'See us with your hearts, feel us with your eyes'
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'See us with your hearts, feel us with your eyes'
-- Da SilvaBy Linda Rutherford
Guyana Chronicle
May 20, 2000
THE eagerly-awaited Fourth Annual Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development kicked off here yesterday at Le Meridien Pegasus with a warm and stirring welcome for the estimated 150 overseas delegates. The welcome came from Trade, Tourism and Industry Minister Mr Geoffrey Da Silva.
Hosting his first major conference of this gravity since taking office late last year on the incapacitation and subsequent demise of his predecessor, Mr Michael Shree Chan, Da Silva urged his overseas guests "...to see us with your hearts, feel us with your eyes and listen with your souls..[and to] drink in the journey and become one with our wonderful land and beautiful people", over the next three days.
He said it was indeed an honour that a body as dynamic and as visionary as the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) should acquiesce to Guyana's request that such a prestigious conference should be held here. He acknowledged the role played by Shree Chan in making it a reality.
It was Shree Chan, he recalled, who took the bold initiative three years ago to challenge the CTO to hold the conference in Guyana.
Conceding, however, that Guyana was still young in terms of tourism development, Da Silva said that this conference was being viewed as a learning opportunity, and that constructive criticism in terms of "where we're at and where we need to go" was more than welcome.
And, with reference to a certain negative image being peddled abroad about Guyana, which first came to the fore during his maiden presentation in defence of the Y2K budget in Parliament in April last, and which the Government is assiduously addressing, Da Silva said, "We want to assure you throughout this weekend that that is a misconception; [the notion] that we do not have much to offer in terms of ecotourism".
"You will find out for yourselves that we do; that it is affordable and competitive; that our society is not crime-ridden and that we're not an island - that we have many islands," the Minister said.
New CTO Chairman, Mr Noel Lynch, in his brief but riveting presentation, was to touch briefly on this said negativity, when he recalled an observation made some years ago by a Guyanese colleague at university to the effect that the rest of the Caribbean had much more of an opportunity for rapid development than Guyana because of their rich tourism potential.
This vast potential with which other Caribbean countries were endowed, the local lad had argued, included their pristine beaches and azure oceans, attributes which, because she was not so blessed, gave them a distinct edge over Guyana.
Lynch, who is also the Barbados Minister of Tourism and International Transport, said however, that had he known then what he does now, his response might have been that "maybe Guyana has been made this way by God to simply show us how we can still do far more for tourism development... that we need balanced tourism development in the region".
For those like himself that are involved in Caribbean tourism development, Lynch said it was an inspiration that this year's CTO conference was being held in Guyana - "a land so richly endowed by nature; of startling waterfalls and dense forests...imposing mountains and lush valleys... natural nature trails...so many varieties of flora and fauna; so rich in cultural history".
He lamented the fact however, that in spite of Guyana's being what one would refer to as "a nature lover's paradise; an ecotourist's dream come true", it was seldom associated with tourism.
Lynch blamed this shortsightedness on the fact that Caribbean tourism has always been considered in its most traditional sense; that of sea, sun and surf.
He said however, that although these three areas may continue to be the "bread and butter" of Caribbean tourism, it is the natural endowments "of this God-touched country" which will, in the short term, "awaken us to the notion that there is a vast landscape of tourism potential in our region that remains virtually unexplored and unexploited".
The CTO Chairman said it was for the foregoing reasons that the theme of this year's gathering, `Keeping the Right Balance: Unlocking the Potential' is so relevant, "significantly so in a land such as Guyana, so potentially rich for tourism development".
Among those present for the opening of the four-day caucus were President (ag) Mr Samuel Hinds, who made a few brief remarks, CTO executive, board and staff members including Secretary-General, Mr Jean Holder, who also made brief remarks, regional Ministers and Directors of Tourism, regional Permanent Secretaries in their respective Ministries of Tourism, members of the local Cabinet and the diplomatic corps, and City Mayor Mr Hamilton Green.
The key-note speaker was Mr Michelet Fontaine, Director of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Guayanian Forest Conservation Project.
The event, which was highlighted by brief cultural items from the Guyana Police Force Band, the all-male singing group, `Dynamic Force', and the Couchman Family, was broadcast live on the Voice of Guyana as well as on WPAT Radio for the benefit of the Guyanese community in New York.
