Tourism body seeks meeting with political leaders

President of the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG), Mitra Ramkumar, has signalled his intention to have the full board of the association meet with all contesting political parties for the upcoming General and Regional Elections to be held on Monday, March 2, 2020.

“I intend for the full THAG Board to meet with all contesting parties and document their vision for the tourism industry since we believe that the value of tourism is highly underestimated in Guyana,” he told participants at the association’s annual dinner and auction at the Marriott Hotel on October 25, 2019.

Ramkumar said, traditionally, the association would use the occasion to lobby the government for changes to benefit the tourism sector, but with the impending election, it will, in addition to lobbying the government, extend it to include all political parties.
Remarking that tourism is estimated to be the second-largest export industry in Guyana, creating one in every 10 jobs, the THAG president alluded to the Organisation of American States (OAS) Sustainable Tourism Leaders programme which states that “tourism is an industry that has a triple bottom line effect: People, Plant and Profits .”
According to him, the association, during the meeting with the respective political leaders, will seek out their position on incentivizing the tourism industry to achieve the triple bottom line.

As it relates to the first` P`-People, Ramkumar said they will seek out, from the respective parties, their position on establishing rehabilitation centres for the people living on the streets of Georgetown, to offer them a second chance at achieving their real purpose in life; commencing the immediate construction of the hospitality institute; funding for a complete overhaul of the country’s public transportation system to align with health, safety, security and environmental standards (HSSE) so that it appeals to both Guyanese and visitors to travel around the country; and the building on new facilities off the main road and the restoration of the existing ones to the HSSE standards. On the latter, he said presently farmers and vendors are losing opportunities to sell their fresh produce to visitors and expatriates since the current market conditions are not conducive.

As it relates to the send `P’ –Planet, THAG would seek the views of the political leaders on placing an immediate or accelerated ban on single-use plastics; investments in and offering incentives for recycling and renewable energy; enforcing the regulations for the reforestation of all mined concession and mining on our river banks and mining without mercury; discontinuing the wildlife trade and commercial use of wild meat. His opined that Guyana cannot proudly call itself the number one eco-tourism destination in the world when it is itself involved in unsustainable practices and immorality.

On the issue of profits, the leaders of all the political parties will be questioned about their position on truly recognizing tourism as an export industry, giving it the same tax incentives as every other sector which is known as renewable export; tax reduction which is among the highest in the region and takes away disposable income that can have a multiplier effect by increased circulation; and seeing tourism as the answer to diversifying the economy and making it robust to shocks from commodity pricing, taking into consideration that gold, rice, sugar and oil are all vulnerable to those shocks.
On this note, the THAG president expressed that taking into consideration all the areas mentioned and coupled with the fact that Guyana has an infrastructural deficit, he is doubtful about the much-talked-about cash grants.

He further opined that government must stick to its function of creating an enabling environment and providing high-quality social services to its populace, reminding that of the association’s theme for Tourism Awareness Month `Tourism is a Force for Good’ and it can be used as a catalyst for positive change and to mobilise all stakeholders to work together for national development.

At the function, Ramkumar also announced that THAG will be launching its annual publication, the “Explore Guyana Magazine 2020” edition at the World Travel Market in London on November 4, 2019. The journal, which is printed on recycled paper, is the official Tourist Guide of Guyana and its last print run was 35,000 copies.

He said, too, the association’s much-anticipated Bi-Annual Guyana Restaurant Week will be held from November 22 to December 1, 2019, when some principles from Green Restaurants, such as not providing a straw unless requested, will be adopted.