Emergency repairs needed on Linden...
continued movement of people and supplies and avoid the accompanying loss of income.
Just as significantly the remnant of road that is likely to emerge when the waters finally recede will be significantly damaged, crippling commerce, inhibiting the movement of people and resulting in significantly higher transport and operation costs into 2019.
This paints a bleak future at least in the short term for Guyana’s most popular Eco-Tourism locations many of which are found in the Rupununi and whose international visitors book 6-12 month in advance. Those locations like Iwokrama, Surama and Lethem who usually look forward to the trickle of domestic and diaspora travellers during the July-August months to keep their doors open are already reporting that the current road situation has had a devastating impact on bookings.
For other sites further away from the main road the long hiatus during the rains means that such locations look forward to the influx of tourists in September to early December to sustain them and their employees and in turn grease the wheels of commerce in communities across the region to make for a festive Christmas. To salvage the coming tourist season, road and bridge repairs need to start with immediate effect, keeping commodities moving and reducing down time come September.
Collaborative solutions must be sought to facilitate affordable air travel direct to popular locations across the Rupununi. Policy review needs to be fast tracked to facilitate the installation of a regionally based air carrier, removal of the VAT on internal flights and incentives for airlines to service key tourism locations especially those in the North Rupununi need to be effected in time to meet the September demands.
The alternative will be exposing our visitors to the worst road conditions that the region has seen in almost a decade, eroding the progress made over the last 20+ years in bringing Guyana’s tourism industry to the international market and forcing existing operators into potential financial jeopardy with higher operational and transport costs to honour tourism commitments which were confirmed in many cases 6-12 months in advance. Yours faithfully, Melanie McTurk President Visit Rupununi