Above: Nicaragua (Photo: NT)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

A group of regional agencies focusing on sustainable tourism in the Caribbean held their first-ever joint meeting this week, focusing on the challenges facing the wider Caribbean region.

The first-ever Meeting of Regional Agencies of Sustainable Tourism in the Wider Caribbean Region held its conference in Managua on Monday, joined by organizations including the Caribbean Tourism Organization, the OAS, the Secretary for Tourism Integration in Central America and the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

The meeting was convened by the Association of Caribbean States, and hosted by Nicaragua’s Ministry of Tourism. Nicaragua is currently chairing the ACS Special Committee on Sustainable Tourism.

In a joint communique, the agencies “reaffirmed that tourism can make a significant contribution to the pillars of sustainable development — economic, social and environmental, particularly as it seeks to generate stable empoyment, income-earning opportunities, social inclusion and contribute to poverty alleviation.”

The talks examined challenges for Caribbean tourism including declining international flows, reduced economic activity and the impact of these issues on “all spheres of tourism activity.”

The meeting agreed on establishing a Regional Network or Working Group on Sustainable Tourism in the Greater Caribbean to, and explored the policy of a regional multi-stakeholder initiative.

The Caribbean Tourism Organization will hold its own Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development in Trinidad in April, the 14th time it has held the conference.

“As the world slowly embraces new models of economic development, including green and blue economies, Caribbean destinations will need to find complementary models of destination sustainability,” said Gail Henry, the CTO’s sustainable tourism product specialist.