Businesses in this country, particularly those in the restaurant, entertainment and related enterprises, must certainly be breathing easier with Government’s decision to lift the midnight to 5 a.m. curfew.
One of the few remaining COVID-19 mitigation measures imposed by the state to blunt the viral illness, the curfew was deemed effective at the time. However, questions were being raised about the value of continuing to restrict people’s movement for just five hours at night.
Given the enormous turnaround in our tourism arrivals, at least among long-stay visitors, it was important not to undermine the pent-up demand for travel by diminishing the quality of the Barbados experience by insisting that tourists needed to be inside their hotels or apartments by midnight.
We are a tourism-dependent country facing stiff global competition, with every market aggressively vying for its share after two years of stagnation. And so, it is important for the country to be positioned as a destination that has carefully planned and is open for business.
At the same time, we know all is not well and that there still exist some barriers to an even more successful tourism rebound.
The cruise business, for which Barbadians made many sacrifices to facilitate during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, is likely to be in hiatus for the rest of this year.
This is likely to result in prolonged financial difficulties and hardship for those businesses involved in the tourism attractions and services such as Harrison’s Cave, Atlantis Submarines and some pleasure craft operators.
Cumulatively, these provide significant employment, and we would want to do what is necessary to facilitate their return to full operations without delay.
Despite lingering hesitation by some citizens, we agree with new chairman of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) Mrs Renee Coppin, that the time has come for Government to revise entry protocols for visitors to the island
“We are very cognisant of the strongly-held belief by Barbadians that the tourists bring in COVID. However, we need to ensure that Barbadians are aware that is not supported by the current statistics we have received,” she said on the heels of Government’s announcement it would roll back the midnight curfew.
“We are also signalling that many of our competitive destinations have put in place simplified, updated entry protocols. These protocols include more recent testing using rapid antigen tests and these destinations have not had any commensurate increase in case loads as an outcome of this decision.
“Almost all of our guests are entering the island tested, vaccinated and, in many cases, boosted. We are again requesting that our entry protocols be reviewed to make them more current, fit for purpose, and to allow our sector to be more competitive as this pandemic evolves,” the BHTA official has requested.
Mrs Coppin reminded us that we are not the only destination fighting for market share and within the Caribbean region several destinations have scrapped the requirement of a negative PCR test for entry and moved to a simpler and more accessible antigen test. Her organisation’s reasonable demand of Government and our health authorities is for a similar adjustment for entry to Barbados also.
The fact is, tourism is this country’s lifeblood and without it, the economy contracts and life simply becomes miserable for an untold number of Barbadians who depend on activity in this sector for their survival.
One only has to drive along the ABC and witness the number of luxury taxi operators who are ferrying high-spenders to and from the Grantley Adams International Airport.
Taxi operators have been barely eking out a living for the past two years, and some were forced to dispose of their vehicles because of an inability to meet loan repayments.
Very few, if any taxi drivers, are going maskless, even when there are no occupants in their vehicles. This speaks to a level of discipline and respect for the protocols that have been instituted to keep them safe.
The increasing return to normal activity is resulting in a growing level of stability for business owners and increasing confidence in the economy. These are two fundamentals that were missing and that are essential to returning the Barbados economy to the growth path that was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In another welcome sign of normalcy, today marked the beginning of the phased return of face-to-face classes by the country’s school children and their teachers.
Given the response of parents and most students, the event was a long-awaited development. And though the process was not without some hiccups, the general response was positive.
With the hands-on approach of new Minister of Education Ms Kay McConnie and her Chief Education Dr. Ramona Archer- Bradshaw, the two are receiving kudos from a public starved for normalcy in education and other areas of activity on the island.
