Gov’t has the vision to revolutionise tourism sector – Minister Walrond

Guyana’s tourism industry is critical to the sustenance of the local economy as it the third largest income earning sector for the country, following oil and gas, and gold.

Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oneidge Walrond, M.P., said that the Government recognises the importance and immense potential of the sector.

“We believe in our tourism product and first of all it takes the vision that we can sell that experience and people will want to buy in. There’s a desire for our ecotourism product to see, birds, flora and fauna, rivers, waterfalls, people want to come and see that,” the Minister emphasised.

The Tourism Minister assured that the PPP/C Government will continue to support tourism, and will ensure the accompanying infrastructure is built.

She noted that already some major investors are on board, to build established branded hotels in Guyana so as to give international visitors the high-end comfort.

“You would be able to stay at the Marriott, the Hilton, those kinds of experiences because international visitors want comfort and we didn’t have that here in Guyana, so, we have at least five of these [investors] (who have) started construction.”

The Government will also add to the existing roads and bridges, and will ensure the needed upgrades are done.

The airstrips in the hinterland will also be upgraded to cater for larger aircraft, Minister Walrond noted.

Investments have already been made at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport.

Minister Walrond explained that while the pandemic had brought the tourism sector to a standstill due to travel restrictions, it has also provided a unique opportunity to refine Guyana’s offer of safe tourist sites and destinations.