Tourism industry welcomes announcement

THE announcement by government on the vaccination requirement has been welcomed and supported by the tourism industry representative body.

In a statement yesterday, Fiji Hotel and Tourism Association chief executive officer Fantasha Lockington said the announcement supported the tourism industry’s long-held reasoning that safer workplaces with vaccinated staff would instil the required confidence that we could keep our people, our communities and our customers safer as well .

“Fiji’s tourism industry has been at the front of the line, whether it be adapting to new COVID-safe protocols or encouraging staff to be vaccinated by providing clear communication and vaccine information support,” said Ms Lockington.

She said the association continued to actively campaign for its members and was optimistic that with more employers supporting the need for vaccinations to keep the Fijian population safer, more people would soon be able to confidently focus on safer business activities.

She further said while FHTA had earlier proposed supporting employers to impose vaccines as a policy requirement, the recently announced mandatory requirement was a welcome move that would now allow the industry to focus efforts on reopening frameworks.

Fiji’s tourism industry has been at the front of the line whether it be adapting to new COVID-safe protocols or encouraging staff to be vaccinated ... Fantasha Lockington