The money for this financial plan should come from the countries which rely on Air Jamaica, BWIA, LIAT and Bahamasair to bring tourists to their shores.
That plea has come from Obie Wilchcombe, chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) and Minister of Tourism in The Bahamas, who said that in much the same way Caribbean countries had helped foreign carriers, they should certainly do the same for their own.
ﾓLetﾴs face it, the Caribbean countries, some of us subsidise some of the other airlines that are not regional,ﾔ he told the Daily Nation in New York. ﾓWhy canﾴt we look at what regional airlines should be doing for Caribbean tourism?
ﾓThat is the question we should examine. After examining the question, if we appreciate that Air Jamaica, BWIA, Bahamas-air have been making a contribution, then why not find the necessary funds to ensure that these airlines are contributing to tourism?ﾔ
Wilchcombe, who is in New York for the annual Caribbean Tourism Week organised by the CTO, said the first priority for countries that range from his own, Jamaica, Barbados and The Bahamas to Trinidad and Tobago and its neighbours in the Eastern Caribbean was to undertake an airline needs assessment and then take the necessary action.
ﾓWe ought first and foremost to take a look at our needs as best as we can and prepare ourselves for any difficult situations down the road,ﾔ was the way he put it.
ﾓWe have seen what can happen. We have seen the airline industry fall apart and we have seen the fall-out as a result of the tragedy of 9/11, the hostilities of the Gulf War and the recent war. So, should we not now be looking at what we need to do?ﾔ
Wilchcombe said it was clear that despite the terrorist attacks, the global economic slowdown and the recent war in Iraq, tourists, including Americans, were willing to travel and take vacations in foreign countries. That was why the Caribbean, one of the worldﾴs premier vacation spots, must put its carriers in a good position to provide the airlift needed by the various tourism destinations.
ﾓOne of the things we will discover is that people still will travel, despite the problems,ﾔ he said. ﾓLast year people took more than 700 million trips. They will travel.
ﾓThe fact of the matter is that we must put these airlines in the destinations people are going to and depart from in a good position. I believe their choice will be the Caribbean. I believe we can find the way; itﾴs up to us.ﾔ
Planes released
His comments came after BWIA and the Trinidad and Tobago government secured the release of two of the carrierﾴs planes, which were seized last week in Miami for nonpayment of debts. BWIA was given about four months to pay off the arrears, which amounted to about $100 million.
Air Jamaica, Bahamas-air and LIAT are also losing money.
But Wilchcombe, who is presiding over the CTOﾴs board of directors meetings in New York this week and will play a prominent role at the Caribbean State Ball at the Waldorf Astoria on Friday evening, said the region couldnﾴt simply allow its airlines to bleed to a financial death.
ﾓItﾴs up to the Caribbean region determining that we will be responsible for our destiny; that we will take on the responsibility and stop depending on others to do the job that we ought to be doing and finding the easy way out,ﾔ he said.
ﾓWe have to look at these thorny questions, find the solutions and work effectively towards the execution of solutions.ﾔ
Wilchcombe, CTO Secretary-General Jean Holder, and several Caribbean ministers of tourism, including Philip Pierre of St Lucia, took part in A Caribbean Fair to Remember in Manhattan on Monday.
Denis Walcott, deputy mayor; Virginia Fields, Manhattan Borough president; and former New York City Council member Una Clarke also participated in the official opening of Caribbean Tourism Week.
Individual Caribbean tourism agencies set up booths and distributed literature on their respective destinations. Some served special dishes, providing noon-day strollers with a taste of the Caribbean.
Music provided by a prominent steel band and the Royal Barbados Police Band entertained the large crowd. The Police Band, which proved to be a big hit with New Yorkers and West Indians alike, was partly sponsored by the Barbados Tourism Authority.
Caribbean Tourism Week began with an Interfaith Celebration at St Georgeﾴs Episcopal Church in Manhattan on Sunday.
By Tony Best, Barbados Daily
