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The Solomon Islands Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI) says that it is imperative that the Solomon Islands Government together with all tourism institutions and stakeholders take collaborative approaches in addressing the impediments that hinders the development of the tourism industry in the country.
Chief Executive Officer, Ms Atenasi Ata, on behalf of the SICCI membership and its 23 members in the tourism sector, commended the ‘Tourism in Focus’ event hosted in Honiara on Friday 24th January 2020 which provided the opportunity for key tourism institutions such as the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Tourism Solomons and Solomon Airlines to discuss with industry stakeholders on ways to address key development challenges facing the industry.
“Solomon Islands is considered to have world class tourism potential and as a Chamber we are committed to working in partnership with relevant stakeholders to realise this potential which will provide a more sustainable source of growth with a positive ripple effect,” Ms Ata said.
“Focusing on growing this sector as a coordinated group of stakeholders will see the impacts felt across the country and especially in getting vital cash into the rural communities,” she added.
SICCI through its Advocacy Department has included in its advocacy agenda for 2020 the development of new sectors particularly the tourism sector as an important pathway for economic growth.
Advocacy Officer, Mr John Ta’amora said the department will be hosting a series of Private Sector Roundtable meetings this year to support important sectors such as Tourism and Agriculture.
“This roundtable forums helps SICCI members to identify areas of partnership with the Solomon Islands Government through its relevant ministries and for our members to bring up issues, challenges and recommendations to inform government policy efforts.
“This is part of SICCI’s advocacy efforts to address the key impediments to economic growth. In order for our economy to grow, it is important that there is an enabling business environment that encourages business growth and the creation of jobs for Solomon Islanders,” Mr Ta’amora said.
Mr Ta’amora reiterated that tourism sector can help shape the future of our economy as Solomon Islands sees a slowdown in the forestry industry.
As such, the Chamber supports the call by key tourism officials for increased budgetary support from Government to reflect the country’s seriousness in filling the expected gap in our economy with the decline in national revenue because of slowdown in the logging industry.
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