The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

More than 7,500 persons underwent a COVID-19 compliance workshop in preparation for the tourism sector’s July 1 re-opening, a Cabinet minister has disclosed.

Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister for tourism and aviation, told the House of Assembly during the budget debate: “In preparation for the re-opening of the tourism sector, my ministry, along with the Ministry of Health and Department of Environmental Health, conducted a series of six tourism compliance workshops over the course of three days.

“While the in-person sessions were conducted at the Hilton hotel, these workshops were simultaneously streamed online to participants throughout the length and breadth of the entire Bahamas. Our goal was to provide customer service training, bio-security protocols and sensitisation to the frontline workers in the tourism industry.

“Our aim was to engage all tourism touch points within the country, including public service drivers, hoteliers, retailers, straw vendors, beach vendors, land and sea-based attractions and tours, marinas, hair braiders, restaurants and bars,” he continued.

“Each workshop consisted of health and personal safety guidelines, as well as a recap of how COVID-19 is transmitted by the Ministry of Health; proper cleaning and sanitisation protocols by the Department of Environmental Health; and exemplary customer service and compliance once domestic and international travel resumes by our own industry training unit.”

Mr D’Aguilar added: “I am proud to report that we have trained a total of 7,545 front-facing industry workers across most islands - 1,150 in person and 6,395 virtually with the assistance of Bahamas Information Services. Although this is an impressive accomplishment, we hope to have the many thousands of persons in the industry yet to be trained, register for the next series of virtual and in-person sessions slated to be held Tuesday, June 23.

“As we prepare to forge ahead with tourism recovery, it will do us good to remember, once again, the track record we had set in tourism over the last ten years. Within that span of time, our tourism was firmly entrenched in an upward trajectory, having experienced a whopping 50 percent increase over ten years, topping out a record breaking seven million plus visitors in 2019.”