Workers in clean-up campaign

The National Conservation Commission (NCC) is playing its part in helping to beautify Barbados.

General Manager Ryan Als told Barbados TODAY the state-owned entity had already began work as part of Government’s planned Tourism Reboot Exercise.

Recently Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced the launch of the project which seeks to rebrand the island’s tourism product.

Mottley revealed that a national clean up and beautification campaign would also form part of the exercise.

In an interview, Als said more than 350 NCC workers were at work helping to beautify Barbados.

“Yes we provide plants, we provide trees and we have 360 workers on the roads cleaning streets and open spaces currently and as our usual operation we clean parks, maintain parks, clean beaches and also do landscape work.

“Our standard job is beautification, but any time we are called upon to do any particular areas then we go and carry out that work,” Als added.

In explaining the project the Prime Minister said several initiatives would be launched.

“This is our perfect opportunity to put in the time and effort to rebrand and reboot our tourism sector and engender a renewed national respect and appreciation for tourism.

“From public education and training to branding and signage, to attractions and entertainment activities, to a national clean up and beautification campaign; they all will be reviewed and refreshed under the Tourism Reboot Programme,” Mottley said at the time.

Minister of Tourism Kerrie Symmonds also explained that as part of the exercise tourist attractions would be improved.

He said improvements to St Lawrence Gap, Oistins, Holetown, Bridgetown and Baxter’s Road were coming.

“We need to recognize that as we re-enter the global business of tourism we have to do so in a way in which we are selling Barbados to not only Barbadians but to the rest of the world as being an area which is considerably more upbeat and lively.

“St Lawrence Gap is one such example and so as recently as yesterday Cabinet would have approved a paper which allows us now to focus on the refurbishment in many ways of St Lawrence Gap, the improvement of the product in the Gap and dealing with some of the issues relating to cleanliness, safety, that we’ve kicked down the road for a long time and never properly confronted,” Symmonds acknowledged.

Air Canada provided the first commercial flight to Barbados in over two months when it touched down at the Grantley Adams International Airport on Sunday.