Saudi fund loans $55m to expand Bahamas airport

Saudi Arabia will provide $55 million financing for the development of an airport project in The Bahamas that will more than double its capacity.

Unsplash.com/Niklas Jonasson |

The Saudi funding aims to more than double North Eleuthera International Airport’s operational capacity

The project aims to expand North Eleuthera International Airport’s operational capacity from 300,000 to 700,000 visitors annually, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported.

The expansion will generate more than 300 direct jobs during the operational phase.

The signing of the finance agreement, which will mean funds provided through the state-backed Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), will revitalise the North Eleuthera Airport as a world-class international airport, said Bahamas deputy prime minister Isaac Chester Cooper

Since the SFD’s inception in 1974, the fund has been supporting the development of small island developing states and helping build the economic resilience of these nations, its CEO, Sultan Al-Marshad, said.

In 2023, the Saudi fund financed two development loans for the Bahamas. The first was a $10 million pact to establish business incubation centres, supporting 100 small businesses.

The second $70 million loan was to support the family islands airports renaissance project, which aimed at increasing annual airport visitors to 285,000.

The SFD has financed and supported more than 800 projects, with total funding of $20 billion.

Pramod Kumar