Timothy Baswell Donaldson

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

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

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

Early life

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

Fisk University Fisk University is a Private university, private Historically black colleges and universities, historically black Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus i ...

, a master's degree in mathematics from the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

, and a master's degree in public administration from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. 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 funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...

(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 Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...

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 to the

Organization of American States The Organization of American States (OAS or OEA; ; ; ) is an international organization founded on 30 April 1948 to promote cooperation among its member states within the Americas. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, the OAS is ...

(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. 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 The University of The Bahamas (UB) is the national public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas with campuses throughout the archipelago. The main campus is located in the capital city of Nassau, on the island of New ...

. 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 ...

Hubert Ingraham 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 Movement Party (FNM). Pr ...

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 valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) by

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 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. ...

in 1973 for his contributions to

public service A public service or service of general (economic) interest is any service intended to address the needs of aggregate members of a community, whether provided directly by a public sector agency, via public financing available to private busin ...

. 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 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. On the eastern side of the island is the national capital, national capital city of Nassau, Bahamas, Nassau; it had a population of 246 ...

, Bahamas, on February 26, 2013, at the age of 79. He was survived by his former wife, Donna Ruth Penn, sons, David and Kevin, current wife Yolande Yasmin Parchment-Donaldson, and their 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