Antigua Government moves to transform tourism product
Saturday, April 3, 2004
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua: The Government of
Antigua and Barbuda is to mount an all-embracing rescue mission of the tourism
sector designed to propel rapid transformation of the quality of the tourism
product and produce significant levels of innovative destination marketing.
This new approach was revealed by Minister of Finance and the Economy Dr.
Errol Cort during the Budget presentation on Wednesday in the House of
Parliament. The Finance Minister outlined that the government will mobilize
all stakeholders in a national mission to improve the tourism product in order
to exceed the expectations of visitors.
“As a first step in this process, we shall
establish a National Tourism Task Force comprising all stakeholders, with a
mandate to present a comprehensive Tourism Transformation Plan soonest,” noted
Dr. Cort.
He also pointed that that the government
will introduce a Hotel Concessions Act to stimulate investment in the
refurbishment, upgrade and expansion of existing properties and to create an
attractive environment for the construction of new properties. A Cruise
Tourism Policy designed to maximize the cruise sector’s contribution to the
national economy will also be introduced.
Referring to the expansion of the Sandals Resort, Jolly Beach Hotel and Blue
Waters Hotel, Dr. Cort said that they are likely to come to fruition during
the current financial year. He said that the economic impact from these
projects in terms of job creation and the ultimate positive effect on
Government revenues will be significant. The
Tourism Industry is the main engine of economic growth for Antigua and Barbuda
and offers unlimited potential for sustainable jobs and economic growth for
the country.
The government in its Budget has allocated
over $26 million dollars for tourism related matters.
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