Conervation has to be integrated into the tourism development programme, according to Major General (rtd) Joe Singh.
The Conservation International Executive Director was speaking on Wednesday at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG).
And THAG has appealed to Foreign Missions in Guyana to limit advisories that tend to portray a negative image of Guyana.
This was expressed by THAG at the AGM in the Savannah Suite of Le Meridien Pegasus Hotel.
President of the association Captain Gerald Gouveia said that for a number of years THAG has been working tirelessly to promote Guyana as an eco-tourist destination and that this is an exciting time for the development of tourism in Guyana. "We hope to attract a wide array of visitors from the diaspora and the Caribbean."
He noted that several visitors from Trinidad and Tobago were over in Guyana during the Mash 2004 celebrations.
In this light he said, tourism in Guyana is on the move and will one day stand with Guyana's other major exports.
Work must be done however, in terms of improving standards and sustainability with regard to tourism.
All local players in the tourism agency must be appropriately licensed including aviation operators, he said and tourism development should be environmentally sustainable.
He said the marketing and promotion of Guyana as a whole would also have to be addressed. The marketing should be geared toward the positive, so as to change the image of Guyana. The THAG president pleaded with embassies to watch their advisories since these contributed to tarnishing the image of Guyana.
Gouveia appealed to the current THAG members not to leave the organisation while asking all craftsmen, restaurateurs and resort operators among others to come on board.
Executive Director of the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) Donald Sinclair said the challenges and problems should create many more bridges among members to move tourism forward in a positive manner.
He said some questions needed to be answered for instance whether THAG was pleasing its constituency and with regard to marketing and were members satisfied with the way their culture was being ventilated.
Singh in his feature address noted tourism should be approached with enlightened policy and integration.
He asked whether the products like waterfalls, mountain landscapes, the rivers, archeological sites, built heritage in Georgetown and New Amsterdam and our multi-cultural society are properly marketed and enhanced.
He noted that there should be a shared strategic vision for tourism in Guyana that integrates conservation practices. Development should be sustainable to impact on Guyanese people. He said models could be adopted using such methods as twinning.
Establishment of national resources conservation is important to Guyana, Singh said. All these issues should be addressed and a truly Guyanese product developed, not a copy of any other. But one that is reflective of Guyana's culture.
Minister of Tourism, Commerce and Industry Manzoor Nadir said the government had allocated $31M to tourism, specifically the GTA, in 2004.
Also the number of staff had been increased from four to eight individuals. He acknowledged the need for support outside the budget and said next year will be a challenging one for the GTA and the ministry would give whatever support it can.