Under the theme “Sustainable Tourism – A tool for development” the Guyana Tourism Authority officially launched Tourism Awareness Month, today (Tuesday). According to DPI, this year’s focus will highlight the importance and benefits of the sector locally.
In her remarks (ag) Guyana Tourism Authority Director Carla James-Chandra noted that as one of the world’s largest and fastest growing economic sectors, tourism is well positioned to foster growth and development at all levels and provide income through job creation.
“Our objective is basically to raise the level of awareness of tourism in Guyana to the general public. To encourage the tourism industry to participate in activities that will benefit their operations and highlight their product to the wider population. To boost human capacity in the sector through training. To strengthen the alliance between the public and private sectors. To collaborate with sister agencies and ministries to highlight the vital role they play towards developing our tourism industry, and to further strengthen relations with the regional representatives”, James-Chandra was quoted by DPI as saying.
Minister of Business with responsibility for Tourism, Dominic Gaskin noted that the month’s activities are open to both local and overseas participation. He reiterated the necessity to raise standards, particularly in light of the fact that more visitors are coming to Guyana for various reasons, DPI said.
Meanwhile, President of The Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana, Andrea de Caires spoke of the need for community awareness and ownership of Guyana’s tourism product.
“We’re on the verge of a new era, that of oil production and although there is great excitement in the air and hopes soar high for this development from a tourism perspective, we must be determined not to lose our individuality, our culture, our heritage or our point of difference. We must be committed to the preservation of our natural resources, our savannahs and our rainforest”, the THAG President said.
The month’s activities include school talks, a tourism sector fair, industry training programmes, a scavenger hunt, the launch of Explore Guyana Magazine, Tourism Awards Ceremony, the South Rupununi safari and the first-ever Bartica safari.
