By Elvin Carl Croker

VIEWED as a “vote of confidence,” Director-General of the Tourism Ministry, Donald Sinclair, declared that “it’s about time,” when it was announced that Guyana was named the number one eco-tourism destination in the world and one of the top 10 sustainable destinations in the world.

The director-general’s view that “it’s about time” derives from President David Granger’s numerous reminders about Guyana having the largest freshwater fish in the world, the Arapaima; the largest raptor in the world, the Harpy eagle; the largest river otter in the world; the largest anteater in the world ; the caiman and many more, at almost all of his public engagements. His Excellency has even created an exercise book which illustrates, in bright, colourful photos on the cover, what is called the ‘Giants of Guyana.’

The awards were received by Guyana on March 6, at the ITB Global Travel Trade Fair in Berlin, Germany. The two awards place Guyana ahead of many very well-known and experienced destinations in the world.

Sinclair said that he thinks the awards are a badge of honour for Guyana, which the Tourism Ministry intends to ‘milk’ to its advantage. He notes that with Guyana now recognised as the number one Eco-tourism Destination, two things should happen: the first is to have the understanding diffused throughout Guyana explaining what the award means, and second, to ensure that measures are taken to upgrade the product, noting that it’s a two-pronged effort.

“What it means for Guyana is that there will be a lot of curious people coming to Guyana to find out why we’ve been named the number one Eco tourism destination. We can see an influx of visitors and we are making ourselves ready for it. People must know that we’ve been identified by a reputable International tourism organisation as the number one Eco tourism destination,” he emphasised.

He attributes the awards to a combination of efforts made by Surama and Rewa in Region Nine; and that the Tourism Ministry will affix the award to some of its materials, which will read ‘Guyana – World’s Number one Eco-tourism Destination.’

Meanwhile, President of the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG), Mitra Ramkumar, describes the awards as a grand accomplishment to all tourism stakeholders, especially the persons involved in community and Eco-tourism.

“I see it as a victory for all Guyanese, because tourism is a fragmented industry in that you have to get every stakeholder from the airport taxi drivers with the transportation, market vendor, everyone should be involved, that’s why everyone should be proud of this achievement,” he said.

He said the awards should be used to encourage more people to enter the industry and ensure that everyone aligns with best practices.

The aim of the award is to recognise and showcase success stories and good practices of both emerging and developed or established destinations.

Leading destinations are based on government strategies, policies and plans, as well as business and community-level commitments to sustainable tourism.

Guyana was recognised because of its approach to sustainable destination management and development from a community tourism enterprise in Surama and Guyana’s national policy for persuading a Green State Development Strategy.

Guyana has a legacy of efforts to support the protection of its rich biodiversity through environmental policy, sustainable forestry and the establishment of a national system of protected areas.