PM Manning: More focus on domestic tourism

Prime Minister Patrick Manning has observed that the annual Tobago Heritage Festival was well placed to promote domestic tourism but stressed that this aspect of national development was not getting the attention it deserved.

He made the point in an address during the formal segment of the festival’s “Caribbean Night” presentation at Shaw Park Thursday night. Manning noted that in addition to national cohesion and understanding, “It (Heritage Festival) will also promote domestic tourism, which is another aspect of national development that needs much more attention than before. “For tourism to be fully integrated into the national economy, and not solely dependent on the external environment, domestic tourism must become an essential platform of the way forward,” Manning said.

The Prime Minister emphasised the need for more national awareness, declaring: “Too many of our ordinary citizens are limited to a visit to a nearby beach and liming out of a car trunk. The fact is, we need greater interaction!” he asserted. “How many citizens of Port-of-Spain have been to this Tobago Heritage Festival? How many citizens of Tobago have been to Mayaro or a chutney show? And even in Trinidad itself, how many citizens of Cedros, or even San Fernando, have been to Toco?” Manning asked.