Belize Moves Towards Better, Safer, More Accessible Tourism Standards

Belize City is hosting tourism authorities and auditors from across Central America and the Dominican Republic this week for a four-day workshop on sustainable tourism. 

The event, organised by the Ministry of Tourism, Sports, and Diaspora Relations and the Secretariat for Central American Tourism Integration (SITCA), aims to raise standards and give small and medium businesses access to recognised certifications.

Chief Tourism Officer Josue Carballo said the programme will help tourism operators turn best practices into official recognition. He said although many private entities already have good practices in place, this move will implement standardisation of quality across the board. “The idea of this is to be able to align the efforts that are being done by the private sector and give them their proper recognition and reach up to a certification stage,” Carballo said. “It’s very important because it creates a baseline for quality and in particular for MSMEs in the different regions.”

The workshop is also an opportunity to learn from each of the eight participating countries, said Ligia Miranda, Executive Secretary of SITCA. “This is important for everyone; when you go to a hotel, especially during this busy tourism season, we want to make sure that when you enter your room, everything meets quality standards, from the food to all other aspects of the place you are visiting,” she said. “Visitors, including those with disabilities, should have access to facilities that allow them to fully enjoy tourist sites.” Miranda added, “Quality and accessibility should not exist in only one country but wherever you travel, which is why we want to raise standards and quality across the region.”

The workshop ends Friday.