By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

Government consultants have recommended that the Bahamas proceed to estabish an international aircraft registry, and outlined a 28-month implementation timetable.

Glenys Hanna-Martin, minster of transport and aviation, told the House of Assembly yesterday: “We have now in hand the final report with recommendations from consultants engaged to study the feasibility of such an initiative within the context of the Bahamian economy.

“The ICF report recommends that the Bahamas enter the aircraft mortgage registration business, and has recommended an implementation plan spanning 28 months.”

    Mrs Hanna Martin said that to successfully implement the plan, the Bahamas must modify its legal and tax framework by ratifying the Cape Town Convention, or enacting legislation that mirrors it, to provide aircraft owners and financiers with the necessary protection for the interest in their assets.

The Bahamas will also have to waive or eliminate the 10 per cent  Customs duty on the importation of new aircraft, and update the current fee schedule for aircraft registration.

The current fees are insufficient to cover the existing registry’s costs, and will create a large deficit with an expanded registry.

The report also called for the Bahamas to develop robust registration processes, and partnerships and relationships with stakeholders such as the Bahamas Financial Services Board, Ministry of Tourism, business and commercial aviation networks and the Bahamas Maritime Authority.

“The Government must now make a decision on when and how we will proceed to implementation,” said Mrs Hanna-Martin.