Port of Spain (April 1st, 2014) – The Directorate of Sustainable Tourism at the Association of Caribbean States (ACS), in collaboration with the Instituto Guatemalteco de Turismo (INGUAT), is pleased to announce its upcoming event, the 25th Meeting of the Special Committee on Sustainable Tourism (SCST-25) from the 22nd to 23rd May, 2014, which will be held in the colonial city of La Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala. Cognizant of the importance of supporting and sharing knowledge on sustainable tourism best practices among the Greater Caribbean countries, the Directorate will incorporate, as the first component to the SCST-25, an ACS Workshop on Best Practices and Lessons Learnt in Sustainable Tourism.
The focus of the workshop is to showcase Sustainable Destination Management initiatives within the Region, and also provide a platform for countries to share their experiences. This Workshop will not only gather high level technical experts and tourism leaders to discuss and share information and best practises in the area of sustainable tourism, but it will also present an ideal arena for the convening of the First Meeting of the Steering Committee for the Sustainable Tourism Zone of the Greater Caribbean (STZC-SC) since its entry into force on November 6th, 2013. TheSTZC Steering Committee functions as a technical team governing quality assurance and compliance to standards of the STZC destination selection and evaluation process. The STZC-SC comprises of Academics, Sustainability experts and Tourism professionals from the Greater Caribbean Region, supported with technical advice from regional and international organizations working in the area of Sustainable Tourism.
In attendance will be the President of the Martinique Committee on Tourism, Hon. Karinne Roy-Camille, who for the second time is the Chair of the Special Committee on Sustainable Tourism. Additionally, high-level officials and tourism authorities will be present at the 25th Meeting of the SCST to discuss matters pertaining to the efforts of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) in relation to the sustainable development of tourism in the Greater Caribbean. The main focus of this gathering being the facilitation of a mutually beneficial multi-lateral dialogue aimed at strengthening cooperation mechanisms in this most critical area of sustainable tourism given the Greater Caribbean’s dependence on this industry as a source of revenue, especially the small-island developing states.
With the input of the ACS countries, the SCST-25 meeting plans to strengthen and revise the Work Programme of the ACS Directorate of Sustainable Tourism based on present-day needs of its Member States, as well as address and decide on issues and concerns affecting the Regional tourism industry. The ACS Directorate additionally aims to inform the meeting of the advancements made in the projects and activities under the four programmatic areas of its Work Plan: Sustainable Tourism Zone of the Greater Caribbean (STZC), Promotion of Languages and Cultures (CPLC), Visitor Safety and Security in the Tourism Industry (VSS), Multi-Destination Tourism (MDT); which altogether seek to contribute to and promote the practise of sustainable tourism in the region.
