Timothy Baswell Donaldson

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(January 2, 1934 – February 26, 2013) was a Bahamian politician, banker, economist, and

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

Early life

Donaldson was born on January 2, 1934. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from

Fisk University Fisk University is a private historically black liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1930, Fisk was the first Africa ...

, a master's degree in mathematics from the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

, and a master's degree in public administration from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

. He also held a Diploma in Public Finance from the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster globa ...

(IMF). Donaldson received fellowships from the Fellow of the London Institute of Bankers, The Bahamas Institute of Bankers, and the Caribbean Institute of Financial Services.

Career

In 1962, Donaldson launched his career as the Assistant Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, while the Bahamas was still a British colonial possession. In 1972 he served as an economic adviser to the Bahamian government during the Independence Conference held in London. The Bahamas was granted independence on July 10, 1973. Donaldson became the first, founding Governor of the

Central Bank of The Bahamas The Central Bank of The Bahamas is the reserve bank of The Bahamas based in the capital Nassau. The bank was established on 1 June 1974 but traces its origins to the currency board established in 1919. The bank carries out the independent monet ...

upon its establishment in 1974. He remained the Governor of the Central Bank of The Bahamas until 1980. Donaldson was appointed as both the Bahamian Ambassador to the United States and the

Permanent Representative A permanent representative is a diplomat who is the head of a country’s diplomatic mission to an international organisation. Organizations that receive permanent representatives from their member states include the United Nations, the World Tr ...

to the

Organization of American States The Organization of American States (OAS; es, Organización de los Estados Americanos, pt, Organização dos Estados Americanos, french: Organisation des États américains; ''OEA'') is an international organization that was founded on 30 April ...

(OAS) in Washington D.C. in 1992. He simultaneously served as non-resident Ambassador of the Bahamas to Colombia and Mexico as well. He later served as the chairman of the

Securities Commission of the Bahamas The Securities Commission of the Bahamas (SCB), formerly the Securities Board of the Bahamas, is an agency responsible for regulating investment funds, securities, and capital markets in the Bahamas. Among other responsibilities, it enforces the Fin ...

. In 2007, Donaldson became the Chairman of The College Council, a governing body which is responsible for the academic policies and administration of the

College of the Bahamas A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

. Former

Prime Minister of the Bahamas The prime minister of the Bahamas is the head of government of the Bahamas. The prime minister is formally appointed into office by the governor-general of the Bahamas, who represents Charles III, the king of the Bahamas (the Bahamian head of s ...

Hubert Ingraham The Right Honourable Hubert Alexander Ingraham, PC (born 4 August 1947) is a Bahamian politician who was Prime Minister of the Bahamas from August 1992 to May 2002 and again from May 2007 to May 2012. He is a member of the Free National Moveme ...

appointed Donaldson as the co-chairman of the Privatization Committee. Under Donaldson, the Privatization Committee negotiated and approved the sale of the majority of the Bahamas Telecommunications Company to the private sector in 2011. Donaldson was named a

Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(CBE) by

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

in 1973 for his contributions to

public service A public service is any service intended to address specific needs pertaining to the aggregate members of a community. Public services are available to people within a government jurisdiction as provided directly through public sector agencies ...

. The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce named him its "Citizen of the Year" in 1978. Fisk University also awarded him the W.E.B. Dubois Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998. Donaldson was the chairman of the board of trustees of his alma mater, Fisk University, when President

Walter J. Leonard Walter J. Leonard (October 3, 1929 – December 8, 2015) was an American lawyer and university administrator. As an administrator at Harvard University, he pioneered affirmative action in admissions. He was the president of Fisk University, a hi ...

was forced to resign by wealthy donors in 1983.

Death

Donaldson spent six months undergoing treatment for cancer in Florida, returned to the Bahamas in January, 2013. Donaldson died at his home in Winton,

New Providence New Providence is the most populous island in the Bahamas, containing more than 70% of the total population. It is the location of the national capital city of Nassau, whose boundaries are coincident with the island; it had a population of 246 ...

, Bahamas, on February 26, 2013, at the age of 79. He was survived by his wife, Yolande Yasmin Parchment-Donaldson, sons, David and Kevin and daughter Tatiana.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donaldson, Timothy 1934 births 2013 deaths Governors of the Central Bank of The Bahamas Permanent Representatives of the Bahamas to the Organization of American States Ambassadors of the Bahamas to the United States Ambassadors of the Bahamas to Colombia Ambassadors of the Bahamas to Mexico Bahamian economists Bahamian bankers Bahamian politicians Commanders of the Order of the British Empire School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University alumni University of Minnesota College of Liberal Arts alumni Fisk University alumni People from New Providence