EACH Caribbean island along the chain has its own persona whether its waterfalls, coral reefs and pristine waters, dense rainforests, song, dance, language, weather patterns, indigenous flora and fauna.

The warm sunshine throughout the year adds to the appeal and so, too, the hospitality that is afforded the visitor.

A warm Caribbean welcome is as necessary for the tourism dependent economies as it is for islands like Jamaica which are not solely dependent on tourism but have an active and valuable manufacturing sector which is continually being developed.

Tourism accounts for 31.1 per cent of GDP in the Caribbean region and approximately 25 per cent of all employment or 2.9 million jobs according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.

This makes the Caribbean the most tourism dependent region in the world. Here in Jamaica, where the tourism industry earned US$1.2 billion last year and one in every four Jamaicans is directly or indirectly employed in the tourism industry, the impact of every upturn or downturn is felt across the island.

Regardless of location on the Caribbean map, or size of budget, the standards that apply in the hotel industry regarding the environmental preservation practices, food safety management and quality of personnel at all levels will guide the future of this highly competitive industry in the Caribbean and the wellbeing of those who are dependent on tourism for survival.

This is the challenge that has been taken up by the Quality Tourism for the Caribbean (QTC) — a public/private project that is being implemented by the Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism (CAST), the environmental regional subsidiary of the Caribbean Hotel Association (CHA).

The association has a membership of over 1,100 hotels and the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre (CAREC) which has headquarters in Trinidad and is a specialised agency of the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO).

The main focus of the project is to improve the quality and competitiveness of the Caribbean tourism industry through the development of Health, Safety and Resource Conservation Standards and an attendant certification system.

Dr James Hospedales, director of CAREC, endorses the project and feels that it is of high importance for the region and if successful, the Caribbean can be “the safest, healthiest and happiest of comparable destinations in the world.

Tour operators in metropolitan areas now face increased liability for incidents arising out of vacations arranged through their businesses due to new stringent legislation enacted in the mid-90s. As a result, tour operators have been making increased demands on Caribbean hoteliers in relation to health and safety standards.

One incident, a bad reputation and as much as a five per cent drop in arrivals could mean a loss of as much as US$5-6 million to an economy,” adds Hospedales. So that while the standards being implemented are voluntary, “they will be market driven rather than compliance based”.

Several QTC activities are in train such as the development and implementation of the Health, Safety and Resource Conservation Standards, training programmes related to the standards and an HIV/AIDS programme for the tourism sector. The project also requires the development and implementation of a strategic marketing plan for its activities, one that would brand and propel the Caribbean tourism product ahead of other regions for its quality and care in delivery.

The QTC project will impact on every country, from Bermuda in the north, Spanish-speaking countries such as the Dominican Republic (the current leader in tourist arrivals and visitor expenditure), to Mexico and the wider Caribbean.

Training, which is in high demand, has already begun with Food Safety Certification/Train-the-Trainer workshops conducted to prepare industry personnel to deliver this training to their peers. The trainers received food safety certification from the National Restaurant Association, USA (SERVSAFE) and the National Registry of Food Safety Professionals, USA which is a subsidiary of the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, UK.

QTC and CAREC/CAST have also recently hosted a workshop for public health inspectors, updating them on food and water-borne diseases; outbreak investigation; risk management and change management.

Some of the standards up for adoption are Environmental Management, Food Safety Sanitation, Solid Waste Management, Management and Efficiency of Potable Water Supplies, Pest Management and Energy Efficiency. Technical services offered by QTC include Food Safety and Environmental Management Audits and HACCP implementation.

The QTC project has a total budget of US$2.5 million and is partly funded by the Inter-American Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) which has provided US$1.3 million for the implementation of the project in Jamaica, Barbados, Bahamas and Trinidad and Tobago.

Project manager, Yvonne Roberts-White noted that the Caribbean Development Bank has contributed US$370,000 to support activities in the nine countries of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), while CAREC/CAST contributions will amount to US$800,000.