Appointment of Captain Dwain E. Hutchinson as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of The Bahamas Maritime Authority

The Bahamas Maritime Authority (BMA) announces the appointment of Captain Dwain E. Hutchinson as its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. Captain Hutchinson succeeds Commodore Davy F. Rolle, who stepped down as Director last year.

“Captain Hutchinson brings to the BMA more than thirty years of knowledge and experience in the maritime field. He has built a very distinguished career, aboard ship and ashore, including many years with the BMA,” said BMA Chairman J. Denise Lewis-Johnson. “The Board and I are confident that Captain Hutchinson will afford us the leadership that will drive our continued growth.”

“It is with humility and a great sense of responsibility that I accept this appointment as Managing Director & CEO of The Bahamas Maritime Authority,” said Captain Hutchinson. “This achievement would not be possible without the unwavering support of my family. Shipping is a global industry and I am proud to lend my leadership to our excellent team in our Nassau, New York, London, Piraeus, Hong Kong and Tokyo offices, a team that (a) delivers quality service to our stakeholders, and (b) maintains The Bahamas active, strategic role in the international, regional, and national regulatory process to assure safe, secure maritime practice on cleaner oceans.”

Captain Hutchinson is a proud Bahamian from Nassau, New Providence island, where he completed his tertiary education before commencing his maritime studies in Scotland at Glasgow College of Nautical Studies. Qualified with a UK Master Mariner (Unlimited) STCW Certificate of Competency, his seagoing career spanned fourteen years with services on a variety of ships – including bulk carriers, tankers, ore-bulk-oil carriers, general cargo and container ships, ferries and passenger / roll-on roll-off ships. Captain Hutchinson has been employed with the BMA for over two decades, where he has served in various executive and managerial capacities.

Coupled with his seagoing experience, Captain Hutchinson brings to this post a broad and deep list of qualifications and accomplishments. These include: Bachelor of Science (Honours), UK Master Mariner (Unlimited), Master of Business Administration, Post Graduate Certificate in Legal Studies, International Ship and Port Facility (ISPS) Company Security Officer qualification, International Safety Management (ISM) Systems Auditor, ISO 9001 Lead Auditor, IMO Member State Auditor and STCW Auditor and Examiner.

During his tenure with the BMA, Captain Hutchinson has assumed a wide variety of management and leadership roles and responsibilities, including, for the past year, Acting Director and Chief Executive Officer of the BMA. In representing The Bahamas, he has become a well-known and respected figure in the maritime industry, and served in a number of high level international and regional capacities. Among his many responsibilities have been the following:

• Head of The Bahamas delegation at various International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and International Mobile Satellite Organisation (IMSO) meetings
• Head of BMA delegation to consultative meetings with Maritime Administrations, incl. European Union, United States Coast Guard, and industry / shipowner groups
• Designated BMA liaison / point of contact, for Bahamas flagged passenger / cruise vessel matters
• Head, The Bahamas delegation at International Labour Organisation (ILO) on matters relating to Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC)
• Chairman, IMO Implementation of IMO Instrument (III) Sub-Committee, Chairman, IMO Flag State Implementation (FSI) Sub-Committee
• Governor, IMO World Maritime University’s Executive Board of Governors
• Vice-Chairman, Caribbean Port State Control Committee (CPSCC)
• Vice-Chairman, IMO 24th Assembly Technical Committee
• Chairman, Caribbean Port State Control Committee (CPSCC) Technical Committee, Chairman, CPSCC Finance & Administration Committee

The Bahamas Maritime Authority administers one of the world’s leading ship registries, including some of the world’s largest and most sophisticated vessels, and the world’s largest passenger ship fleet. Today, there are more than one thousand five hundred vessels flying The Bahamas Flag, at home, and in the far-flung corners of the globe.