The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The Government is looking to re-position Bahamasair as a carrier that brings tourists this nation, a Cabinet Minister describing its plus-$500 million losses since creation as “unacceptable”.

Khaalis Rolle, minister of state for investments, told Tribune Business that Bahamasair, if it were positioned to cater to the tourist trade, might become less of a burden to the public purse.

“We’re looking at Bahamasair,” he said. “If you look at the accumulated losses since its inception, it’s a little more than half a billion dollars.

“For a county like the Bahamas that is unacceptable, where you have so much movement. We’re a tourist destination. If you look at the amount of arrivals that come here on an annual basis, if Bahamasair was positioned to benefit more from that, it would be in a position to be less of a burden on the Public Treasury.”

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Perry Christie hinted earlier this month that the Government was eyeing reforms at the national flag carrier.

Mr Rolle explained that the Government was also assessing its foreign direct investment (FDI) regime, a key component of that assessment being the amount of incentives offered to investors.

“We want to ensure that it is practical, it’s reasonable and it keeps us in the competitive realm,” he added.

“We continue to look at all of these areas that we haven’t addressed over the years, which have now bubbled to the top as major issues. If you look at our strategy moving forward, the fiscal consolidation programme, which is designed to keep our finances in order; the economic development and planning unit, which will be resident in the Office of the Prime Minister, we’re designing the Bahamas to be competitive in the future and provide as much opportunities as is practical for Bahamians.”