, thereby protecting the integrity of our buildings, infrastructure and the well-being of our communities,” the BCA argued.”We therefore call upon the relevant authorities to act without further delay and appoint the Construction Contractors Board so that it may fulfill its mandate and support the sustainable development and economic growth of our nation. If you agree with this call for professionalism, accountability and consumer protection in the construction industry, please sign this petition.”

The BCA said last year that Prime Minister Philip Davis KC had not followed through on his early August 2025 pledge to form the Board by early September last year, despite being provided with industry recommendations for as to who its representatives should be.

Emphasising the need to better protect construction consumers, Mr Sands said yesterday: “Every single day someone is on What’s App, someone is on social media, complaining about the lack of professionalism in the construction industry, persons out there doing rogue work, persons operating solely on a Business Licence but that don’t have a licence to do construction.

“It’s important that we have persons in construction who act in a professional manner, and we have to question why this [Board] has not happened. Why do people not understand, not appreciate the personal and financial loss when things go wrong in construction? We’ll see how this petition goes. This is our last effort to get this front and centre in this administration before it becomes sunk like at other times because this is election season.

“This is the last shot. There’s a statutory obligation to appoint the Board and, for ten years now, it has not been appointed and we have not been given a clear answer as to why that is. It just is what it is. Let’s see what happens.”

The licensing and self-regulatory system ushered in by the Construction Contractors Board’s approval should eventually result in increased business for Bahamian contractors as developers - both local and foreign - will know which companies and individuals can perform certain jobs competently based on the scale and type of work they are certified for.

It will also will provide Bahamians with a more accessible avenue for redressing grievances with contractors. The Board will have the power to fine and discipline rogue contractors, and even bring them before the courts, its regulatory authority being the construction sector’s equivalent of the Bahamas Bar Council or Medical Council.

The BCA has the ability to submit the names of six Board members, with a further three appointed by the minister responsible for the construction industry on its advice. The final member of the ten-person Board will be the director of public works.

However, even with the Board’s appointment self-regulation will take time to implement due to the ‘grandfathering in’ period for existing contractors and trades persons to become licensed and registered under the new system it introduces.

The initial “grandfathering” period expired two years after the Act was passed in 2016, which would have been 2018. This now has to be reset, with the two-year period - at earliest - now starting in 2026 and running until 2028.