Argentine tourism project to boost local sector

Jun 27, 2015 News

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After years of cooperation with the Argentine government in the area of tourism, Guyana is expected to further benefit from the relationship through the implementation of a quality tourism project.

During a press conference held yesterday, Minister of Tourism Catherine Hughes met with Argentine Ambassador to Guyana Luis Martino and the two cemented the years-long relationship between the two countries.
Tourism is the first sector in which the Argentinean government has worked with Guyana in and the cooperation is expected to strengthen with the new project’s implementation.
The project will focus on four areas; training and capacity building, promotion, quality, and planning and development.
According to Minister Hughes, Guyana has much to learn from one of Latin America’s most prominent tourist destinations. She noted that, as the new minister, she would be benefiting from a foundation that was laid almost 3 years ago. However, she said, the new project being embarked upon will be different.
“What’s different about this is the practical nature about what we’re doing,” Hughes opined.
For a new and emerging tourist destination like Guyana we still are learning to market ourselves, to present ourselves, to gather business and to focus on niche markets. This type of association really provides almost a hand to lead us through some of the challenges we think we may expect to face.”
She said too that the partnership will provide Guyanese with important skills and training to persons in the local tourism sector.
“We’re happy that as we talk about the planning for the implementation of a hospitality training school in Guyana, we’re going to be able to get some practical consultants and training in terms of how we establish that school and how we can ensure that the school and the provision of training meet the needs of those not only in the Georgetown area but in our outlying regions,” Hughes said.
In recent times, the Argentine government has provided 3 virtual courses. These courses reportedly benefited 267 Guyanese involved in tourism related and the hospitality sectors. These courses had been free of cost.
“I think that’s a huge plus, especially in a marketplace where we face challenges of the cost of training,” Hughes said. She also noted that Guyana had the challenge of making training available to businesses and establishments based out of Georgetown and she opined that the virtual courses would go a long way in solving this issue.
Argentine Ambassador to Guyana Luis Martino similarly noted the huge benefits the bilateral tourism cooperation could reap. He explained that the cooperation was fostered by a programme under the Argentine Ministry of Tourism which aims to establish partnerships for the govt. with other countries to create spaces for the sharing of knowledge, technology and best practices.
“The idea is to strengthen the capacity of the organisations…The upgrading of capacities of any organisation of any country has to do with sustaining this aspiration in upgrading ourselves and moving to the next level,” Martino said.
He said too that the nation has to bridge job demand in the specific area together with the professional tourism sector. “So, what you study in college, when you finally graduate, you will eventually have the opportunity of getting a job.”
Representatives from the Argentine Ministry of Tourism are in Guyana for a week to work out the best way to implement the country’s system of tourism quality. The project is in its pilot stage, one of the representatives indicated.
Argentina has already created a proposal to improve Guyana’s tourism sector and, according to the representative, the proposal has reaped “real, practical results” since its implementation a year and a half ago.
“We’re working together with the Guyana Tourism Authority so that it can very useful to Guyana…We’ll be adapting our ideas with your reality,” the Argentine rep said.
Two more virtual courses are also expected to come on stream before year end. One of them will be on Spanish, since there has been an upsurge in the number of persons entering Guyana from Spanish speaking countries. According to the GTA, arrivals from South America alone have grown from about 3% to 14%.
Meanwhile, Hughes expressed hope that the partnership will be cemented by a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two governments.
“We’re convinced that this is a great mechanism for Guyana to grow and I look forward to building on the good relations we have been able to cement,” Hughes emphasised.
The MoU is expected to cover a number of areas including internships, major assistance for the hospitality institute, technical assistance and a series of quality management seminars.

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