March 2017 | Business View Caribbean

4 5 march/april 2017 Opening Lines Representatives from all member states of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States participating in the OECS Network of Excellence for Tour- ism and Hospitality Training and Edu- cation (NETHTE) project, assembled in Antigua and Barbuda from February 22 -23, to discuss and validate the curricu- lum framework for the proposed Eastern Caribbean Institute of Tourism (ECIT). The curriculum framework is partic- ularly important, as it will serve as a guide to ensure consistency and quality across all member states in the de- sign and development of any program offered by ECIT’s network of partner institutions. Ultimately, the curriculum framework will set standards for ECIT’s curriculum and provide the context in which appropriate syllabi would be developed. The curriculum framework will there- fore seek to harmonize and standardize all curricula developed for the ECIT, OECS Member States Develop Curriculum Framework for Tourism Institute making it another milestone at the regional level, supporting the integration arrangements in the context of the OECS Economic Union. The curriculum to be developed bymember states for ECIT programs will be centered on the competencybased training and education approach. This approachwas found to be ideal,as it best facil- itates the needs of the sector in terms of equipping tourism industrypersonnel with not only the knowl- edge,but also the skill sets and attitude needed to effectivelyperformat all levels in the region’s highly service-oriented and very diversified tourism industry. The OECS member states of Anguilla,Antigua and Barbuda, the British Virgin Islands,Domini- ca, Grenada,Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and St.Vincent and the Grenadines,were represented at the workshop in Antigua.The OECS NETHTE project is being implemented with fund- ing support from the European Union, through its tenth EDF Program of Economic Integration and Trade of the OECS region. Study Concludedon Cost of Fishing in Caribbean States A landmark study to look at the impacts of rising cost factors on fishing operations in the Caribbean has been concluded, and the Carib- bean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), in collaboration with FAO, will convene a val- idation workshop in early March in Barbados to review the findings and chart the necessary course of action. At the upcoming event, CRFM Executive Di- rector, Milton Haughton, will present a general overview of the project and explain what the workshop is expected to achieve. The back- ground, findings, conclusions, and recommenda- tions of the study will be presented by consul-