News

St Maarten PM: Caribbean Should Look at Tourism as “Tool of Development”

By: Caribbean Journal Staff - June 4, 2014

Above: St Maarten Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams (CJ Photo)

By Alexander Britell

NEW YORK — Caribbean is the major economic driver in the Caribbean. So it would be natural that it should be viewed as the major mechanism for dealing with many of the region’s developmental issues.

That was the view put forth here Wednesday by St Maarten Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams, who said the region should look at tourism “as a tool of development.”

The Prime Minister, who was addressing a group of journalists during a Caribbean Week media session here, urged the region to give tourism a new impetus and see the regoin’s leading industry in a new way.

“If we want to be successful in areas like combating crime, unemployment, human trafficking, corruption, environmental degradation, we need to strengthen the layer that provides opportunity for sustainable development, employment and social advancement,” she said. “Tourism for us is becoming and should become more and more of a developmental tool. If we want to combat all of these areas as islands and countries in the Caribbean seek furtherance of their development programmes.”

But she said it was crucial for the region to make this connection.

“When you talk about tourism, the largest percentage of our islands and countries depend on [it] to a larger or smaller degree,” she said. “And there is not a Caribbean island that I know of that could say we have absolutely no issue with unemployment and getting our young people into jobs in our countries. Once that link can be visualized, I believe that we can make more concerted agreements in terms of moving forward with tourism to assist other areas that will help our overall growth.”

In St Maarten, for example, tourism accounts for between 85 and 90 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product.

“Given the scale of St Maarten, we do not have any illusions that we can replace that pillar of industry,” Wescot-Williams said. “Rather than that, we look at a possibility of, albeit smaller, complementary activities to tourism, and we also look at the more sustainable aspects of tourism which includes looking beyond our traditional markets [or] issues like seasonality and new markets.”

The Prime Minister said regional collaboration, with tourism as a development tool, was a “win-win-win” situation for the Caribbean.

“We offer and are able to offer the most unforgettable experience to our visitors,” she said. “By doing that, and doing it right, we offer the opportunity for our islands to have growth and development.”

That would have another effect, she said — to position the Caribbean differently in a geopolitical sense.

“By doing that, we are providing to our biggest market, the United States of America, a strong ally in the Caribbean, an ally of strong, proud and confident people — willing to be assisted and willing to assist, where people recognize that they are assisting us in developing a stronger region, a more confident region and a region that can assist the other way around as well,” she said.

Popular Posts w punta cana

A New All-Inclusive W Hotel Is Opening This Year in Punta Cana 

The first-ever all-inclusive W Hotel in the Caribbean is opening this year in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, Caribbean Journal has learned.  The hotel, part of a broad expansion for parent company Marriott International, is on the list of expected 2024 […]


Why Grenada Is a New Caribbean Luxury Hotspot

beach house silversands

From its world-renowned chocolate to its pristine beaches to a region-leading focus on sustainability, Grenada is as fascinating and unique as destination as you’ll find in the Caribbean.  But in the last few years, the lush Eastern Caribberan island has […]


5 Adults-Only Resorts to Visit Right Now in the Caribbean 

galley bay

Sometimes you just want that extra degree of serenity, of privacy, of seclusion. There is a reason, after all, that adults-only resorts are booming in popularity, particularly in the Caribbean: travelers want to know that when they arrive, they know […]


Related Posts nobu los cabos

Frontier Is Adding a New Nonstop Flight to Los Cabos 

It’s one of the most popular hotel destinations in Mexico: Los Cabos, which has seen a broad boom in recent years with the entry to market of brands like Nobu, Thompson, Marriott and Waldorf Astoria, among others.  That has led, […]


This Former Caribbean Rockefeller Resort Is for Sale

caribbean rockefeller resort

In 1986, Laurance Rockefeller, the founder of Rock Resorts, developed 27 acres of prime beachfront land into what was for decades one of the sought after places to stay in the Caribbean. Now, the four-star, 150-room resort is for sale, […]


Vote for the 2024 Caribbean Green Awards, from Green Energy to Sustainable Hotels

caribbean green

Hotels serving organic food grown by local farmers. Airports powered by large solar fields. Pristine coastlines protected by marine parks. Real estate developments fueled by clean energy. It’s an exciting time for the Green movement in the Caribbean, a region […]


SUBSCRIBE!

Sign up for Caribbean Journal's free newsletter for a daily dose of beaches, hotels, rum and the best Caribbean travel information on the net.


No. Thank You