St. Thomas is set to benefit from a nearly 1 billion US dollar Tourism Development Programme. Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett made the disclosure in his contribution to the sectoral debate in Parliament on Tuesday. There are plans afoot to make St. Thomas the premiere destination for sustainable development and lifestyle tourism. With a spend of nearly one billion us dollars; the parish should see changes to include the building of over 4-thousand new hotel rooms, and the creation of 13-thousand jobs by 2030.
Under the ‘Tourism Destination Development and Management Plan‘, approximately 205 million us dollars in public investment will be used to unlock more than twice that amount in private investment. Also outlined in his speech was the ministry’s plan to develop the rocky point beach, establish way-finding stations in Yallahs, rehabilitate the road to the bath fountain hotel, and use partnerships to develop heritage sites across the parish.
Other arms of government are supporting this thrust by undertaking significant upgrades to the road and water pipeline networks. Meantime, the ministry pledges to expand opportunities for locals during the 2022/23 fiscal year.
Reporter: Jhanielle Powell
