Barbados, Switzerland Enter Into Aviation Agreement

by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels

02 November 2009

The governments of Barbados and Switzerland signed an Air Services Agreement on October 27, 2009.

The agreement was signed by Swiss Ambassador Armin Mitz, and Maxine McClean, Barbados’ Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade.

Speaking at the signing, McClean expressed the hope that the agreement would serve to “expand international air services opportunities and facilitate increased opportunities for tourism, trade and commercial activity”.

Noting that the agreement would be welcomed especially by the aeronautical authorities in Barbados, McClean added:

"Barbados sees this agreement as providing an important role framework for facilitating the development of air links, particularly for tourism purposes between our two countries.

"In this regard, with the imminent appointment of a Vice President for Europe by the Barbados Tourism Authority, it is expected that there will be enhanced focus on continental Europe."

McClean also pointed out that since Barbados did not have a national airline, there was "considerable interest" in facilitating other countries airlines’ wish to establish routes to the Caribbean.

She noted that the agreement would open up the market to increased competition, and would provide Barbados’s populace with greater choice.

For his part, Mitz noted that the agreement would be beneficial to both countries. Observing that "the times were not good for tourism" and that it was a very important sector to his country, he revealed that:

"Tourism for Switzerland is about 12% of the national income; more important than the banking sector. Each time you have an economic crisis, it has a lot of consequences for that industry."

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