Business View Caribbean October/November 2018

56 57 CARIBBEAN TOURISMASSOCIATION nucleus of the organization, we also represent a fairly large body of private sector tourism interests. The CTO is primarily funded by mem- bership dues for services we provide - literally, every service a country needs to promote and develop itself as a tourism destination. That includes research and IT, standards and cer- tification, training across the region, creating curricula, conferences and events, sustainable tourism development programs and, of course, marketing. “For those services, member countries pay annual dues calculated by a simple, equitable formula that takes into account the number of visitors and the amount of revenue derived from that country’s tourism sector. So, tiny St. Eustatius doesn’t pay the same as the Baha- mas. Those dues are our main source of in- come.We also sell services and materials/data, and charge for training and research projects. “About 10 percent of the money we man- age comes from external sources outside the Caribbean.We scour the world for project funding from places like the European Union, or the InterAmerican Development Bank, or other sources. Those funds don’t go to the bottom line, they go towards providing activities and services our members need in areas such as cultural heritage, capacity building, climate change adaptation, or disaster mitigation. It’s useful funding for individual countries that wouldn’t be eligible for it on their own.” BVC: What are the biggest challenges for the Caribbean tourism sector? Riley: “The biggest challenge is competition. Competitive forces are active and aggressive – travel and tourism is the leading industry, and everybody is in it. So, we need to organize ourselves to make an impact on how we market the Caribbean brand. Our responsibility, as the CTO, is to keep the brand active, visible, and strong, and our image, positive, out there in the world. Our competitors have larger budgets and we are a collection of relatively small coun- CARIBBEAN LAUNCHES “THE RHYTHM NEVER STOPS” Inspired by the Caribbean’s iconic sounds and sights, the region’s leading tourism entities have joined forces to launch “The Rhythm Never Stops”– a vibrant marketing campaign enticing travelers to revel in the Caribbean’s incredible natural beauty, diverse cultures, and hidden treasures. On Oct 10, the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) and the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) unveiled the fruit of months of collaborative efforts to showcase the Caribbean in a new, dynamic digital campaign. Supported by a select group of destinations and private sector partners, the video presentation targets social media, including Facebook, In- stagram and Google Display, and features the electronic dance music of “Lean On” by Major Lazer x DJ Snake (feat. MØ), one of the most-streamed songs of all time on Spotify. The initial phase of the online campaign runs for 12 weeks, featuring des- tinations such as The Bahamas in the north; Cayman Islands and Jamaica in the western Caribbean; the French department of Martinique and its eastern Caribbean neighbor Saint Lucia, as well as Grenada and Trinidad & Tobago in the south. CLICK LINK FOR CAMPAIGN VIDEO: https://youtu.be/yJlbu2Ig_m8