Tourism
‘BG’ talks to former Director of the GBT Simon Stiell about the new Strategic Plan for Tourism.
What is the Strategic Plan for the Grenada Board of Tourism (GBT)? We are looking at those areas that can have immediate impact on the development of the industry, focusing on those sectors that Grenada has a comparative advantage in. Why the need for a new plan? The existing tourism plan was dated from 1997 to 2007 it had a wide range of recommendations, with fantastic ideas, but the problem was lack of implementation. Rather than reinventing the wheel, what we did was look at all past planning documents and identify those areas that are still valid. Government’s role in Tourism? Tourism is the fastest and most efficient way to drive Grenada’s economy. We did some basic modeling in the industry, and discovered that for every $1 invested the return is $10. The Government’s responsibility is to create the framework to attract the right investments. How did you plan the plan? We met with close to 400 stakeholders, a cross section of the entire industry. We looked at
where we are, where we want to be, and how we are going to get there. There was stakeholder consensus and out of that, was born the new strategic plan 2011-14. This wasn’t about ‘blue sky’ thinking, but practical, achievable initiatives within a 3 year time frame. What was the next step? We identified those niche markets where we felt we had a comparative advantage over other destinations and were ‘Market Ready’; Yachting, Diving and Cruise. Once you identified the key areas what next? Meeting with the respective stakeholders, we identified what’s needed to further develop that sector. Specific initiatives, like procuring a ‘Hyperbaric Chamber’ that could make a significant difference to the ‘Dive’ industry product. What else is out there as far as product offerings? There are other emerging niche markets developing such as Horticultural and Garden tours. Grenada has just won its 10th Chelsea Flower Show Gold Medal we have a “best in breed” product, so we are working with those that have Garden Attractions, to see how as a sector, they can promote their product offering. Implementing the strategic plan? We broke it down to ‘how we can improve what we have?’ and how can we best monetize it? Enhancement and development of our sites, like our Forts, Waterfalls, Grand Etang Lake etc. Making them ‘market ready’. Improving areas such as Access, Signage, Lighting, to better present the product. Part of that is working
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