by Omesha Spence 27.FEB.09

The students of the Fairhall Primary School have been encouraged to get to know their country and all the islands that make it up.{{more}}

This advice came from the President of the Hotel and Tourism Association (SVGHTA) Bianca Porter as she and other Tourism officials and officers of the National Investment Promotions Inc. (NIPI) gathered at the Fairhall Primary School to launch the Tourism Education Outreach Programme. The Programme, officially launched on the Tuesday, 24th February, seeks to educate children in schools across St. Vincent and the Grenadines about the importance of Tourism to their country.

The programme, which debuted at the Fairhall Primary School, was an interactive session, which taught the children about different aspects of Tourism, including career opportunities, the uniqueness of St. Vincent and the Grenadines as a tourist destination and how to be ambassadors of this country.

Speaking to the enthusiastic crowd of students, Yvonne Armour Shillingford, CEO of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Tourism Authority, told the students how to be good ambassadors. Shillingford explained that by being polite and engaging visitors, students would offer tourist a wonderful experience. She also noted that knowing a great deal about your country is also necessary.

“You are the ambassadors in your country. You are the future leaders in government and business, and you must be educated and educated well,” she said.

Porter also echoed this sentiment. “You can’t have a visitor come to your country and you don’t know anything about your country,” she said. As a part of the programme, students were tested on what was said during the various presentations and, according to Porter, were very bright and brave. “These children are very brave. I wish I were as brave as you,” she told one kindergarten student.

Presentations were also made by Anesia Baptise, Communications Manager of the Ministry of Tourism, who tested the children’s knowledge on the many jobs in the Tourism sector. Cleo Huggins, Executive Director of NIPI, also made a short presentation informing the students on the functions of the NIPI.