The Tribune

MINISTER of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe called for “a paradigm economic shift” as countries in the region examine the link between tourism and poverty.

He told the Small Island Developing States Conference: “We can use tourism to reduce poverty, make it easier to trade, to drive food prices down and to travel.”

He was part of a panel discussion on “maximising the local benefits of tourism”, at the conference which was held at the Melia Nassau Beach Resort on Cable Beach, on Wednesday and Thursday.

The conference was held under the theme “tourism is a key sector for development in island states”.

Other panelists were Charles Ricardo Benavides, Minister of the Presidency, Costa Rica; Stephanie Balmie, Villedrouin, Minister of Tourism, Haiti and Dr Fritz H A Pinnock, Executive Director, Caribbean Maritime Institute, Jamaica.

The session addressed how the benefits of the industry could be enhanced and how those benefits could be used to alleviate poverty and increase the quality of lives of the local communities.

Panelists also looked into issues of ‘leakage and linkage’ ensuring that revenues from the industry are more widely and equitably distributed among local stakeholders, and analysed under what conditions the link between tourism and poverty alleviation is likely to be strongest.

Mr Wilchcombe said the Bahamas has been able to grow its nation despite the challenges of being an archipelago.

He also said the Bahamas is much more than New Providence, offering varied experiences on the islands.

Mr Benavides said approximately 167 million people in Latin America and the Caribbean lived in poverty in 2012.

The tourism sector accounts for more than 260 million jobs worldwide; three quarters of all tourists come from high or upper middle countries, and 40 per cent travel to a developing country destination.

Regarding the impact of sustainable tourism in poverty reduction, he said tourism significantly contributes to economic growth in many countries but it does not mean it will reduce poverty.

“Sustainable tourism can act as a catalyst for socio-economic development and poverty reduction. Sustainable tourism contributes to a reduction in poverty of three per cent in Costa Rica,” he said.

Mr Benavides said to date, Costa Rica protects over 30 per cent of its territory as part of the National System of Conservation Areas and that approximately 70 per cent of all tourists visit Costa Rica because of its natural beauty.