Recommendations from conference to inform tourism policy -Jagdeo
By Desiree Jodah
Recommendations coming out of the recently concluded Caribbean Tourism Organisation conference held in Guyana would be taken to the highest level of government to influence tourism policies. President Bharrat Jagdeo, speaking at the closing ceremony of the four-day conference at the Georgetown Club on Monday night, said he had mandated Tourism Minister, Geoffrey Da Silva, to put the recommendations together and take them before Cabinet for discussion. Mr Jagdeo urged the over 150 foreign delegates to view Guyana as a country in transition; to assess things seen, such as roads, buildings and scenic sites and not judge them by the standards of other countries, but as being in a country in evolution. He said insularity has affected Guyana in many ways. The President noted that in the past over 80% of the workforce was controlled by the state. In this process, many skills were lost. According to the President, the current administration since coming into power had reduced state-owned agencies from 45 to seven and by year end this number is expected to be down to three. Mr Jagdeo echoed Da Silva's call to change the negative image of Guyana. He encouraged delegates to go back and tell the world the positive things that were going on in Guyana and what the country had to offer. The government was committed to the development of tourism, despite reports to the contrary, the President said. In addition to the $20 million allocated for the establishment of the Tourism Authority, Mr Jagdeo said, the millions spent on tourism-related sectors must be taken into account. He said it would be foolhardy to think that tourism could be developed if the infrastructure of the country was not. Responding to criticism from members of the private sector of government's perceived lack of interest in the tourism sector, Mr Jagdeo declared that members of that group talked a lot about the development of tourism, and accused some of deliberately discouraging foreign entrants for fear of competition. The President warned that he would aggressively court foreign investment for the country because there was a need for more capital, more expertise and marketing. Too often members of the tourism sector relied too heavily on government, he said. "Shift government into the background, if there is a need for assistance from government to move the sector forward, government would help," he said. Mr Jagdeo urged that all must work to move the entire sector forward and not operate in their own personal interest. He admitted that the country had a long way to go in terms of the development of tourism, but he reiterated that his government would aggressively move forward and would be receptive to any recommendations, suggestions and advice. Secretary-General of the CTO, Jean Holder, said that if Guyana moved into a different gear, it would be transformed. He said given the country's unique product, there were no limits to Guyana's potential. Holder cited Aruba and Cuba as two good examples Guyana could learn from in pursuing the development of its tourism potential. He said that from a country where tourism was almost nil, Aruba was transformed to one of the world's major hot weather tourism destinations. Cuba, coming out of the 50s when things had taken a turn for the worse, has been converted into one of the fastest-growing tourism destinations in the world. According to Holder, the way Guyana was going, this could also happen here. Vision, creativity, marketing and selling the product at a competitive price were some of the criteria for moving the industry forward. He gave Disney World as an example of creative thinking and marketing. Unlike Guyana's product, he said, Disney World did not have one heritage site, yet had been able to create an environment that attracts 30 million persons per year. The innovative skills of this attraction have seen the recent introduction of cricket as part of the activities, he said.
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