Bahamas Hotel & Tourism Association

Top tourism body urges greater collaboration and focus on quality of education and training

The Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) is seeking greater collaboration with the public sector to solve a "major skills shortage" that has rapidly become a "national challenge".

*         PROVIDES INSIGHT INTO HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT, PARTICULARLY FOR LOWER EDUCATION LEVELS AND YOUTH

*         UNDERSCORES MAJOR SKILLS GAP BETWEEN R DEMAND AND SUPPLY

The Inter-American Development Bank has released an executive summary presenting the key results of the first comprehensive survey of employers and employment.  The Wage and Productivity Survey 2012 was conducted by the Department of Statistics of The Bahamas with the financial and technical support of the Inter-American Development Bank's Labor Markets Unit.  It is part of the Labour Market Study that the Inter- American Development Bank is conducting for The Bahamas

In response to recommendations by BHTA, the Chamber of Commerce, and others in recent years to consolidate and improve the various Government support services offered to small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), the Government has drafted the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act.  The Government and BHTA are inviting interested members to review the draft and present any thoughts or recommendations to us by Friday, April 12th.

Certificate Courses Now Being Offered

The Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association has been working with schools and other industry stakeholders on a range of initiatives to prepare the industry and Bahamians for the employment opportunities which will become available throughout the nation as a result of the Baha Mar development.

“We are taking a multi-faceted approach to prepare our people and our industry, recognizing that the scale of the Baha Mar development and their employment needs will impact most businesses throughout The Bahamas, as many existing employees and school graduates gravitate to these new opportunities.  Individuals must be prepared to take advantage of the range of opportunities” states BHTA President Stuart Bowe.