Posted by: Editor on Sep 27, 2006 – 10:32 AM
newsandinfo Abaco’s tourism industry is closest to achieving “the balance we ought to strive for in our tourism mix”, the Ministry of Tourism’s deputy director-general said, having grown at a pace the island can handle and attracting visitors with a long-term commitment.
Addressing the Abaco Business Outlook Conference, David Johnson aid: “Abaco’s tourism industry today represents that which is closest to mirroring the balance we should have in our tourism mix.”
He added that Abaco’s tourism industry had grown naturally, “as opposed to forced growth”. “In other words, it has come largely in portions that can be digested and at a pace that enabled it to be readily assimilated by the community,” Mr. Johnson said.
“Abaco is demonstrating that big is not better in Abaco, and that a good mix can and does work very well.” Mr. Johnson said Abaco had largely been shaped by its repeat visitor business, and seasonal residents and home-owners.
These visitors had a long-term commitment to Abaco, rather than being “speculators seeking to acquire and flip for quick profits”, which he felt had “underpinned” the island’s stability.
Mr. Johnson’s presentation may be interpreted by some as hinting that the Government’s so-called anchor property’ strategy for the Family Islands, with large resort projects to underpin economic activity, may not be the best development models. Mr. Johnson said Abaco had received 65,000 visitors during the 2006 first half, generating some 590,000 visitor nights, with guests staying an average of 9.4 nights.
He added that cruise visitors to Abaco in 2005 reached 470,000, representing a 1 percent increase over 2004 when 468,000 cruise passengers arrived.
Total air visitors to Abaco in 2005 were 102, 609, down 1 percent over 2004, but a “growing trend” had resumed in the 2006 first half.
In terms of the challenges Abaco faced, Mr. Johnson said that while the island was visited by some 400,000 cruise passengers per year at Castaway Cay, spin-off opportunities for Bahamians were limited. “We are barely scratching the surface in terms of the revenue opportunities from this segment of visitors,” Mr. Johnson said.
A strategy to “reduce the leakages of the tourism dollar out of Abaco and simultaneously begin to increase the level of ownership by Bahamians in the tourism sector as we grow”, was viewed as essential, along with infrastructure upgrades, the removal of derelict vehicles along the Treasure Cay highway, roadside mechanics, stray animal issues and the provision of improved and affordable housing options for Bahamian workers.
“We need to replace the present inadequate airport facilities at Marsh Harbour and upgrade field capabilities to handle jets, as well as provide a modern and more spacious terminal,” Mr. Johnson added.
Source: The Tribune