Barbados is positioning itself for a significant expansion of its tourism sector through a new strategic collaboration with the World Bank. The partnership was formalized during a high-level meeting between Minister of Tourism and International Transport Ian Gooding-Edghill and a delegation from the World Bank led by Maria Marcela Silva, Regional Director for Infrastructure in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The discussions at the ministry’s Warrens headquarters focused on comprehensive development strategies, with Minister Gooding-Edghill highlighting Barbados’ remarkable tourism growth trajectory between 2023 and 2024. He detailed the government’s multi-faceted approach, emphasizing the critical expansion of room inventory and the successful implementation of an airlift strategy that has driven substantial visitor growth. “Barbados is entering an exciting period of growth,” the Minister stated. “We are building out and expanding our room inventory absolutely necessary as we drive more traffic to destination Barbados.”
Ms. Silva, who is concurrently participating in the 34th General Assembly’s Forum of Ministers and Highest Authorities of Housing and Urban Development, underscored the World Bank’s commitment to supporting Barbados’ infrastructure ambitions. She outlined the Bank’s capacity to provide both financial resources and technical expertise, particularly in tourism and international transport sectors. “We are very keen to work with you,” Silva affirmed. “We think that there is a huge opportunity in the tourism sector one of these sectors that we see as having a lot of potential to support job creation, economic growth and so on.”
The bilateral talks extended to several key areas including technical assistance programs for aviation development, sustainable tourism practices, cruise tourism enhancement, and market diversification strategies. Significant attention was given to the proposed expansion of Grantley Adams International Airport and Barbados’ pursuit of Category 1 status with both the US Federal Aviation Administration and the International Civil Aviation Organization.
The World Bank delegation emphasized their comprehensive infrastructure mandate, covering energy, transport, urban development, tourism, and disaster risk management. They committed to sharing valuable data analytics, best practices, and innovative financing options to support Barbados’ development objectives.
The meeting included senior officials from both parties, including acting Permanent Secretary Deborah Norville, Permanent Secretary Charley Browne, acting Chief Technical Officer Dionne Gibbs-Nicholls, and several World Bank specialists in urban development and resilience.