The new president of the National Hotel & Tourism Association (Asonahores), Julio Llibre has spoken of the challenges the sector faces in order to adapt to ensure its sustainability and competitiveness. Llibre was speaking after being sworn in for his two-year term at the helm of the leading private sector tourism entity. He praised the close relationship the sector maintains with Tourism Minister Francisco Javier Garcia Fernandez.
“These are times to make adjustments to ensure the sustainability of this important quantitative growth of the sector that has been achieved thanks in good measure to the support of tax incentive laws”, he said in his inaugural speech. He said the big challenge is now to grow in quality, while continuing to grow in numbers. He said that obstacles to competitiveness must be overcome. He mentioned the high cost of power, lack of flexibility of labor laws, incompatibility of tax and quasi-tax objectives of the sector and internal and external deficits that affect the economy and its stability. He mentioned these issues needed to be priority for the sector, so as to lead the country to continue to be able to receive foreign investment. He commented in recent years the development of the sector has been spurred by real estate developments linked to golf, a model different to the all-inclusive resort model that formed the base of Dominican tourism. He said this products demands different marketing strategies in order to ensure its economic and financial sustainability.
He also called for an increase in staff training, agility in checking in guests, and improvements in information systems, signage, transport and security.
He said that during his term at the helm of Asonahores, he intends to maintain the collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism. He proposes to produce a diagnosis and inventory of the Dominican tourism sector and the positioning of the sector as an anchor of national development. He says he will work to strengthen the regional organizations and work closely with business associations and tourism clusters, seeing these as spaces for ensuring that the needs of local communities are incorporated into tourism development.