The Bahamas Alexander Johnny June 8 th 2010

Where is Bahamas located? IIt is located at the north-east of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba, Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti) and the Caribbean Sea, northwest of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and southeast of the United States of America (nearest to the state of Florida).

Flag, Motto, Anthem:  The Bahamas Motto is “Forward, Upward, Onward, Together” The Commonwealth of Bahamas has Two anthems. The Regular anthem is “March on, Bahamaland”. And the Royal anthem is “God Save the Queen”

History:  The Bahamas became a Crown Colony in 1718 when the British clamped down on piracy. Following the American War of Independence, thousands of pro- British loyalists and enslaved Africans moved to The Bahamas and set up a plantation economy. The slave trade was abolished in the British Empire in 1807 and many Africans liberated from slave ships by the Royal Navy were settled in The Bahamas during the 19th century. Slavery itself was abolished in 1834 and the descendants of enslaved and liberated Africans form the bulk of The Bahamas's population today.

Economy:  The Bahamas is a stable, developing nation with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but the slowdown in the US economy and the attacks of 11 September 2001 held back growth in these sectors in Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy, accounting for about 15% of GDP.

What do you like the most about Bahamas?  The beaches…. Obviously  -.-