Nassau, Bahamas - The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Aviation has contracted Providence Technology Group to take over the maintenance of Bahamas.com, making the firm the first Bahamian company to administer the nation’s main tourism web site.

Providence was selected for the job from among a competitive field of Bahamian and international technology companies. The Ministry of Tourism & Aviation recently signed an agreement with the company’s principals for the scope of work to be carried out on the website.

Minister of Tourism & Aviation, Sen. Hon. Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace pointed out that the selection of the company demonstrated the Ministry of Tourism & Aviation’s commitment to the growth of Bahamian industry. He emphasized the importance of the development by pointing out that over 60% of travel to The Bahamas is now being booked on the Internet. With Bahamas.com being the destination’s main on-line presence, the selection of a local company to manage it was a demonstration of commitment and confidence, he said.

Ian Hepburn, managing director of Providence Technology Group, attributed his company’s success in the bidding process to his team’s broad skills in manipulating drupal, the content management platform in which Bahamas.com is developed. In addition, he said, the company has a great depth of skills in working with search engines and online marketing.

Bahamas.com has been positioned as the Ministry of Tourism and Aviation’s virtual overseas office, which is accessible all over the world, 24 hours per day and seven days per week. The site contains extensive information on the various islands of the Bahamas, and internet users are able to book travel to the country directly from the site.

Pictured (from left) are Caroline Moncur, vice president for Consulting Solutions at Providence; Mr. Hepburn, Minister Vanderpool-Wallace and Basil Smith, Chief Communications Officer in Ministry of Tourism & Aviation.