St John told: Use ‘We Gatherin’ to make a dollar

As the year-long We Gatherin’ celebration enters its fifth month, Senior Minister Kerrie Symmonds is urging the St John community to showcase all that it has to offer in the way of tourism attractions and small businesses.

Symmonds, who’s also the Member of Parliament for the St James Central constituency, encouraged both well-known and lesser-known businesses to make the most of the opportunity the month of activities will bring to the parish.

He said, “We Gatherin’ is about more than just celebrating – it’s about creating opportunities for people to make money.

“It might be your tourism product —it may be your business product because many people have little small businesses, some of which are very famous, some of which are not so well known, but it is an opportunity to bring [We Gatherin’] to the different communities in St John,” Symmonds explained.

Symmonds, who serves as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, as well as the Senior Minister coordinating the productive sector, noted the celebration would attract visitors to the parish and help boost the local economy.

“It is about bringing to St John people first of all from Barbados, and then visitors to Barbados, to sample all that this parish has to offer and for you, I repeat it, your friends, your families, your communities to make a dollar,” he said.

Symmonds noted the economic inequality that exists between the tourist areas and other parts of the island, and said the government wanted a more equitable distribution of the tourism dollar.

“For too long, the tourist belt so-called is the place where the tourists go…. And we have to find a way to break down that system of spending in Barbados that has haunted this country for 400 years so that we come to a point where everybody can start to share as equally as possible in the piece of the pie,” he said.

Symmonds said he hopes We Gatherin’ initiatives, such as the idea forums, will offer an opportunity for residents to voice their opinions and contribute to shaping the future of their community. The forums invite locals to share their vision for parish development.

The We Gatherin’ initiative also includes educational workshops and investment forums targeting small businesses.

Symmonds noted that beyond cultural enjoyment, he hopes people will use the event to reconnect with the parish’s natural beauty.

(LG)