He said the creativity of Bahamians should be integrated into the tourism product, the national flag carrier be more involved in tourism development and threats of strike and disharmony within the Bahamas threaten the future of the industry.
Speaking at both the official opening of the Ninth Annual Authentically Bahamian Christmas Craft and Souvenir Show, and the annual Bahamas Hotel Association Recognition Luncheon, which were held at the Wyndham Nassau Resort, Mr. Wilchcombe said recent world events have magnified the need to protect the country’s main industry.
“We saw, 9/11 showed us, that if you do not protect what is yours, if you do not have your own, you will pay dearly.”
He said since his appointment as minister of tourism, he has been working to find ways of ensuring that the tourism product represents The Bahamas.
“I believe that we must always celebrate who we are, and if we celebrate who we are, we will get more out of our investment.”
Requesting that hotel properties incorporate more of The Bahamas into their d�cor, he drew comparisons with other regional destinations he visited that make it a point to integrate the culture of the country into their tourism product.
He said Bahamians should celebrate, not apologise for who they are.
“In our country we shouldn’t compromise because we love Junkanoo; we shouldn’t compromise because we love conch shells and use it as a part of our art… we should make what we are a part of what we present to the world. We don’t have to be what we’re not.”
Reiterating statements he made Thursday in the House of Assembly, the minister also stressed the importance of integrating the national flag carrier into the tourism product, which would make the country less dependent on foreign carriers.
“I believe we’ve been too dependent on others, we’ve relied on too many to make what we have to make for ourselves,” he said.
“And so when people criticise our national flag carrier, I celebrate our national flag carrier, because the people who work there have done so much, notwithstanding the fact that the national flag carrier was never really properly funded and we had to do something then to link the islands.”
Mr. Wilchcombe said after the tragedy of Sept. 11, which forced the country to wait because The Bahamas was entirely dependent on international carriers to transport tourists, “we almost lost our industry.”
Referring to the quality of products displayed at the craft show, he noted that: “Creativity is what makes a business work; creativity is what makes a government work; creativity is what’s going to make tourism that more successful.”
The craft show, which was organised by Rowena Rolle, general manager of the Authentically Bahamian Department of the Ministry of Tourism, displayed the creations of more than 80 artisans. Displayed were straw items, conch-shell jewelry and ornaments, indigenous foods and culturally themed paintings and artifacts.
Commenting briefly on the industrial unrest between the Bahamas Hotel Catering and Allied Worker’s Union (BHCAWU) and the Bahamas Hotel Employers Association (BHEA), Mr. Wilchcombe said other countries in the region are quickly gaining and surpassing The Bahamas in the tourism arena.
“The world has caught up with us because we didn’t take care of the business,” he said. “Because we spent too much time worrying about the small things, we allowed the big things to get by us.
“If we do not take care of the business, if we do not appreciate the business that we’re in, if we don’t appreciate that The Bahamas is not isolated, that we are a part of the world community, then pretty soon we will have nothing to celebrate… and pretty soon we will have no one else to blame but ourselves.”
The minister said with the industry poised to enter its busiest season, it is not the best time to threaten this kind of action.
“This is, I believe, not the right time, because we are all reeling from the events of the past several years whether it was 9/11, SARS or hostility in Iraq, all that have happened in the world that would have affected this industry. Now we have to think about building the industry.
“Now it requires the hotel worker and the hotel unions, the managers and the owners all working cooperatively understanding where we are today not simply about dollars and cents, not simply about emotions but understanding the bigger picture. The bigger picture demands we sit down and we iron out the differences.”
By Martella Matthews, The Nassau Guardian
