Tobago, indeed Caribbean tourism, promises sun sea and sand along with a lifestyle intended to pamper. Which is great when its done right. The story however doesn’t just end with a happy visitor, it often degrades, our lifestyle tale diminishes when the worker population goes home - to situations often very removed from where they toil. Which is hard but tenable in the sense the disparate conditions can provide inspiration - allowing it provides a fair wage.
Obviously it is not within the power of the average tourism worker to construct mechanisms which will allow him/her to derive that (desirable) element of fairness. That’s a job for Government, for those tasked with and paid to govern. And here lies the rub. Government can sometimes forget the main reason for its existence. Which in context of this conversation is - fairness. The views opinions and needs of the workforce and the general population must be taken into consideration. Mostly though, it is not.
Tobago has arrived at a crucial juncture, it faces annihilation of its wetlands, indisputable linchpins of already diminished ecosystems. It faces reduced forest cover, long justified as making room for housing (or lumber, or for the gravel just under) And quite insidiously, Tobago is at risk of losing it all, to that bane of successful tourism; over-development. The big question is though, are we willing to rethink the tourism drive in favour of approaches that are more sustainable?
Actually we have little choice in the matter. The climate outlook for this part of the world predicts extended drought significant sea level rise and heavily compromised freshwater quality. The initial corrective approach (there may be others) suggests that government govern cooperatively, with a goal of on-boarding communities to the challenges, likely fixes and the perils of irresponsible development - including the tourism, long touted as the pillar of Tobago’s best future.
The Must do list for sustainable tourism
The blue ribbons of tourism are high occupancy rates - a benchmark from which all other destination success stories flow. The problem - which is really a blessing if taken as opportunity, is there is no prescribed approach; the destination gets to decide what success looks like. Curated below is the closet thing to a Steps to Tourism Success in today’s competitive and climate volatile environment.
Govern cooperatively
Cooperative governance is a system of governance that emphasizes the collaboration and partnership of all stakeholders in the decision-making process. It requires transparency and accountability from all involved parties, and aims to build consensus to achieve shared goals.
Foster tourism partnerships
Partnerships between the tourism sector and other sectors, such as fisheries and agriculture, can be fostered through programs that encourage collaboration. Additionally, organizations such as Compete Caribbean and the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) have fostered community-based tourism (CBT) by building the capacity of local communities to develop tourism products that highlight their cultural and natural heritage. The Caribbean Natural Capital Hub is another organization that is driving the integration of natural capital principles in the Caribbean private sector.
Promote sustainability
Promoting sustainable tourism offers through redesigned websites and online platforms is the current go-to approach. While this ‘soft’ approach (as in deploying software) is also the fastest (arguably) path to quick gains it can harm/ or badly distract if the wider tourism thrust is not meticulously put together - the same has applied to other industries where growth was not managed. Tobago tourism planners may want to think of this as a word to the wise. The illustration beneath depicts a signposted approach to introduce and promote sustainability while utilizing WEB.
Align tourism related actions.
Aligning tourism-related actions to public and private interests can be achieved by taking a top-down approach:
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Establishing a Tourism Development Commission (appointed by the President) to reduce the likelihood of impact by political administrations on the development of the hospitality industry.
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Implementing a series of Advocacy Workshops for senior public servants in key partner ministries to share the vision for tourism development, the expected outcomes and benefits of the industry, and the importance of their own contribution to the success of the industry.
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Creating a revolving credit facility to allow for upgrading of smaller properties and providers of ancillary services to appropriate standards.
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Reviewing the process for application and approval of investment concessions, in conjunction with key partner agencies, with a view to establishing a set time period for completing the process.
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Developing a Product Development and Quality Management Strategy for achieving and maintaining a high-quality product, in conjunction with representatives from the private sector.
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Lobbying for ‘soft or development class loans’ to support plant upgrades of locally owned accommodation, entertainment, recreational and restaurant businesses.
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Implementing a pilot program, in conjunction with the tourism private sector, to stage a weekly revolvng food fair/craft show/dinner show in two communities (one in Trinidad and one in Tobago).
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Conducting a pilot for an International Culinary Festival in Trinidad [alongside] a Gospel and Jazz or Pan/Jazz Festival in Tobago.
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Facilitating a consultancy to conduct a feasibility study for establishing a craft market in Tobago at the Port/Airport facilities.
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Note: These ‘steps’ are not intended as definitive or comprehensive. And while credible, other ideas have long been aired in the Tobago tourism space. The inclusion of the bigger island in the above ‘prescription’ is pinned to existing constraints/likely benefit of separate airports, opportunity to provide more sites and incrporates the population of the bigger island into Tobago’s customer base.
Obtain data
Facilitate a diagnosis of technology gaps, project needs, and tourism division competencies.
Identifying and inform
Stakeholder interests and the general labour force. This is a prismatic suggestion - in that the end goal should serve the ESG model.
Marketing the destination
This is an ongoing effort and requires a plan, time for the plan to take effect and money to keep the plan going for the duration.
In sum. While we at Environment Tobago are speaking ‘degrowth development’ for tourism, it is important to keep in mind the vision should aim for a sweet spot: Where the income generated from the industry can sustain the human population but not at the expense of the island’s equilibrium - that balance of development and natural systems which is required to maintain the highest level of resilience to rapid climate change.
In the interim, as the above suggestions find feet we recommend an earlier post on the merits (or otherwise) of Trinidad and Tobago’s present thrust to acquire new hotels.
Author’s note: The material used to inform this post is drawn from extensive conversations (2017 to present date) with key actors and interests of the Tobago Division of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce and the Tobago Hotel and Tourism Association