Fred Lounsberry, CEO of the Nassau Paradise Island Promotion Board, has announced his planned retirement from the position he held for the past 17 years. Industry leader and outgoing director general of the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism Joy Jibrilu has accepted the position and will begin on August 22. Lounsberry will stay on board during the transition process.
During his tenure, Nassau and Paradise Island has seen the opening of new resorts such as Baha Mar and Margaritaville Beach Resort, as well as major enhancements at Atlantis Paradise Island, Sandals Royal Bahamian and other properties. In 2019, prior to the pandemic, Nassau Paradise Island welcomed more than 1.3 million visitors; after, he helped guide the promotion board to a strong recovery.
Lounsberry joined the Nassau Paradise Island Promotion Board in 2005. Prior to his time with the Promotion Board, he spent 17 years with Universal Studios Parks and Resorts where he served as executive vice president of marketing and sales.
Jibrilu was appointed director general of the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism in May 2014. Prior to this, she served as the director of investments in the Bahamas Investment Authority from July 2008. In this capacity, she was responsible for negotiating heads of agreements for the major touristic developments, including the $3 billion Baha Mar resort. Her career with the Government of The Bahamas began in 2005, where she worked in the former Ministry of Financial Services and Investments as a consultant, followed by the Ministry of Finance where she worked as a legal advisor and for which her prime responsibility was working on international agreements pertaining to financial services.
Prior to joining the public service of the Bahamas, Jibrilu lived and worked in West Africa and the United Kingdom. She received her early education in the United Kingdom and continued her studies at tertiary institutions in Canada, France, England and the United States. She is a barrister (attorney-at-law) by profession, called to both the English and Bahamian Bar.
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