TOURISM development must extend beyond increasing visitor arrivals to creating sustainable economic opportunities for communities, local businesses and entrepreneurs across the Caribbean, Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Susan Rodrigues, said on Tuesday.
Rodrigues made the point while delivering the feature remarks at the opening of the State of the Tourism Industry Conference (SOTIC) 2026, which is being hosted by Guyana.
She said tourism has the potential to connect Guyana’s culture, cuisine, people and tourism products with markets at home and abroad, while creating livelihoods, stimulating demand for local goods and services and attracting investment to communities with growth potential.
With Guyana serving as host of this year’s regional conference, Rodrigues said the country’s tourism strategy is focused on building a sector that reflects its identity while creating meaningful opportunities for citizens and supporting long-term national development.
“For us, hosting SOTIC is also an opportunity to place Guyana’s tourism development within a wider Caribbean context. We have much to share, much to learn, and significant scope to strengthen the partnerships that can support the future of tourism across the region,” she said.
Rodrigues said Guyana’s tourism industry has expanded beyond the traditional hotel and tour operator model, creating opportunities for farmers, fishermen, drivers, tour guides, artisans, entertainers and entrepreneurs.
She said the sector also has the potential to generate greater opportunities for young people and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.
The minister said the objective should therefore not be limited to recording higher visitor arrivals, but to developing an ecosystem in which more Guyanese can participate in and benefit from tourism’s expansion.
Guyana recorded 453,489 visitor arrivals in 2025, the highest number ever recorded, representing a 22 per cent increase over 2024.
The growth has continued into 2026, with 360,623 visitors recorded during the first nine months, Rodrigues said.
She noted that the increase in arrivals has been accompanied by efforts to strengthen the infrastructure and systems needed to accommodate a growing tourism industry.
Among the key developments has been an expansion in air connectivity, with 12 new airlines added to the Guyanese market in recent years, providing greater connections to North America, Europe, the Caribbean and South America.
The country has also seen an expansion of its accommodation capacity, with nine internationally branded hotels entering the market.
According to Rodrigues, the new hotels have increased accommodation choices for visitors, while signalling investor confidence in Guyana as a tourism destination and supporting its emergence as a meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) destination.
The minister also highlighted sustainability as an increasingly important component of Guyana’s tourism development strategy.
“Our commitment to sustainable tourism is not a marketing exercise. It is becoming part of how we develop and measure the quality of our destination,” she said.
Rodrigues stressed that Guyana’s forests, biodiversity, rivers, wildlife and Indigenous heritage are valuable national, community and global assets that must be protected as the country seeks to derive greater economic value from tourism.
She said the future of tourism should not simply be about bringing more visitors to more destinations, but about adopting smarter approaches to planning, technology and understanding visitor needs while ensuring that development remains sustainable and inclusive.
The minister said greater attention must also be placed on ensuring that tourism growth in one area creates opportunities for other sectors and communities to participate in the wider tourism value chain.
She further positioned Guyana’s participation in SOTIC as an opportunity to deepen regional co-operation and share experiences as Caribbean countries seek to strengthen their tourism industries.
“As President Ali has often said, the prosperity of Guyana must also contribute to the prosperity of our region. That is the spirit in which Guyana comes to this conference—not simply to tell our story, but to share our experience, listen to the experiences of others, and build partnerships that can move Caribbean tourism forward,” Rodrigues said.