Minister of Education - Honourable T. Desmond Bannister

The Honourable Desmond Bannister was elected the Member of Parliament for the Carmichael Constituency on 2nd May, 2007.  He was appointed Minister of State for Legal Affairs on 4th May, 2007.

He is the son of Horatio David Bannister and Joyce Nell Bannister, both of whom contributed decades of their lives to the education of thousands of Bahamians.

Following his early education in The Bahamas, he completed studies leading to an Associates Degree at Miami Dade Community College in Florida; a Bachelor’s Degree from Grinnell College in Iowa; and a Teaching Certificate from the State of Iowa.

He studied at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill, Barbados, where he obtained an LL.B. degree and went on to complete his Legal Education Certificate at the Norman Manley Law School in Kingston, Jamaica.  He was called to The Bahamas Bar in 1988.

Mr. Bannister served as Crown Counsel in the Office of the Attorney General between 1988 and 1991, then he joined the law offices of Evans & Co.  Prior to his appointment, he served as senior partner at The Law Partnership.

He has been engaged as a part-time lecturer for The Bahamas Bar, at The Bahamas Institute of Bankers and at The College of The Bahamas and has served as Acting Stipendiary & Circuit Magistrate.

A lifelong sports enthusiast, Mr. Bannister was elected as President of The Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations in December 1999.  Under his leadership The Bahamas received unparalleled international recognition for the achievements of our athletes for winning two gold medals at the Olympic Games in 2000 and 2004.  To date, these are the only Olympic Gold Medals ever won by The Bahamas in Track & Field.

Mr. Bannister was appointed to the Senate on the 21st May, 2002, and was elected National Chairman of the Free National Movement in November 2005.

On 7th July, 2008, Mr. Bannister was assigned the portfolio responsibility as Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture.  On 1st December, 2009 Minister Bannister was appointed Minister of Education.

2011 Back to School National Address