Tourism remains subdued, says Haynes
Cleviston Haynes, Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados (CBB), highlighted yesterday that activity in the tourism sector remained subdued for the first six months of 2021.
The governor explained that in the second quarter of 2021, a partial resumption of airlift facilitated 11,289 long-stay tourist arrivals compared to only 980 tourists for the corresponding period a year earlier.
“Prolonged travel restrictions, especially in the UK, due to the rising cases of the highly contagious Delta variant of COVID-19, coupled with ongoing uncertainty as it relates to travel protocols, served to temper the budding recovery,” explained Haynes.
The modest increase in arrivals were not sufficient to offset the virtual absence of visitors in the first quarter, said Governor Haynes, highlighting that arrivals for the first half of the year were 88 per cent lower than for the same period of 2020.
The Welcome Stamp programme continued to be the shining light during COVID-19 as it attracted new remote workers, contributing to economic activity through real estate rentals and spending on other ancillary services.
“With the low influx of tourists, the hotel sector suffered from low occupancy and revenues, but some properties benefited from their use as quarantine facilities and from the local demand for staycation packages,” he said.
Haynes also noted that some hotels and restaurants took the opportunity to effect renovations during the down period, in preparation for offering enhanced service as tourism returns later in the year.
The Tourism Sector still holds the keys to the recovery of the Barbados economy, however, as Haynes explained that the forecasted 1-3 per cent economic growth for 2021 outlook hinged on the speed of the recovery in tourism.
The reports of planned increased airlift over the next six months to cope with pent-up demand for travel bodes well for energising a strong but gradual recovery,” he stated.
However, the governor warned that the environment remains hostile with new virus mutations and the continued uneven distribution of vaccines across the world. Haynes contended that there were other downside risks that have to be managed, using the example that Barbados had recently been placed on the “green list” of its largest source market for tourists, the United Kingdom, thus exempting visitors from having to quarantine after they return from Barbados.
“Retaining this status requires us to continue to manage the virus through careful observance of the health protocols, thus minimising risk to ourselves while providing confidence to potential visitors that the exempt status will not be subject to a sudden change,” said Haynes. (AS)