Trinidad & Tobago’s Tourism Minister Wants More Money for Tourism

Tourism Minister Stephen Cadiz is hoping for a bigger budget for his ministry this year when the national budget is read on September 9.

“Last year we got $72 million for marketing and promotion—a lot less than we would have liked to have. The budget we should be working with is $300 million to do proper international marketing. It is inadequate. We understand that money is tight but I hope this time we get a better budget,” Cadiz told reporters on Monday in Maracas.

He was speaking after the launch of the ministry’s “Tourism: It’s about all of us” educational program.

The ministry will be launching its global branding and marketing strategy at the World Tourism Market in London in November.

Cadiz added that he and tourism ministers from St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada had planned meetings yesterday to discuss a Southern Caribbean Cruise Initiative, to make the region more amenable to cruise ship routes.

Cadiz said one of the main plans is to consider making Trinidad and Tobago—and specifically the port of Port of Spain—a home port for docking, picking up passengers, refurbishment and refueling.

A tender for a “master plan” for a new, compact, state-of-the-art cruise ship complex will also be advertised soon, he said.

Plans will also include a conference center and a 400-room hotel in the Port of Spain area.

Noting there could be spatial concerns, Cadiz said: “There are areas in Port of Spain that can in fact take it. We have looked at the landscape and held discussions with the Port (Authority) so it is not impossible.”

Tobago will also be discussed as another major port of call, but any expansion work at Scarborough will have to consider sunken shipwrecks from a sea battle between the Dutch and the British in 1667 that can be an underwater attraction.

Cadiz added that the ministry has been working with the Immigration Division to get real-time data on tourism arrivals.

 He said the aim is to encourage 500,000 tourists for the year, and at half-year, the data shows roughly half that, so visitor arrivals are on track.   

Source: The Trinidad Express