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B M & T ••• November/December 2022 ••• www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com 39 C A R I B B E A N C O R N E R ON WORLD TOURISM DAY, CHTA REFLECTS ON THE FUTURE OF CARIBBEAN TOURISM As the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) marked World Tourism Day in September, the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) reflected on the significant contribution tourism has made to the socioeco- nomic development of the Caribbean while focusing on the challenges and opportunities the industry presents for the future. "Tourism has been the main driver in propelling Caribbean economies, creating new entrepreneurial opportunities; building upward mobility; broadening the skills and ingenuity of our peo- ples; celebrating and showcasing Caribbean culture, cuisine, nature and entertainment; and improving our capacity to rebound from crises and chal- lenging situations," stated CHTA President Nicola Madden-Greig, who added that coming out of the pandemic, tourism stake- holders must utilize the lessons learned to re-imagine the current approach to Caribbean tourism. Looking ahead, Madden- Greig endorsed remarks from United Nations Secretary- General António Guterres on the eve of World Tourism Day who stated, "Tourism is a power- ful driver for sustainable development. It contributes to the edu- cation and empowerment of women and youth and advances CARIBBEAN ECONOMIST WANTS ACTION ON TOURISM COMPETITIVENESS Marla Dukharan (right) talks tourism economics with Dr. Hyginus 'Gene' Leon, President of the Caribbean Development Bank, in the Cayman Islands this week. Even as Caribbean tourism experiences a robust recovery and strong demand, a leading Caribbean economist and advi- sor wants action-oriented thinking and solutions to improve the competitiveness of the region's bread-and-butter tourism industry. Speaking on the sidelines of IATA Caribbean Aviation Day(in the Cayman Islands recently, Trinidadian economist Marla Dukharan said that price competitiveness is a challenge. Caribbean Aviation Day, the theme of which was "Recover, Reconnect, Revive", brought together industry experts, senior aviation executives, and government officials to discuss the sec- tor's key opportunities and challenges across the Caribbean region with the aim of identifying how to jointly rebuild a more competitive air transport sector in a post-COVID world. "The IMF (International Monetary Fund) found that airlift is the single most important factor that determines the amount of tourists that come and also the revenue that we get from the tourism sector," Dukharan said, adding that it impacts tourism activity more than room stock or the availability of hotel rooms. Airline ticket taxes, the lion's share of which go to regional governments to help boost infrastructure and provide travel- related services, was a contentious issue during the conference with Dukharan positing that taxes constitute some 30 to 40 per- cent of the total cost of airline ticket prices. "Our governments need to address (taxes)," she said, dis- closing that another major regional challenge is the dis-ease of doing business within territories and across the region. "Those are some of the factors that drive up the cost of doing business and make this the most expensive region, in terms of tourism and vacations," said Dukharan, who believes as the most tourism-dependent region on earth, the Caribbean has to solve these problems. "Otherwise, five years from now, 10 years from now, we will be singing the same song, lamenting the same problems and our economies would be much more affected by the fact that we haven't solved these problems. We need to solve these prob- lems now," she stressed. "Unless we make change here, then this is just a party … and you know, we have carnival for that," she argued. "We really need to make sure that we take action as opposed to just having a nice time getting together in person." `A number of ideas – from creative forms of taxation to the reduction and elimination of taxes on inputs – were discussed during the conference, with calls also being made to review pre- vious studies and proposals to help address the vexing taxation and cost-of-doing-business issues. IATA Caribbean Aviation Day was supported by the Caribbean Tourism Organization and the Government of the Cayman Islands. Credit: Cayman Islands Department of Tourism