Press Release
The Hon. Sebas Bastian, Minister of Innovation and National Development and Member of Parliament for Fort Charlotte, has concluded a successful working mission to Geneva, Switzerland, where he led an official delegation of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas to the first United Nations-mandated Global Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence Governance and the AI for Good Global Summit, and conducted a series of high-level bilateral meetings with international partners.
Among the most significant outcomes of the mission were bilateral meetings with two of the world’s foremost leaders in government modernization: the Republic of Estonia and the Republic of Singapore. Minister Bastian met with the Hon. Liisa-Ly Pakosta, Estonia’s Minister of Justice and Digital Affairs, and with Mrs Josephine Teo, Singapore’s Minister for Digital Development and Information, to advance cooperation on digital government transformation.
Both nations have agreed in principle to formalize technical cooperation with The Bahamas through Memoranda of Understanding, which are expected to be signed in the coming weeks. The agreements will cover cooperation in digital government, digital identity, government digital services, cybersecurity, AI governance and legislation, and capacity building within the public service.
Estonia is widely regarded as the world’s most advanced digital society, where 99 percent of government services are available online. Singapore’s Smart Nation programme has made it a global benchmark for public sector innovation and digital service delivery. These partnerships will provide The Bahamas with direct access to the implementation experience of both nations as the Government advances its own digital transformation agenda, including the National Digital Identity Programme and the rollout of connected government services.
“We did not go to Geneva for photographs. We went to build the partnerships that will deliver for the Bahamian people,” said Minister Bastian. “Estonia and Singapore did not become world leaders in digital government by accident. They made deliberate choices, and now their ministers have opened their playbooks to The Bahamas. In the coming weeks, we expect to sign technical cooperation agreements that will accelerate the delivery of digital identity, modern government services, and a safer, smarter digital Bahamas. We are not starting from scratch. We are starting from the best.”
A Broadened International Network
During the mission, the Minister also held productive bilateral engagements with counterparts and senior officials from Rwanda and the United Kingdom, as well as the leadership of Smart Africa, the pan-African alliance for digital transformation. These discussions identified further opportunities for knowledge exchange, technical collaboration and participation in the Seventh World Telecommunication/ICT Policy Forum (WTPF-26), which The Bahamas will host in Nassau from 2 to 4 September 2026.
As previously announced, the Minister also met with ITU Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin and signed the Host Country Agreement for WTPF-26, formally sealing The Bahamas’ role as host of the first edition of the global forum ever convened in the Caribbean.
The Ministry will now move immediately to establish technical working groups with partner governments, finalize the cooperation agreements, and prepare for strategic follow-up visits, ensuring that the relationships established in Geneva translate into measurable results for The Bahamas.
“Every meeting in Geneva was a step toward one goal: a government that works at the speed of its people,” Minister Bastian added.
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