— fruitful discussions, proposals underway to boost sector

By Naomi Parris
BORDERED by the Demerara and Berbice rivers, Region 10 and its central town Linden, is home to vast spaces of nature and exciting adventures.

With the aim of highlighting these nature hotspots and thrilling experiences, a meeting was held with several stakeholders from the Regional Tourism Committee, the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce and several other tourism bodies on Sunday at the Watooka Guest House to discuss plans and proposals to boost the regional tourism sector.

Head of the region’s tourism committee, Devin Sears, during an invited comment after the meeting, related that the main objective of the meeting was to share and update the relevant tourism bodies of what Linden and the region as a whole has to offer to the country’s tourism sector.

“The whole objective of the meeting is to get a fair understanding of what is happening in terms of the situation in Region 10,” Sears said.
The committee head added that the region has the potential to be listed as one of the best tourism destinations in the country and in the Caribbean.

“We know that there is going to be a ‘big boom’ in the tourism industry, and our region is [the] best place; we have three rivers running through it, we have blue lakes, we have waterfalls, all kinds of things and we need to be ready for that ‘boom.’”

He further noted that the meeting is a start to developing a relationship with the relevant tourism bodies and private sector parties to realise the region’s full potential.
“I believe the meeting in itself is a part of a good relationship with the Region 10 Tourism Committee and The Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA).”

Additionally, he stated that members of the committee which also include members from several Amerindian villages and settlements in the region, took the opportunity to raise their concerns during the meeting.

LIMITED RESOURCES
Sears further explained that the committee has been running on limited resources and funding to keep afloat.
As such, the need for funding was heavily emphasised during the meeting.

“What we are doing right now is promotion in every capacity and trying to get funding,” he said, adding: “Funding is a major part of what we are doing, and we have worked our way around a lot of red lines. We are going after the greater Guyana initiative supported through ExxonMobil, so we can be more active.”

Sears noted that the committee received some funding to highlight a number of tourist destinations in the region during the month of November for this year’s tourism awareness month activities.
However, the committee is looking to gain funding for much wider projects and build its capacity to be more active within the region.

Meanwhile, following a tour of several tourist destinations, which included the Kara Kara Blue Lake and Wayne’s World Resort, subject Minister Oneidge Walrond during brief remarks, noted that there is much in Region 10 and Linden to be brought to life and highlighted to the rest of Guyana.

Minister Walrond noted the prospects of Linden in terms of tourism development and said people are now beginning to realise its rich and diverse tourism.

“There is capacity to do sports — tourism, aqua-tourism and these gem-like resorts. The idea of this trip is to get to the locations that are yet undiscovered and that are under the radar and to shine a spotlight on this gem that is the tourism product of Region 10,” the minister said.