New Tourism Brand to be unveiled

COEGEORGETOWN: All Tourism stakeholders will gather today at the Amerindian Village, located in the compound of the National Exhibition Centre, to usher in Tourism Awareness Month 2014; this event will also herald the repositioning and rebranding of Guyana as a Tourism Destination, and the launch of Homecoming Guyana 2015.

The Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce and the Guyana Tourism Authority are celebrating its 20th  year of observing Tourism Awareness Month (TAM), in November, and will be unveiling a series of activities over the next month to call attention to the importance of  the theme- ‘Tourism Entrepreneurs and Ambassadors Mobilised’

Tourism Awareness Month is an annual observance which fosters closer collaboration with the private and public sectors in an effort to strengthen their working relationship.

This year’s theme was selected to highlight Tourism Entrepreneurs and Ambassadors who are regarded as the key vehicles for the creation of new enterprises, employment and the stimulation of competition in the sector; they also educate and inspire their families, friends and colleagues to embrace Tourism.

The objectives of the activities planned during this period are , to raise the level of awareness of tourism in Guyana, encourage the stakeholders within the Tourism Industry to participate in activities that will benefit their operations and showcase their products to the wider population,  boost the human resource capacity in the sector through training, strengthen the alliance between the private and public sectors and to collaborate with sister agencies and Ministries to highlight the vital role they play in developing our tourism industry.

Activities for TAM 2014 include the TAM Awards Ceremony which will be held on November 21st, 2014 at the Guyana International Conference Centre. This event is hosted to recognise individuals and organisations in the Tourism Industry who have made significant contributions to the Sector throughout the year, the Launch of Ambassador Programme- this programme, which targets a select group of well known Guyanese, will be launched on November 21st. Selected Ambassadors in the diverse areas of music, arts and sports will be introduced during the launch ceremony, the launch of Restaurant Week and  the opening of a Visitor Centre at Lethem , among many other activities.

Activities will be also conducted country wide in the areas of training and education, public awareness and marketing and promotion.

In response to the call for strengthened partnerships and collaboration during this period, several tour operators and companies are offering ‘tour specials’ – these include, Dagron Tours, ASL, Hurukabra Resort and Old Fort Tours.