Dear Editor,
I noted in SN a few days ago, your article concerning the value of the refurbished convention centre to the tourism sector. In the same publication I also observed that visitors’ arrivals this year was almost 285,000. Coincidentally, an acquaintance of mine and many persons verily accuse President Jagdeo of not doing anything for Guyana. Today’s tourism’s performance is all due to the vision of, and the foundation laid by, President Jagdeo.
The market segments identified for tourists were – Visiting Family and Friends, Nature, Sport, Conferences, Heritage and Yachting
At the time of building the convention centre, eighty five percent of the market for conference tourism was for conferences of five hundred delegates or less. The CARICOM Secretariat’s location in Guyana was another factor. Another consideration was accommodation.
When I was gave given the tourism portfolio in June 2001, H.E. President Jagdeo tasked that a sector leading hotel brand be delivered to the tourism sector. With only Le Meridien (Pegasus) there was need for additional accommodation of international standards. That was the genesis of the Marriott. The Marriott was never built to shut down anybody, but to complement the existing stock of rooms. The first visit by the Marriott team was in May (1-4) 2006. Exactly three years later Pegasus was sold to the current owners. Buddy’s coincidentally, started for world cup 2007. Today, two internationally recognized brands (Marriott and Ramada) are here. The fruits of vision and action two decades earlier.
The improvements at the Convention Centre are upgrades which, yes, will make us access better, the conference market and complemented with sufficient rooms.
Back to the issue of reaping the fruits today after sowing seeds yesterday. The Guyana National Stadium has added immensely to sport tourism, with Guyana so far being a host of three cricket world cups and constant inclusion in the CPL games. Vision and action laying that solid foundation.
Recognizing that modern infrastructure is also a necessity, the Jagdeo Administration embarked on the biggest local Public-Private Partnership by making the Ogle Airport available to local operators and facilitating some CAPEX funding. Complementing is the Timehri Airport expansion programme. This, along with the marketing programmes of government and the tourism stakeholders were recognized by the World Travel and Tourism which assessed Guyana most favourably on its tourism development indices.
The foundation was strong, the journey is long and credit must be given to the vision and action of the Jagdeo Administration
Yours faithfully,
Manzoor Nadir
