— but recovery underway with focus on re-tooling and technological improvement

TRAVEL bans, quarantine measures and border closures instituted to mitigate the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) were like a double-edged sword, protecting the people but killing the tourism and hospitality sector — key economic sectors — which lost 42 per cent of its revenue in 2020.
Guyana’s case, however, was not unique as the World Travel and Tourism Council had reported that the tourism industry’s contribution to the world economy’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was cut by US$1.2 trillion in 2020.
The council reported that the tourism sector, globally, is undoubtedly one of the hardest-hit sectors due to the impact of COVID-19 on both travel supply and demand.
Locally, according to a report from the Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA), which was shared with the Guyana Chronicle, the local tourism sector lost an estimated 42 per cent of its total revenue between March 2020 and September 2020. This period was the height of the pandemic.
Additionally, in terms of employment, an estimated 29 per cent of the persons working in the tourism sector lost their jobs and an additional 51 per cent have been furloughed or placed on unpaid leave.

This impact is especially damning because the sector, prior to the pandemic, had been noted as one of the fastest growing sectors in the world, contributing significantly towards sustainable development in areas of job and wealth creation, environmental protection, cultural preservation and poverty alleviation.
It is estimated that travel and tourism injected approximately $62.6 billion directly into Guyana’s economy in 2018 and $69.9 billion in 2019, which reflects an estimated increase of $7.2 billion over 2018.
This, according to the GTA report, makes the tourism sector the third largest export sector after oil and gas, and gold. The estimated loss in export earnings was $50.7 billion, in 2020. This excludes travel-related taxes from international arrivals and departures (travel and departure taxes).
It is for this reason that the Government has identified the tourism sector as a “high priority investment sector”.
Through resiliency planning, hygiene and sanitation training, assessments, support packages and increased marketing by the GTA, supplemented by other support measures such as tax incentives for new investments, low interest loans for re-tooling and technological improvement, businesses and the sector are expected to rebound stronger than ever before, to make Guyana a top sustainable tourism destination.

UNIQUE ASSETS
The GTA believes that Guyana’s assets are unique and can easily be transformed into world-class tourism products.
The Government has committed to supporting the development of tourism products, thematic heritage routes and niche products based on Guyana’s strengths.
Renowned for being a leader in community-led and owned tourism, “Destination Guyana” will reaffirm its position by scaling up community tourism development and increase the number of market-ready community tourism enterprises in country, the GTA report outlined.
Focus will be placed on the development of experiential travel and high-quality experiences, as the country moves to develop a resilient, diversified and sustainable tourism product to satisfy the ever-growing demand from travellers, both domestic and international.
To further stimulate interest in Guyana’s tourism product, the Government will be increasing the marketing and promotional value of the nation through targetted marketing that will inspire increased visitation and the economic value from each individual traveller.

Guyana, through the GTA, will continue to narrowly focus marketing and communications on target markets and continue, through a concerted effort, to reach the target markets, market segments, and audiences most attracted by Guyana’s unique value proposition.
It was reported that President, Dr Irfaan Ali, has assured the tourism industry players that his Government is committed to supporting all stakeholders through the very critical recovery process.

“The Guyana Tourism Authority continues with their marketing efforts to promote nature, adventure and eco-tourism both locally and internationally, and, with the support of the private sector, we have no doubt that this will allow the sector to rebound with strengthened resolve and greater results,” the President said in a message to mark World Tourism Day 2020.
He further said: “We will also implement policies to strengthen and grow the workforce in the tourism sector to cater to the influx of visitors expected as a result of the focussed marketing as well as the emergence of the oil and gas sector. This will also help to create more opportunities, which will lead to the economic empowerment of men, women and youth in rural communities.”
Already, $2.74 billion has been set aside in Budget 2021 for the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce.
Of this, $185 million has been budgeted for the construction of the Hospitality Tourism Training Institute to train and improve the quality of personnel and equip thousands of young people with skills to take up jobs in the sector.