THE PARLIAMENTARY Opposition has registered its disapproval of Government's announced plan to partially fund the US$1.6 billion Tourism Master Plan through the imposition of fees on tourists entering the island.
"We support the need for such a fund, but our difficulty in accepting this fund is that it should not be used to support the Master Plan," said Edmund Bartlett, Opposition spokesman on tourism.
Mr. Bartlett argued that the fund should be used primarily for product enhancement activities separate and apart from the Master Plan. He noted that just one of those activities would be assisting in the development of small properties within the sector.
Last week, Tourism Minister Aloun Assamba revealed the Government's plan to implement the fees during her 2004/2005 Budget Debate presentation.
"The money raised is to be placed in a dedicated fund to be used solely for tourism development," Ms. Assamba told members in the House of Representatives on Wednesday.
Since gaining support for the move, the Tourism Ministry has been working on several pre-requisites, including the legal framework for the charging and use of the tourism enhancement fee. But Mr. Bartlett has pointed to the Government's reduced contribution to the plan, suggesting it showed a "lack of commitment" to the development of the tourism industry.
Drafted in 2000 to move tourism on to a path of long-term sustainability, the bill for the full implementation of the plan was originally put at US$2 billion over its 10-year span, ending in 2010. Of this amount, US$542 million was expected to be driven by public sector-led projects.
But, MS. Assamba revealed at a post-Cabinet briefing in September that Government's contribution had been reduced to only US$163 million. At that time it was still expected that US$1.4 billion would be invested from the private sector, despite the cut in the Government's input.
- Robert Hart
