Jean-Claude Baumgarten, president, World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), forecast the Caribbean will continue to do well, despite the negative numbers posted for 2008 and 2009. He said that the long term travel & tourism prospects for the Caribbean remain healthy, with real GDP growth for the sector expected to average 3.3% per annum over the coming 10 years, despite a forecasted contraction of 7.9% expected in 2009. <\/p>\n
“In 2009 everything is negative except for government spending,” he said, acknowledging that governments “are always slow to respond.” He commented that the Caribbean is the region in the world that is most dependent on tourism. He said that tourism in the Caribbean is 15% of the economy, compared to 12% in Europe. <\/p>\n
Baumgarten also stressed investments in “infrastructure, infrastructure and infrastructure.” “If your infrastructure is not good, you will not grow,” he sentenced. <\/p>\n
He urged the Caribbean to diversify market targets, reducing dependency on North American tourists. “A consequent shock on US consumer confidence is having an extreme impact on the Caribbean travel & tourism sector,” he said. <\/p>\n
He says that air access is the key issue in the Caribbean. Baumgarten’s prescription to the Caribbean: “If you don’t join forces, the airlines are just not going to come,” he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jean-Claude Baumgarten, president, World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), forecast the Caribbean will continue to do well, despite the negative numbers posted for 2008 and 2009. He said that the long term travel & tourism prospects for the Caribbean remain healthy, with real GDP growth for the sector expected to average 3.3% per annum over … <\/p>\n