News

Sustainability of tourism in TCI, do we have the zeal to preserve it?

Published

3 months ago

May 2, 2023

#TurksandCaicos, May 2, 2023 – In a true sense of the word, sustainable tourism is one that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host.

As a country, we have come a long way and can proudly boast that we are the envy of the Caribbean in terms of desirability but, is it sustainable?

Prior to the pandemic, there were public concerns that tourism in the Turks and Caicos was growing faster than our ability to cope. With a significant decline in this area during the COVID-19 pandemic, it gave leaders a moment to pause and reflect on how dependant we are on the tourism dollars, and to question whether or not we are truly a good host.

Without a coordinated response, we risk being unable to fully capture the true potential of tourism and protect the long-term sustainability of this vibrant but fragile industry.

As we press forward and look beyond the post-pandemic era, we should be asking ourselves, what can we do differently to save our most valuable product which is ecotourism?

It’s crucial that everyone take the depletion of our natural resources seriously and do everything within our power to protect and sustain our natural environment.

Turks and Caicos is now at a crossroad where the Bahamas and Jamaica once were, in terms of growth and development. Where we go from here will determine the long term future of our country. So how do we continue to thrive and nurture what we have?

If our government is truly serious about saving our ecotourism industry, it must start with saving our coral reefs, our pristine beaches and wet lands. In today’s fractured and fragmented world and tourism being so delicate, these are the areas that must be protected at all cost.

Red flags are being raised all over, particularly in areas such as, damaged and depletion of our coral reefs, crumbling infrastructure etc. In all honesty, we must ask ourselves are these areas getting our full and undivided attention that is needed?

Department of Environmental and Costal Resources(DECR) and Maritime departments, will need to be given an attenuated role with managing national parks and more autonomy to operate.

Our coral reefs and mangroves are a critical part of our natural environment, providing some of the best ecotourism services in the Caribbean if not in the world.

With our low lying landscape, It also helps to mitigate the effects of flooding by slowing the speed and distribution of storm water, and reducing beach erosion. Therefore, we should be doing everything within our means to protect them.

Access to the needed resources for enforcement in these particular areas has long been a challenge. Basic needs such as, channel markers, proper reef moorings that boat operators are paying for, a Maritime vessel, are all areas of dire need particularly in Grand Turk.

It should all begin and end with forging a strong partnership, collaboration and trust between the public and private sectors.

What is of paramount importance is, bridging that gap and aligning the aforementioned departments with local Water Sports organizations and the Turks and Caicos Reef project.

I believe the end goal could very well be achieved merely through training and education of tour operators, both on land and at sea.

With close oversight and support, these private organizations could play a vital role in helping to protect and preserve a sustainable ecotourism in our country. It also makes a powerful argument for greater self-sufficiency.

What we have seen over the years is, the departments might have had the best intentions or strategies to help save our environment, but in my opinion, lacked the resources and limited grit to execute on the initiatives.

Case in point: On any given day when the cruise ships are in, we have anywhere from 3500 to 4000 passengers embarking on our shores in Grand Turk.

An overwhelming majority of these sunbathers remain right on our pristine beaches.

The country on a whole has been somewhat actively complicit with providing available public restroom facilities, direct beach access for emergency vehicles and at the end of the day, the beaches are left littered with garbage, with no assigned government workers to assist with clean up.

It’s also pretty evident across these islands, with the surmountable garbage collection during earth day and coastal cleanup day.

Is this what one would call protecting our most valued tourism product? Nevertheless, it’s never to late we just have to remain hopeful. With cruising and tourism now resuming at full speed, it’s our opportunity to get it right this time.

With tourism being the primary economic engine of growth for our country, we are in an acute position and cannot continue to ignore these critical areas, or play politics while ignoring the need for a total facelift of the nation’s capital and other sister islands of concerns.

We must have a national conversation on saving our reefs with a unified effort, and we must move fast and decisively. Failure to address these critical improvements would only exacerbate issues and in the long term put the country in a more vulnerable position.

