TIDCO into Trinidad and Tobago holidays

THE EDITOR: What does the word “TIDCO” mean to the average person in New York, Toronto, London, or Paris? What does the title “Jamaica Tourist Board” mean to the average person in the same cities?

Get my drift? Ads or communications identified with the Barbados Tourism Authority, the Jamaica Tourist Board, or the Curacao Tourism Development Bureau, automatically convey clear messages. The word “TIDCO” does not do the same because it means nothing. Let’s be quite frank — How many people in New York or Berlin would link TIDCO with Trinidad and Tobago? It amounts to a waste of advertising and projection. That is why I agree with the reported view of Minister Ken Valley in May that the TIDCO image needs re-doing. There is even an image problem here in Trinidad and Tobago. TIDCO has now become completely identified with, and submerged by, the concept of “tourism,” despite the fact that the word is supposed to represent industry as well as tourism.

A survey would show that most are unaware of any industrial linkage with the company; eg there was great surprise, even indignation, when TIDCO was connected with road paving. It was felt in many quarters that this was at odds with tourism. The considered opinions of many is that the “tourism” and “industrial development” identities cannot live together as equals. I am therefore recommending a change to “Trinidad and Tobago Holidays,” a place where every visit is a vacation. Trinidad and Tobago Holidays would identify the country and what it offers, and would make for an easier, more impactual ‘sell’ to the outside world. So what becomes of industrial development? This could be catered to by a new company, the Development Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (DATT), a sound familiar to everyone. The accent on “Industrial” is removed in keeping with the growing trend away from smoke stacks, to knowledge enterprises. It would be interesting to hear what others think.

LLOYD CARTAR
Port-of-Spain