Sod turned for US$7M CDB-funded hospitality institute

Feb 18, 2024 News

Prime Minister (PM), Brigadier Mark Phillips, along with Senior Minister with the responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oneidge Walrond, and Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Sonia Parag on Friday turning the sod for the Hospitality and Tourism Training Institute. (Photo courtesy, Ministry of Tourism)

Kaieteur News – Prime Minister (PM), Brigadier Mark Phillips on Friday turned the sod to commence the construction of the first ever Hospitality and Tourism Training Institute in Guyana which will be built in Port Mourant, Region Six.

Artist impression of what the US$7 million Hospitality and Tourism Training Institute in Port Mourant would look like when completed. (Photo courtesy, RDC of Region Six)

The project will cost US$7,002,126 and is being funded by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) in collaboration with the Ministries of Education, Finance, and Tourism. Kares Engineering Inc. and the architectural engineer, Deen and Partners have been awarded the contract. This publication had reported that back in December 2020, the Caribbean Development Bank had approved a US$11 million (approximately $2.3Billion) loan for the development of the institute. The project was signed on December 12, 2023 and works on the structure are expected to be completed on January 21, 2026.

The Hospitality and Tourism Training Institute when completed is geared at training personnel ensuring they are equipped with the skills and knowledge that are necessary to staff and manage the growing tourism and hospitality sector in Guyana. Prime Minister Phillips in his address said that the government anticipates that by 2030 they would have a tourism sector that can create around 50,000 jobs. He noted however, that to reach this target they have to overcome several challenges. Some of the challenges he mentioned are to increase the number of hotel rooms by some 3,000, address the high cost of air travel, improving destination marketing and improving product development. Phillips said that the several internationally branded hotels that are being established across the country are part of the process of moving Guyana closer to that target.

Another important challenge he highlighted is training for hospitality service workers and reducing the high turnover of staff in the tourism sector. He noted that the main reason “why we are investing in the construction of this Hospitality and Tourism Training Institute, we have to develop continuous cohorts of trained hospitality workers to assume the management of this sector and to provide the multiplicity of services required in this sector.”

In brief remarks, Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oneidge Walrond said that establishing the institute is an essential step in building technical capacity in the hospitality sector. She added that the objective is to ensure that the necessary skills to manage this rapidly expanding evolving sector are available right here in Guyana. According to the minister, “This institute is geared towards equipping students with hands-on training in a world-class facility that would enhance their knowledge of the sector including modern approaches required to operate at international industry standards. Importantly, the skills acquired will not only allow for access to direct tourism jobs but also indirect jobs and opportunities.”

She mentioned also that when the facility is ready for use, they intend to have a curriculum fitting the country’s ecosystem products. “As we build out the curriculum, it will distinguish itself as being particularly tailored to our indigenous services and our indigenous communities and focus on building out an eco-tourism product that is environmentally sound and friendly,” she explained. Speaking also at the sod turning ceremony was Senior Minister with the responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh who said that “we want to create Guyanese who are celebrities and this hospitality and tourism institute has the potential to do just that.”

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Caribbean Development Bank, Hospitality and Tourism Training Institute, Port Mourant, Prime Minister Mark Phillips, sod turned

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