by J. Soso-Vincent 13.FEB.09

“Better late than never!”

This is the view that Minister of Tourism Glen Beache holds on the introduction of the newly formed St Vincent and the Grenadines Tourism Authority (SVGTA). In a press conference held on Monday, February 9, Beache expressed that the Authority should have been implemented since the 1990s.{{more}} “This Authority is long overdue,” he stated.

Currently, in terms of recruitment, the SVGTA is still being put together, and may initially run on a skeleton staff. However, as things progress, that will increase. “We want to make sure that a lot of the overheads don’t go into administrative costs. We want to get as much of this money out there into the market and public relations.

The Director of the Tourism Authority, Dominican Yvonne Armour-Shillingford, was scheduled to commence her duties here in SVG on February 1, 2009. However, due to family commitments, she will now take up her post on February 16, with Vincentian Faylene Scrubb as her second in command.

In his remarks, Minister Beache emphasized that the SVGTA has a great responsibility ahead of it because, essentially, it will have the final say on all technical decisions. Beache also disclosed that due to its nature, the SVGTA will be required to work more closely with the Ministry of Tourism than other statutory bodies. “Of course, the Tourism Authority will come under criticism just like the Ministry of Tourism has… everyone becomes a marketing expert… but that’s the nature of the game,” he commented.

Seemingly pleased with the people being recruited to work within the Authority, Beache expressed how fortunate it is to have members such as Bianca Porter, Vidal Browne and John West on board, because they bring a wealth of tourism-related experience to the table. “I know the Authority is in very good hands.”