Global Tourism Resilience Day on Tuesday, Feb. 17 brought together Caribbean and global leaders to move resilience from concept to action.
In a webinar, produced by the Global Tourism Resilience & Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC), the Caribbean Tourism Organization, and the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA), CTO Secretary-General Dona Regis-Prosper emphasized that resilience is built through collaboration, partnerships and shared leadership. CTO Deputy Director of Sustainable Tourism Narendra Ramgulam delivered the regional perspective, underscoring that getting resilience right sends a vital signal to investors, allowing destinations to move from vulnerability to investability.
Ramgulam outlined the CTO’s three-pillar approach to building a resilient region:
• Policy and Planning
• Systems and Institutions
• Partnerships and People
CHTA President Sanovnik Destang and Immediate Past President Nicola Madden-Greig anchored their remarks in a single, defining proposition — resilience is no longer reactive; it is institutional, collaborative and increasingly digital. It was a message that resonated with forum organizer Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism and cofounder of GTRCMC, who framed it simply: “Resilience is the new currency of tourism.”
The discussion also featured contributions from:
• Professor Lloyd Waller, Executive Director, Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre
• Vanessa Ledesma, CEO, Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association
• Donalson Frederick, Chief Technical Officer, Ministry of Tourism, Dominica
• Jennifer Griffith, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Jamaica
• Donovan White, Director of Tourism, Jamaica
As Global Tourism Resilience Day was marked, the takeaway was that resilience is no longer just an emergency response; it is a survival and competitiveness strategy.
Watch the full webinar at https://www.youtube.com/live/gOo13pcQHTE.
