Jamaica Transport Minister signs CASSOS Headquarters Agreement

Jamaica Minister of Transportation, the Hon. Robert Montague has signed the Headquarters Agreement of the Caribbean Aviation Safety and Security Oversight System (CASSOS), a Community Institution.

Minister Montague signed the Agreement at the 25th Meeting of the
Board of Directors of CASSOS at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel on 21 February
2020.

The Agreement formalises the decision of the Conference of Heads of Government on the location of the CASSOS Headquarters in Jamaica. The Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority (JCAA) hosts the headquarters.

In an address at the opening of the Meeting of the Board of
Directors, Minister Montague underscored the importance of CASSOS to the
Region.  As we managed our “increasingly complex” aviation systems, he
said that it was essential for CASSOS, as the regional safety oversight
organisation, to work collaboratively to support safe and sustainable
air transport development.

He pointed out that it remained the duty of civil aviation
authorities, regulators, airlines, manufacturers and suppliers to
deliver on, and exceed, the high expectations of passengers and ensure
that air travel remained the safest form of mass transportation
worldwide.

“With aviation safety rightfully remaining the industry’s top
priority, we know that ensuring air transport safety and security
requires an integrated approach – one characterized by deep cross-border
cooperation that transcends physical boundaries and the domains of
sovereignty. Like the links of a chain, the regional and global aviation
systems are interconnected and interdependent, and our airspace,
airports, skies, technologies, systems and most importantly, our
passengers, remain safe through effective and increasing cooperation and
collaboration at the regional and international levels,” he said.

He added that the Government of Jamaica and regional partners
remained committed to ensuring the administrative, resource and
financial support.

CASSOS, which was launched at the CARICOM Secretariat in Georgetown,
Guyana, in 2009, is headed by Mr. Nari Singh, Director-General of the
Civil Aviation Authority of Jamaica.