CTO Chairman urges action on disaster preparedness and climate resilience

 Chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), Kenneth Bryan, has told tourism stakeholders and others at a virtual meeting last week that hurricanes and climate-related hazards threaten the region’s development and its tourism sector, and preparation and mitigation are of paramount importance. Bryan was speaking to senior tourism and government officials, scientists and members of the media from around the region earlier this month to address issues of hurricane preparedness and climate resilience, a release from the CTO states.

He asserted that as a counterbalance to life in one of the most desirable travel destinations in the world, “the price that we pay for living in the beautiful Caribbean is that we are faced with a variety of weather-related threats that can have hugely detrimental effects on human life, property, livelihoods, businesses, investment and the environment”.

Bryan encouraged the Caribbean, and by extension the regional tourism sector, to confront the significant effects posed by global climate change and its related impacts, such as dry spells and droughts, which impact the ability to provide adequate water resources; heat waves that have health implications for tourism employees and visitors alike; and sea level rise, which is accelerating beach erosion and increasing the vulnerability of tourism facilities, many of which are located in low-lying coastal areas.

Additionally, he said the increasing sea surface temperatures have contributed to coral bleaching and the eventual mortality of this valuable natural resource, which he noted is not only a key tourist attraction, but also serves as essential nurseries for declining fish stocks.

Chairman Bryan, who is Minister of Tourism and Ports of the Cayman Islands, was addressing virtually the first in a series of CTO fora on disaster preparedness and climate resilience, as part of preparedness activities for the 2023 Atlantic Hurricane Season.

The CTO forum gathered experts from the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH), and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) to address the 2023 seasonal forecast and share mitigation and preparedness strategies. Best practices for hazard response and recovery, which are equally important, will be covered in the next forum.