About Advocacy

What is advocacy, exactly?
According to Merriam Webster, advocacy is 'the act or process of advocating or supporting a cause or proposal.'

Benefits to CHTA members
Through its advocacy efforts, CHTA works to sensitize public officials, the communities, and the industry itself, about its role and contribution as a foremost export sector - paving the way for a climate conducive to the sustainable development of tourism in the Caribbean, hence, the competitiveness, profitability, and sustainability of your business.

Why advocacy?
The CHTA believes that there is still insufficient awareness and understanding of the tourism industry’s contribution to Caribbean countries - how it permeates the economy as well as the overall fabric of Caribbean societies.

As stated for example in the 2004 World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) study on the economic impact of Travel & Tourism in the Caribbean, "Over the next ten years, Travel & Tourism in the region is forecast to achieve annualized real growth of 4.1 per cent, in terms of GDP, and 2.8 per cent in terms of Travel & Tourism employment. This would take the share of GDP and employment to 16.5 and 17.1 per cent respectively by 2014." The report goes on to state that the impact would be greater than forecast if "the underlying regional and national policy framework were conducive to growth."  Click here to download the full WTTC economic impact study.

We believe therefore that given the tremendous impact of the tourism industry on the lives of Caribbean people, it is our obligation to actively lobby the relevant regional agencies and institutions to ensure that the concerns of the tourism sector are at the forefront of their decision making processes. In this way we hope to contribute to moulding the Caribbean's political and social climate in a way which positively fosters the tourism sector and continues to contribute to the advancement and development of our societies.