CARIBBEAN: CHA to Send High-level Delegation to Attend British Government Tourism Policy Workshop in London

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Lorraine J. Ortiz-Valcárcel 
T: 787.725.9139 / E: Lortiz@caribbeanhotels.org 
 
CARIBBEAN HOTEL ASSOCIATION to send high-level delegation to attend British 
Government tourism policy workshop in London
 
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (October 20, 2003) - On November 6 and 7, 2003, the 
British Foreign and Commonwealth Office will be mounting the first-ever 
policy workshop on tourism to be held by any European government.  Its broad 
objective is to better understand how tourism relates to European policy 
towards the Caribbean and how tourism can be made more central to the 
political, economic and development policy dialogue between all European 
Union capitals, the European Commission, and the Caribbean.  
 
"Britain's decision to host this event is significant.  Its voice on 
Caribbean affairs is the one most frequently deferred to by other European 
Union member states, because of its longstanding relationship with and 
experience of the region," said CHA President Simón B. Suárez. 
 
The event will bring together Caribbean tourism ministers, representatives 
from the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), the Caribbean Hotel 
Association (CHA), along with many senior figures from the tourism industry 
in the United Kingdom, as well as British Ministers, senior officials from 
the UK Government and the European Commission. 
 
The workshop will be divided into sessions, covering topics such as Tourism 
and the international trade agenda; Sustainable development and social 
responsibility; the Caribbean tourism product; Creating and maintaining a 
secure environment for tourism; and Relating tourism to the development 
agenda.  
 
"The private sector holds the key to the future of the region's economy.  In 
representation of the private sector, CHA is a most appropriate partner in 
development to deliver practical solutions through it membership." added 
Suárez.  "This workshop is an extraordinary opportunity to advance the 
principles of public and private sector cooperation to which CHA is 
committed," he concluded.
 
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