OCHO RIOS, St Ann — The experimental Small Tourism Enterprise Project (STEP) Resource Centre, geared specifically at assisting small property operators in the tourism industry, sits begging for users three months after it was opened in the Jamaica Tourist Board’s Ocho Rios office.

Funded by the Organisation of American States (OAS) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the centre — the first of its kind in Jamaica — is equipped with Internet access, digital camera, scanners, tool kits, training videos and a resource library providing a wide range of information on the tourist sector.

It also provides information on marketing, finance and investments, training, the environment, hotel management and operations. There is no charge for the use of the facility.

But even though the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) and the St Ann Chamber of Commerce have been told about the facility and several letters have been sent out to most properties island wide, there has been very little response.

“The response hasn’t been what we expected,” STEP information officer, Juliet Tyson, told the Observer Friday, “we need to have persons coming in.”

She said a few students have used the centre in preparing school-based assessment projects and their reactions have been quite positive.

The OAS started STEP in 1998 with a focus on creating a support and assistance service for small hotels in the Caribbean, with primary emphasis on technology and hotel management support through volunteer programmes.

The USAID later came onboard as a major partner and, with support from a variety of sources, the programme moved to implement a range of services for small tourism enterprises in the Caribbean while placing greater emphasis on environmental management.

Currently, 14 Caribbean countries are involved in the programme.

Jamaica became involved in 1999 and during the summer months since then, volunteers from the United States and Canada have been assisting small hotels and villas to address their management, operational and computer training needs. The volunteers are expected in the island again later this year.

The establishment of the STEP resource centre has taken the programme one step further.

“We just need to get the word out,” Tyson said.

Similar centres are earmarked for other tourist resort areas but whether they become a reality is dependent on the success of the Ocho Rios pioneer centre.