The Bahamas tourism product continues to take advantage of a global trend of increasing international tourist arrivals – every year, the number of international tourist arrivals grows by at least 6.5 percent, reaching 808 million last year.
Tourism Minister Obie Wilchcombe chalks The Bahamas’ continued success up to a constant process of “re-branding,” and stressed the vital necessity for reliable research on the sector.
Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Francesco Frangialli said in Lisbon last month that the expansion rate “continues unabated, and there is no evidence of saturation of demand despite wars, terror, tsunamis and other crises.”
Mr. Frangialli also called for increased “private-public partnerships to finance and promote sustainable tourism initiatives in developing countries.”
The minister insisted that The Bahamas is a leader in public-private partnerships, particularly tourism-related.
“We have been leading the way. (With) public private sector relationships again, we have been able to speak to the region about it because that’s worked for us. Our relationship with the private sector, whether its through the promotion boards, or the hotel association, we do in fact have a relationship,” Mr. Wilchcombe said.
“And you’re seeing more and more Bahamians joining with the foreign investor to develop relationships for the tourism industry.”
Secretary General Frangialli opined, “Too little research is done on the linkages which demonstrate the economic multiplier effect of tourism.”
Mr. Wilchcombe, referring directly to that remark, noted that when The Bahamas joined the UNWTO last year, it took advantage of the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) study which he said “showed us where we are.”
“We didn’t want to be groping in the dark, because we never understood truthfully the extent of the economic impact of tourism, but we’ve been able to garner that information now. We’ve been able to talk about it authoritatively now, and we now know that 51 percent of our economy is directly or indirectly related to tourism.”
According to the minister, “research is imperative.” If The Bahamas’ tourism sector is going to continue to be a leader in the region, and know how to steer policymakers to ensure they are making the right decisions, Mr. Wilchcombe said, The Bahamas needs the research.
Mr. Wilchcombe explained that there was no evidence of saturation in demand for tourism experiences in The Bahamas.
“What is happening is, I believe, the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, we are faced with a difficulty, and that is to ensure at all times that we are continuously re-branding our product,” Mr. Wilchcombe said.
“Yes, we are a brand now, but we have to constantly understand that if you don’t renew the product, if you don’t change the plant, if you don’t ensure your inventory meets the standard, then you are going to be left behind. It’s a very competitive business.”
After enumerating some of The Bahamas’ advantages, like proximity to the United States (The Bahamas’ largest source of tourists), Mr. Wilchcombe added that markets other than the US are responding positively to The Bahamas, for example Latin America, Asia (particularly China) and Europe.
“We are a destination that has tremendous appeal,” he said.
“Now what we must do at all times is understand that tourism is a business,” the minister said. “Tourism is a business. We have to emphasize what we have in our nation, we have to improve what we have in our nation, we have to do things to stop the leakages – there’s too much leakage.”
“We have to ensure that we are able to take our resources,” he added, “and make those resources work much more effectively for The Bahamas to ensure that more of what is earned from tourism remains in (The Bahamas) and we are able to expand our revenue streams, and we’re able to create new job opportunities as a result of tourism.”
According to the minister, unless tourism can be used to expand the economy, the country is “not really moving as (it) should.”
The goal of such programs as the “My Bahamas” campaign is to ensure that all Bahamians take ownership of The Bahamas tourism industry, and Mr. Wilchcombe questioned whom the sector is working for if the economy is not expanded through tourism.
UNWTO Secretary General Frangialli noted in Lisbon last month that revenue from the tourism sector has risen at an average rate of 11.2% every year since 1950, outgrowing the world economy as a whole.
“Our job is to educate, to ensure that we’re always out there getting the message across about how (Bahamians) can take advantage of these economic opportunities and how Bahamians could be owners of the industry, and how effectively we can do it,” Mr. Wilchcombe said.
“There’s still a lot of work to be done, but we are very proud that we have been in the trade, we’ve not moved away from it, it leads our economy, but we can make it even more successful.”
By: Quincy Parker, The Bahama Journal