We can no longer be shortsighted when it comes to the future of our country. With that being said, more focus should be on yield per visitor and return rate rather than just the sheer number of visitors to our Islands.

If there’s one lesson that can be derived from the recent pandemic, is the importance of protecting what we have control over.

Many residents are still cynical about the change in strategy with the tourist board transitioning to a destination management organization(DMO). Whilst this may expand our horizon, it is still our story, our passion and we must build upon the successes, stay the course and not just ride the waves.

Therefore, in order to protect and sustain what we have left to call our own, ecological restoration will have to become front and center. This should also include revitalization and exposure of our dormant and forgotten culture.

I’m of the opinion, the islands will benefit tremendously by getting more dollars from less people and attracting the right investors. Any development or revitalization plan going forward must include the aforementioned, as the common future of our country depends on it.

Ed Forbes,

Concerned Citizen of Grand Turk

News

Bankers’ Association President Samuels Finds Residents Hungry for Housing Financing at policy launch

Published

6 hours ago

August 11, 2023

Deandrea Hamilton

Dana Malcolm

Staff writer

#TurksandCaicos, August 11, 2023 – Despite the Government’s attempt to create more affordable housing for residents with the creation of the new Housing Policy, many say they left the launch feeling less hopeful than they went in.

After the event, one resident expressed it was time to speed up a government-operated mortgage scheme, and those inside the launch event had a similar lack of faith in their ability to secure bank-backed mortgages.

Marcus Samuels, Head of the Banking Association, was hit with questions about how the Association would seek to help residents secure mortgages to purchase these new government homes, considering how difficult residents on both sides of the employment spectrum (private and public) found it to get approval for loans.

The pre-prepared question was met with applause from the ample audience who had gathered to hear about the programs.

“Homeownership isn’t rocket science, ” Samuels said, stressing that once residents came prepared with knowledge about their own paychecks and the size of the loan they could be offered they had a good chance of success.

Necessary information included:

Level of income
Level of previous debt

He also said the cost of housing could be lowered for buyers if the Government decided to decrease or forgo their taxes.

“There are some fees that we genuinely cannot move, like the Government stamp duties, which is usually one percent on the transaction. Thankfully, the Premier is here— the ball is in his court.”

Zhavargo Jolly, Event Moderator, fielded concerns shared by residents, including that the proposed cost of homes in the example (just over $ 200,000) was lower than the usual market value in the country.

There was also a concern that the mortgages seemed geared toward double-income homes, which was not the case for all residents, alienating single mothers, fathers, and other single-income earners.

While Samuels came prepared with calculations for a hypothetical $230,000 home that he said proved residents could be able to own a home with a down payment as low as $12,500 the audience was unconvinced. When he questioned them about whether residents believed they could afford a home after laying down the calculations the answer was still a resounding ‘no’.

Following the event, Bishop Coleta Williams, Chaplain to the House of Assembly, also spoke on the programs expressing concern that residents would be paying back the loans for years to come.

Residents, in the comments of the live video which was carried on Facebook, expressed being disappointed that more representatives from the Banking Association weren’t present at the meeting when arguably one of the biggest roadblocks to housing is financing.

Government

New data reveals Housing pitfalls, government reveals detailed plan to fix it

Published

6 hours ago

August 11, 2023

Deandrea Hamilton

Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

#TurksandCaicos, August 11, 2023 – Many Turks and Caicos Islanders are spending unsustainable amounts of money on housing, according to data gathered by the Housing Department via the National Housing Needs Survey, emphasizing the need for affordable homes.

Dominique Durham, Deputy Permanent Secretary of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development

“Respondents of that Survey provided that the majority of households spend more than 50 percent of their income on housing expenses. Now, as a rule of thumb, especially in America, if you spend more than 30 percent of your income on housing, it is deemed not affordable,” Dominique Durham, Deputy Permanent Secretary of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development, revealed.

He shared other significant data collected that showed the dire state of the housing market locally, including that nearly a quarter of residents live in damaged homes.

“It also revealed that 21 percent [of respondents] are living in homes in need of repair and 69 percent are looking to purchase a new home within the next five years,” Durham said.

