The legislation, which was finalised on Tuesday to immediate effect, applies to all territorial waters of the Bahamas, amounting to some 630,000 sq km (243,244 sq miles).
Long-line fishing for sharks was outlawed in 1993, but other forms of shark fishing continued.
Moves to establish a total ban gathered pace after a Bahamian company, Sunco Wholesale Seafood, announced last year a plan to export shark fins to Hong Kong.
It is hoped that the ban will help to conserve shark populations and to protect the Bahamas’ popularity as a holiday destination.
Scuba diving, in particular diving with sharks, is an important element of the country’s tourism industry.
The ban campaign was led by the Bahamas National Trust and Pew Environment Group, the conservation arm of The Pew Charitable Trusts.
The Bahamas joins Palau, the Maldives and Britain (for the Indian Ocean’s Chagos Islands, a protectorate) in having passed legislation banning shark fishing outright.
Palau’s protection started in September 2009, six months after the tabling of marine bills which, had they gone through, would have relaxed established shark protection laws.
The Maldives’ legislation was enacted last July, building on a protective moratorium adopted in 1998.
Passed also last July, Britain’s legislation for the Chagos archipelago made it the world’s largest marine reserve at 210,000 square miles. All commercial fishing and extraction are banned.
Two other countries have established shark fishing bans at moratorium or, legislatively, partial level.
Honduras introduced a ban moratorium early last year, to continue while a governmental assessment of the country’s shark populations and fisheries takes place.
Early last month, Mexico announced a statutory ban to apply annually from May to August, when main shark species reproduce.
Related links
Pew Environment Group
Bahamas National Trust
Sea change for sharks (Palau ban)
Maldives bans shark fishing
UK creates world's largest marine reserve
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