On September 24, 2026, the Belize Tourism Industry Association (BTIA) celebrated its 41st anniversary by convening top tourism sector leaders and cross-sector partners for a strategic summit focused on solving the industry’s most pressing challenges. From invasive sargassum blooms and long-term sustainability to bolstering Belize’s global competitiveness, BTIA President Efren Perez has centered the conversation on deepened public-private collaboration as the core engine for sustained growth and inclusive shared prosperity across the sector.
In his remarks at the gathering, Perez emphasized that private sector stakeholders are indispensable partners in identifying unaddressed gaps in Belize’s tourism ecosystem. “We have to look back at what we’ve accomplished, assess where we stand today, and map out the gaps that still hold our industry back – and the private sector can’t be left out of that conversation,” Perez explained. “Every major decision for the sector needs to be built around shared prosperity, so that benefits reach every corner of the industry and lift all segments, from large operators to small local businesses.”
A central outcome of the summit’s discussions, Perez noted, is a renewed push to organize the fragmented private tourism landscape, unifying independent hotels, tour operators, travel agencies and destination management companies under a coordinated collective framework. This unified structure will position Belize’s tourism providers to compete more effectively in major regional and international marketing events, rather than operating as isolated individual entities. Rather than promoting single properties or experiences one by one, a coordinated collective can market the full breadth of Belize’s diverse tourism offerings to a global audience, expanding the nation’s reach far beyond what individual operators can achieve alone.
This holistic industry-wide assessment, Perez added, will also help stakeholders pinpoint exactly where targeted investments are most needed – from upskilling training programs to providing small and medium operators with the digital and business tools they require to grow and compete in a fast-evolving global travel market.
Among the urgent challenges highlighted by participating stakeholders, the accelerating influx of sargassum seaweed along Belize’s coastlines emerged as the most pressing threat to the nation’s beach and marine tourism. The summit agreed that only strengthened cross-stakeholder collaboration, dedicated sustainable funding, and coordinated national action can deliver the long-term, effective solutions needed to mitigate sargassum’s impact on the sector.
This report is adapted from a full televised newscast transcript, with original Kriol language statements transcribed using a standardized spelling system for accessibility.