#BTEditorial – Extract all we can from tourism

The Barbados Food & Rum Festival continues to add to the diversity of the island’s tourism product in a way that makes the sector more inclusive, while also establishing a clear connection between the community and the sector.

There have been longstanding and quite credible arguments for why Barbados ought to design a plan for dismantling the over-reliance on tourism and building out other sectors.

In fact, there are rational claims that too much of the valuable foreign exchange generated from tourism often does not stay in Barbados or never makes it to the island because so many of the financial transactions for services occur overseas.

There has also been the argument that the big tourism products such as swanky  West Coast villas, branded hotels, restaurants and attractions are owned by foreign operators to whom the profits are repatriated.

At the same time, we have established that the tourism sector is very asymmetrical, though there exists a very symbiotic relationship between all the players in the sector and stakeholders in the success of our economy.

We have seen undeniable evidence of the domino effect on the entire economy when tourism struggles. Often, however, it is the small and micro business operators such as taxi owners, small shops and other retailers who can fold under the pressure.

Those in academia have argued that our vulnerability as a nation is heightened the more dependent we become on this one-legged anchor for our growth and development. While these arguments are extremely valid, actualising that diversification is extremely challenging, especially when there are so many demands on the public purse.

The international business sector, agriculture, alternative energy, and light manufacturing have been identified as possible alternatives upon which to build out the economy.

Unfortunately, despite the strengths of each of these areas of enterprise, they have not proven themselves to match even a fraction of the level of foreign exchange that tourism has shown its capacity to provide.

Despite the efforts in food crop production and various meats such as poultry, pork, and lamb, we have not been able to produce at the scale necessary to provide for the local and export markets.

What local agricultural production has done is to limit the flow of foreign exchange out of the country to pay for imported foods. So, while agriculture may not generate foreign currency, it certainly saves millions of dollars.

Thus, the determination by members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) to reduce their food import bills by 25 per cent by 2025 is a meaningful and important goal.

Our ability to feed ourselves provides an important layer of protection for our population from international shocks. The same argument can be made about our push towards greater use of alternative energy.

As we address the value of tourism to our livelihood, it is noteworthy the efforts of the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. to build on the early foundation of the Food & Rum Festival, which started as the Food & Wine Festival.

Acknowledging the inherent connection of rum to our history and incorporating it into the name of the festival added authenticity and distinctiveness to the event.

Adding further justification to the contention that Barbados was now the culinary capital of the Caribbean was the announcement that the Barbados Food & Rum Festival was awarded the Best Culinary Festival in the Caribbean at a special awards ceremony held by the World Culinary Awards in Dubai.

According to media reports, the World Culinary Awards celebrates and rewards excellence in the culinary industry, honouring those who push the boundaries of taste, innovation, and cultural appreciation. As a result, it affirmed Barbados’ position as a top culinary destination.

What this accolade demonstrates is that while we push for diversification of the economy, we must also extract every ounce of value that we can from tourism.