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AIDS Alliance Launches Caribbean Responsible Tourism Model
Saturday, 11 May, 2010
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Sex workers, tourism workers and male gays addressed
Alliance linking organisation, the Caribbean HIV & AIDS Alliance (CHAA) , launched a groundbreaking HIV and AIDS Responsible Tourism Model at a forum at the Jolly Beach Hotel in Antigua on 30 March 2010.
The model, which should equip the region’s tourism sector to deal with the challenges of HIV, resulted from an Alliance Caribbean project, funded by UKaid from the Department of International Development. The project is focused on accelerating private sector response to HIV and AIDS in the Caribbean.
The Caribbean has the highest HIV prevalence rate outside sub Saharan Africa, with an estimated 240,000 people living with HIV in the region.
The model addresses the challenges of delivering services in a sector that is highly protective and reliant on its image. Each year, some 40 million stop over and cruise ship passengers are welcomed to the region.
The pilot project took place in Jamaica and Barbados and comprised of various behaviour change interventions conducted among key populations such as sex workers, men who have sex with men and tourism workers.
One of the key outcomes of the project was the partnerships developed between private and public sector and, among private sector and civil society organisations.
Speaking at the forum, Alliance Caribbean’s Executive Director, Basil Williams said: "the model provides step-by-step guidance for work in the tourism sector in the region. He warned against underestimating the ability of HIV to destabilise the economies of the region, and assured that because of the unique way the model was approached, “it will leave a lasting impact throughout the Caribbean.”
Also launched at the forum was a Compendium of Best Practice Case Studies. The publication provides real stories from organisations and individuals impacted by the project. Drawing on interviews conducted with industry leaders, workers, both formal and informal, the case studies highlight efforts to address HIV in the tourism sector.
The organisations featured participated in various interventions ranging from workplace policy and programme development, behaviour change communication, promotion of voluntary counselling and testing especially among marginalised groups ‘working’ in the tourism sector, stigma, discrimination and advocacy to institutional capacity building and building effective partnerships between private and public sector or between NGOs and private sector.
Tourism tends to fight shy of AIDS and HIV discussions as they may hurt the industry.
Valere Tjolle
Valere Tjolle is editor of the Sustainable Tourism Report Suite, special offer at: www.travelmole.com/stories/1142003.php
Valere
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