Saturday, Sept. 27 will be celebrated internationally as “World Tourism Day.” However tourism officials in the Bahamas will carry out an a public awareness blitz in the days leading up to World Tourism Day, said Geneva Cooper, general manager of Product Development and Marketing in the Ministry of Tourism.
Tourism Awareness Week will be held under the theme, “Customer Satisfaction: A Driving Force for the Sustained Wealth of Our Bahamas.” The message especially will be taken to young Bahamians and church communities, Ms. Cooper said.
“Of course everyone realizes that tourism is our main industry so that is a message that we would not have to emphasize in our week-long campaign,” she said. “What we will have to focus on are the things that we all should be doing to ensure that tourism remains healthy and gets even stronger.”
Senior managers from the Ministry of Tourism and top executives in the hospitality industry will make several radio appearances during Tourism Awareness week. They will deal with issues ranging from the improvement of guest services to the upgrading of the physical environment, Ms. Cooper said.
However, she said, a special effort will be made to speak directly to younger Bahamians, who will be called on to become guardians of the tourism industry. Leaders in the fields of tourism and hospitality will give special addresses at schools throughout Tourism Awareness Week, she said.
“It is important to communicate the needs of the tourism industry to students at a young age so they begin to develop a respect for how important the industry is to us,” Ms. Cooper said. “Once they understand why the industry should be sustained, they would be eager to use their talents to strengthen it.”
In addition to special addresses at schools, Ministry of Tourism will also hold its annual speech contest for high school students. The speech contest, which will be hosted by the Toastmasters organisation, will be held daily during Tourism Awareness Week until Sept. 26, when a winner will be chosen.
The winner of the speech contest will be named Junior Minister of Tourism, who will have to represent the Bahamas locally and throughout the Caribbean.
Ms. Cooper said the tourism message will also be taken into churches because it is a focal point of family life.
“Here, we can reach young Bahamians and their parents,” she said.
Ms. Cooper said Tourism Awareness Week is an invaluable undertaking because the success of the industry will depend upon how well Bahamians are aware of its significance to our livelihood.
FLASH BACK οΎ— Tourism and hospitality leaders will take the message of quality service to schools and churches during Tourism Awareness Week. Robert Sands, general manager of Wyndham Nassau Resort, is pictured speaking to CR Walker students during World Tourism Day 2002.
The Nassau Guardian
