On Thursday, 21 August 2026, the Union Jack and the Aquamarine, Gold and Black will fly side by side in pride at the Hilton London Kensington, when Robert Dupuch-Carron — Bahamian businessman, aviation developer and heir to the historic Dupuch publishing dynasty — is formally honoured as a recipient of the African Innovation Excellence Award at the landmark 15th Voice Achievers Award.
Under the powerful theme “Putting Africa In The Right Perspective – Focusing On Mental Empowerment For Economic Inclusion & Growth”, the Voice Achievers Awards, now in its 15th year, is the UK’s premier celebration of African, Caribbean and global diaspora excellence. This year’s final list, published by the organizers, confirms Robert Dupuch-Carron among 45 distinguished leaders to be celebrated for leadership, innovation and impact.
For The Bahamas, an archipelagic nation of 700 islands and over 2,400 cays in the Atlantic, just southeast of Florida, this is more than an award. It is a national moment. A former British colony that gained independence in 1973 and remains a constitutional monarchy within the Commonwealth under King Charles III, with Nassau as its capital, The Bahamas is renowned for crystal-clear turquoise waters, white and pink sand beaches, and the world’s third-largest barrier reef. Its economy is driven by high-end tourism and offshore financial services, with the Bahamian dollar pegged 1:1 to the US dollar. Its culture — a vibrant blend of African, British and American influences — is celebrated through Junkanoo, conch cuisine, and rake-and-scrape music, from the blue holes of Andros to the swimming pigs of Exuma. That spirit of resilience and innovation will be on full display in London.
A legacy of service powering a future of innovation, Robert Dupuch-Carron is the son of Rt. Hon. Eileen Dupuch Carron, C.M.G., longtime Publisher and Editor of The Tribune, The Bahamas’ oldest daily newspaper founded in 1903, and grandson of the legendary Sir Etienne Dupuch, representing the fourth generation of a dynasty that has produced seven Members of Parliament since 1840 and has shaped Bahamian journalism, politics and civic life for over a century, now carrying that heritage forward through transformative national development.
But Robert is not resting on legacy. He is building the future. He is currently leading the $427 million Bahamas Aviation, Climate & Severe Weather Network (BACSWN) — a transformational national infrastructure project designed to bring dedicated air-ambulance, search-and-rescue, disaster response and advanced Doppler weather radar coverage to the long-neglected southern Bahamas, from MICAL to Ragged Island. The project, which has drawn international investor interest, addresses a critical climate vulnerability for Small Island Developing States and has positioned him as a cited prospective candidate for the MICAL constituency.
It is this fusion of heritage and forward-looking innovation that earned him the African Innovation Excellence Award, where he will be honoured alongside continental icons including African Banker of the Year, African Hero and Heroine awardees, and cultural royalty.
Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, Hon. Philip Davis, KC, MP, has sent an official congratulatory message to Robert Dupuch-Carron on his historic African Innovation Excellence Award, hailing the recognition as not only a personal triumph of vision and innovation but as a powerful testament to The Bahamas’ growing stature as a stable, democratic partner and emerging innovation hub for the Caribbean, and to mark the occasion has dispatched a high-calibre national delegation to London to stand in support of him at the Hilton.
To underscore the significance, the Prime Minister has dispatched a high-calibre official and family delegation to London to support Robert at the Hilton London Hotel venue, led by some of the nation’s most respected diplomatic, political, business and community figures.
The delegation will be headed by H.E. Michael Strachan, the distinguished Bahamian career diplomat and statesman, and one of The Bahamas’ senior voices in international affairs. A former Minister and high-level representative, Ambassador Strachan has served in key trade and diplomatic portfolios including financial services, WTO accession and sustainable development for Small Island Developing States, where he has been a steadfast advocate for The Bahamas as a clean and compliant international financial centre and for fair treatment of archipelagic nations in global trade and climate finance. He is widely respected within CARICOM and Commonwealth circles for his measured diplomacy.
He is joined by Dr. Patrick Rollins, the outspoken former Member of Parliament for Fort Charlotte, pharmacist, businessman and former Deputy Chairman of Bahamas Power and Light. First elected as leader of the National Development Party and later as a PLP MP in 2012, Dr. Rollins became known for his principled stands on transparency, Freedom of Information and accountability, and remains a strong voice on governance and energy reform.
Also leading the delegation is The Hon. Myles Laroda & Ministers Aid, representing the Government of The Bahamas, along with High Commissioner H.E. Paul Andrew Gomez, JP & Deputy High Commissioner Antonio Butler. H.E. Gomez is the current High Commissioner of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas to the Court of St. James, appointed on 20 April 2023. A chartered accountant with over four decades experience, former Ambassador to China (2015-2017) and founder of Grant Thornton Bahamas, he was in post for the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III and has focused his tenure on education, maritime affairs, investment and diaspora engagement. He is deputised by Mr. Antonio V. Butler Jr., who serves as second-in-command of the Mission at Bahamas House, 10 Chesterfield Street, London.
The full delegation includes:
Patrick Rollins, Ambassador H.E. Michael Strachan, Devaughn McDonald, Vincent McDonald, Debbie Bartlett, Adam Darville, Paul Wilson, Rhett Storr, Dr. Rohil Raghavan, Lavaughn Neymour, Johnny Gallagher, Holly Gallagher, Harry Gallagher and John Gallagher, The Hon. Myles Laroda & Ministers Aid, High Commissioner Paul Gomez & Antonio Butler, Amanda Gallagher & Brendan Keane, Lloyd Embley & Eve Tomlinson, Keri James & Molly Codling.
This remarkable assembly reflects the breadth of support — from government, diplomacy, business, media and the extended Bahamian family in the UK.
At the heart of the London celebration will be Robert’s beloved wife Elizabeth Carron, integral to the historic Dupuch-Carron dynasty and wife of the son of Rt. Hon. Eileen Dupuch Carron, who while maintaining a dignified low public profile has been a pillar of grace, stability and strong family orientation, and who together with Robert welcomed their first child, Aidan Roger Dupuch Carron, at Doctors Hospital in Nassau in November 2015, embodying the next-generation strength of a family that has rendered over 120 years of continuous service to The Bahamas through The Tribune.
Her presence in London, alongside the Gallaghers — Johnny Gallagher, Holly Gallagher, Harry Gallagher and John Gallagher, and Amanda Gallagher & Brendan Keane — as well as close family friends and colleagues like Lloyd Embley & Eve Tomlinson and Keri James & Molly Codling, underscores that this is a family achievement and a national one.
Business leaders Devaughn McDonald and Vincent McDonald, Debbie Bartlett, Adam Darville, Paul Wilson, Rhett Storr, Dr. Rohil Raghavan and Lavaughn Neymour complete a delegation that blends policy, innovation, healthcare and entrepreneurship — exactly the cross-sectoral mix the Voice Achievers Awards seeks to promote.
The 15th Voice Achievers Award is far more than a ceremony, it is a bridge, and by honouring a Bahamian innovator alongside Africa’s continental leaders, it powerfully reinforces the unbreakable historic and future ties between Africa and the Caribbean — bonds forged in ancestry, culture and shared resilience, and now strengthened through trade, climate finance, and a collective pursuit of economic inclusion.
As Robert Dupuch-Carron steps onto the stage at the Hilton London Kensington to receive the African Innovation Excellence Award, he carries with him 700 islands, a 120-year newspaper legacy, a $427m vision for saving lives in the southern Bahamas, and the prayers of a proud nation.
The Bahamas is coming to London — not just to receive an award, but to announce its future.