Despite the intent to buy a home, the survey also revealed that many Turks and Caicos residents thought the housing market needed more affordable options for them to be able to bring that dream to fruition.

The majority of residents (32 percent) voted for the Government to create more options for affordable housing when asked what would best improve their housing needs.

Other popular suggestions included:

Creating Government housing loan programs (25 percent)
Housing subsidies (15 percent)
Home improvement/refurbishment programs (11 percent)

All of those suggestions voted on by residents have made their way into the Housing Policy as either short-term or long-term programs.

Jamell Robinson, Minister of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development

“Long-term projects include inclusionary zoning, large-scale housing through public-private partnerships, and eventually, we will be establishing a National Housing Authority and Trust whereby we hope to lend at affordable interest rates. We also are looking to roll out help-to-buy schemes in the near future as we appreciate that an issue is also access to financing,” he said.

The Government is aiming to use these suggestions, voted on by residents, to fix the gaping hole in the market, but even with these new programs, there’s one thing residents say they need to purchase homes– better pay.

Jamell Robinson, Minister of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development, was hit with the question of whether the Government would start to pay residents more so they could have more cash to afford housing.

The minister said step one was increasing public cash flow (with a pay and grade review for the public service now being conducted), and step two was upskilling all individuals to make them more marketable in the private sector.

“Our Job– is to ensure that our citizens as Turks and Caicos islanders can add value to themselves so they can participate more in the open market, and one of those ways is by making the community college free so you can access higher education– in a free open market which we have here, it’s hard to dictate to the private sector what they can pay a specific individual so we want to grow our individuals to make sure that they can level up,” he explained.

The Housing Policy launched on July 27th in Providenciales.

Caribbean News

Trinidad & Tobago Emancipation Day Marked with Major Events Attended by Prime Minister and other Dignitaries

Published

7 hours ago

August 11, 2023

Deandrea Hamilton

#TrinidadandTobago, August 11, 2023 – Prime Minister Dr the Hon Keith Rowley and Mrs Sharon Rowley attended the Distinguished Open Lecture by His Royal Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, The Asantehene at The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus last evening (Thursday 3rd August, 2023).

The Asantehene is the Guest of Honour in commemoration of this country’s 2023 Emancipation celebrations.

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives and Member of Parliament for Tunapuna, the Hon. Esmond Forde, Minister of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs, Senator the Hon. Dr. Amery Browne, Minister of Housing and Urban Development, the Hon. Camille Robinson-Regis, Minister of Education, Dr. the Hon. Nyan Gadsby-Dolly, Minister in the Ministry of Education, the Hon. Lisa Morris-Julian, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Principal of The University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine, Dean of the Faculty of Food and Agriculture, Professor Mark Wuddivira and Lecturer Department of History, Dr. Debbie Mc Collin were also in attendance at yesterday’s lecture.

Prime Minister Dr the Hon Keith Rowley and Mrs Sharon Rowley also visited the Desperadoes Pan Theatre at George Street, Port of Spain last evening (Wednesday 2nd August, 2023).

Dr Rowley welcomed His Royal Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, The Asantehene and his delegation to the pan theatre where His Majesty was treated to various aspects of Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival which culminated in a performance by the Desperadoes Steel Orchestra and a demonstration on the playing of the national instrument for the Asantehene.

“They now see Africa, not through European eyes, as a dark continent, but as the cradle of human civilisation, citing the discoveries of its great empires. They talk of it glowingly, as the world’s fastest developing economic region in the 21st century, having just overtaken Asia, and of its six of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world and of its minerals, critical and indispensable to the technologies of the 21st century green economies.

Today, recognising the pain of the Middle Passage, and the centuries of colonial brutality, I salute the African community, a people, who through grit and determination, is on the march, striving for further discovery and self-realisation, searching, and transforming themselves for the challenges of the 21st century.

Let us all reflect and educate ourselves as we celebrate African Emancipation Day 2023.”

Dr the Honourable Keith Rowley

Prime Minister of The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

on the occasion of Emancipation Day 2023