Bridgetown.
President of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Assocaation (BHTA) Patrica Affonso-Dass as accused the Government of being lethargic in their response to the problems facing the tourism industry on the island.
In her report to the BHTA annual general meeting held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre yesteday, Affonso-Dass painted a gloomy picture of the tourism sector on the island comparing it to the poorly performing sugar industry once a leading foreign exchange earner.
She lamented that while the BHTA and other members of private sector have repeatedly identified the problems facing the industry and the economy, the Freundel Stuart Administration has been lethargic in responding to their concerns.
According to Affonso-Daas, the BHTA has been submitting a number of requests to the Ministries of Finance and Tourism over the past two years, yet many of the issues were still to be meaningfully addressed.
“It is disappointing to say the least, that some six months after approval by Cabinet of the additional list of items to the TDA (Tourism Development Act) list, that we have still been unable to get the list ratified,” Affonso-Daas said.
“It is disappointing to say the least, that some six months after approval by Cabinet of the additional list of items to the TDA (Tourism Development Act) list, that we have still been unable to get the list ratified,” she stated.
“Can we truly be serious about expecting that tourism will be the sector to turn around the economy if this level of lethargy in process and frustration of purpose is allowed to continue?” she asked .
“There has been enough talking. All agencies have clearly and repeatedly identified the issues and I do not believe that there is any shortage of ability to get the job done. What is needed now is leadership, commitment to change and action", she added.
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