Efrén Perez Secures Second Term at Helm of FEDECATUR

Belize is cementing its influence in regional tourism leadership. The head of the Belize Tourism Industry Association, Efrén Pérez, has just been unanimously re-elected to lead FEDECATUR, one of the region’s most influential tourism bodies. It’s a clear vote of confidence from Central America and the Dominican Republic, signaling strong backing for Perez’s push to boost collaboration, sustainability, and innovation across the industry. Now, with a second term secured, the focus shifts to what’s next, how he plans to build on that momentum and position the region to stay competitive in a rapidly evolving tourism market. We caught up with Perez today for a closer look at his roadmap moving forward.

 

On the Phone: Efren Perez, President, FEDECATUR

“Our focus is looking at  greater collaboration between  public sector entities, especially the Ministries of Tourism and also looking at avenues and opportunities that we would be able to provide capacity building for private sector in terms of training, in terms of certifications and also opportunities where we would be able to open pathways where multi-destination travel can occur within all the destinations. We have to be a bit much more aggressive in terms of the movement of people. We have to remain competitive. We have to also look at the quality and standards that are being offered by the destinations, particularly when it comes to the private sector itself. And so those are some of the key focuses that I am taking into consideration for this for this term. Greater collaboration and dialogue within all the region with the private sector and public. Programs like these agreements that we’re signing in terms of the connectivity and the mobility plans through within the region  not only involve the tourism stakeholders, but they also involve other, other private public sector entities for example, immigration is one of those that we’d have to have continuous dialogue with, you know? And so it does open an opportunity, and we are very focused in terms of really starting to build that momentum and making that shift to take advantage of what is available within our region.”

 

Perez says Belize could benefit from a new regional tourism pact among Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, designed to boost connectivity and cut airfare, opening the door to easier travel and stronger links across Central America.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

Watch the full newscast here: