The Museum of the Caribbean in Barranquilla, Colombia,
which will be the venue for the 2nd ACS Meeting of Ministers of Tourism
on 24 April 2009

Port of Spain (April 24, 2009) –  Ministers of Tourism and their representatives will meet today in the Colombian city of Barranquilla for the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) 2nd Meeting of Ministers of Tourism of the Greater Caribbean.

The ACS 2nd Meeting of Ministers of Tourism of the Greater Caribbean was preceded yesterday by the 20th Meeting of the ACS Special Committee on Sustainable Tourism and the Preparatory Meeting.  The meeting examined and received the reports of the Chairman of the Special Committee, and the Director of Sustainable Tourism, Ms. Gloria de Mees, LLM.  The reports covered the activities of the Directorate since the last meeting held in June 2008, and the status of the Sustainable Tourism Work Programme.

The Draft Declaration of Barranquilla was also discussed for final approval prior to presenting to the Ministers of Tourism for their consideration. Some of the major themes highlighted were: the impact of the global economic crisis and its implication for the tourism sector, cruise ship tourism policies and initiatives, community-based tourism, climate change and its impact on the industry, food security initiatives in the tourism sector, multidestination tourism and regional accessibility, and Health Tourism.

In addition to the Ministers and their representatives, a number of high level officials from regional specialized agencies and consultants were in attendance, and were invited to brief the Meeting on each of the main themes of the Declaration.  These included: Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO), Oxford University, Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA), Inter-American Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture (IICA), and Proexport Colombia.

The Opening Ceremony for the 2nd Meeting of Tourism Ministers will take place this morning and the President of the Republic of Colombia, His Excellency Dr. Alvaro Uribe Vélez will address the gathering. Remarks will also be made by the Honourable Minister of Trade, Industry and Tourism of Colombia, Mr. Luis Guillermo Plata Páez; the Honourable Minister of Tourism of Haiti & Chairman of the ACS Special Committee on Sustainable Tourism, Mr. Patrick Delatour; and ACS Secretary General, Ambassador Luis Fernando Andrade Falla. The Honourable Vice-Minster of Tourism of Colombia and Chairman of the Commission for the Americas of the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) will make a special presentation.

The Ministers of Tourism will be briefed by the ACS Director for Sustainable Tourism on the achievements and challenges experienced by the ACS in the area of Sustainable Tourism development.  A summary of the recommendations and issues raised during the Special Committee Meeting and Preparatory session will also be discussed.

The Ministers will also receive an update on the implementation of the Havana Declaration which emanated from the 1st Meeting of Ministers of Tourism of the Greater Caribbean, held in October 2006.

The Draft Declaration of Barranquilla will finally be presented to the Ministers Meeting for its consideration, approval and signature.

The 2nd Meeting of Tourism Ministers is convened and organised in collaboration with the Government of Colombia, to identify Wider Caribbean solutions for the tourism industry, one of the most important economic activities of the region.  The meeting will also be the inaugural activity of the recently established Museum of the Caribbean at the Caribbean Cultural Park of Barranquilla.