Caribbean360: Common tourism policy for OECS by October

Common tourism policy for OECS by October
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Chris Hoyos on 02/09/2011 11:17:00
 
CASTRIES, St. Lucia, Friday September 2, 2011 – October 1, 2011 has been set
as the date for establishing a Common Tourism Policy for OECS Member States.
That is among the major successful outcomes of the second meeting of private and
public sector tourism stakeholders which looked at the draft tourism policy for
the OECS.
Programme Officer at the OECS Secretariat Dr. Lorraine Nicholas says OECS Member
States are “pretty close” towards unveiling their first Common Tourism
Policy.
“The Consultants are refining the Policy document to reflect decisions taken
at the workshop. We expect to disseminate the revised Policy to officials in our
Member States. The Member States have requested a deadline of September 14 for
submission of their final comments; and we expect to have a final Common Tourism
Policy document by October 1,” she said.
The focus on tourism development within the OECS Economic Union and how it
further enhances the life of the sector's thousands of employees as well as the
region's economies was high on the agenda of OECS Member States at the recent
meeting of private and public sector tourism stakeholders.
“I think I can say with some level of confidence that the OECS Member States
have produced a very comprehensive relevant and action oriented Tourism
Policy,” Dr. Nicholas said.
The OECS Secretariat said the recent meeting in Antigua and Barbuda was a
success as tourism professionals from the private and public sector in the OECS
and other stakeholders agreed on the key areas to be addressed in the OECS
Tourism Policy.
The meeting identified the operationalisation of the OECS’ single yachting
space as a top priority. Other key areas include: Harmonisation of customs and
immigration procedures, including the universal implementation of eSeaClear
throughout OECS; improvement in air access to the region; standardization of
human resource development initiatives across the region; transportation; and
enhancement of tourism awareness throughout the region to provide empirical
evidence of the economic impact of tourism.
Improved research and statistics as well as attracting greater investment to the
region were also flagged as major policy measures. Click here to receive free
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