Villages as Businesses – Jamaica Community Tourism

Community Tourism Partners & Consultants Welcome Minister Edmund Bartlett’s Village Tourism Project

Tue, 14 Dec 2021 18:43:32 +0000

Mandeville, Jamaica. December 13, 2021. The announcement of Minister of Tourism, The Honourable Edmund Bartlett, on December 3, 2021 at the 24th session of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) General Assembly in Madrid, Spain, of his intention to invest and promote Village Tourism in Jamaica is welcomed by all Community Tourism partners. Delegates who approved the Redesigning Tourism for the Future Task Force agreed that this was a big victory for World Tourism.

BRAND Jamaica is known for being the home of the fastest man and the fastest woman on planet earth, Usain Bolt and Elaine Thompson-Herah, Reggae, Bob Marley and its first National Hero, Marcus Mosiah Garvey. Jamaica is also the HOME OF COMMUNITY TOURISM, having given it birth some 47 years ago and been so branded in 1994 by Dr. Louis D’Amore, founder, International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT). The title has since grown to include the Caribbean Region. Community Tourism has in turn given birth to Villages as Businesses, a world recognized and acclaimed programme created in Jamaica and implemented and exported locally, regionally and internationally with a focus on community economic tourism.

The Tourism Minister’s announcement is in fact an award-winning decision based on the following truth: it is endorsing the passion, philosophy and commitment of Diana McIntyre-Pike, tourism pioneer, which has earned her and Villages as Businesses some 25 awards spanning 40 years.

Among those accolades are the United Nations Decade of Women Award for outstanding contribution to tourism in Jamaica (1982), the Caribbean Hotel Association Award for outstanding contribution to tourism in the Caribbean Region (1988), the Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Award for Best Personal Contribution in the World, won jointly with Jane Ashton of TUI Travel UK from among 10,000 nominees (2008); the Order of Distinction (OD) for Tourism and Community Service (2009), the World Tourism Network (WTN) International Tourism Heroes Hall of Fame Award (2020) https://heroes.travel/2020/10/15/diana-mcintyre-pike-jamaica , and the Jamaica Hotel & Tourist Association (JHTA) Community Tourism Pioneer Award (2021).

We welcome the Minister’s endorsement of Village Tourism because of its potential to be seamlessly integrated with Villages as Businesses and the many initiatives it has spawned, inspired and collaborated with within the emerging global multi-million-dollar tourism industry. It is important here to note the view of Dr Kadamawe K’nife, Lecturer/Researcher Mona School of Business and Management (MSBM), The University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica who stated “the Tourism Master Plan (2000) is even more relevant today if Jamaica is to achieve the goals of vision 2030 and the SDGs. Village Tourism supports climate change imperatives and incorporates gender, youth, people with special needs and sustainable development best practices.”

The many Community Tourism partners and consultants therefore await and are willing to contribute to the blueprint which will show how the Minister plans to integrate his community-focused tourism project with Villages as Businesses Tourism and make this venture a win-win for all.

Jamaica has the opportunity to show countries in the region how to develop a strategic, collaborative and coordinated approach to Village/Community Tourism to achieve the vision of a prosperous and equitable future. The Community Tourism industry partners and consultants seeking Government facilitation of this One-Voice approach include, but is not limited to:

Theo & Sharon Chambers, founders of the annual Caribbean Health Tourism Spa Conference since 2005;
Valerie Dixon with cultural heritage projects, the Marcus Garvey Fair and Taino Heritage in Resource Village;
Beeston Spring Village led by Astil Gage.
Arlene McKenzie with the Rastafarian Cultural Heritage (Rastafari Indigenous Village);
Robert Stephens with the Port Royal project;
Alison Kenning Massa with urban and environmental development profiles and plans for the North Coast, Bath/St. Thomas, Kingston & St. Andrew, Portland, St. Elizabeth and Manchester;
Manchester Peace Coalition (MPCo) advocating and managing 18 at risk communities;
UWI Open Campus providing certification for the Countrystyle Community Tourism Network Community Tourism Entrepreneurship training;
Bluefields Community Best Road Competition led by Keith Wedderburn;
Reliable Adventures Jamaica founded by Wolde Kristos;
The National Best Communities Competition led by Jacqueline DaCosta;
Negril Environment Education Trust (NEET – A tablet in every child’s hand and computer in every classroom) led by Winston Wellington and Jean Brown;
Treasure Beach Community Tourism projects led by Jason Henzell;
Edward Wray and indigenous and ceremonial tourism;
Hugh Dixon and STEA opening Cockpit Country to specialist hiking, caving and cultural tourism;
The Maroon and Taino communities acknowledging the importance of Jamaica’s authentic indigenous and connected cultural heritage within the Caribbean;
The many Diaspora organisations, including Making Connections Work UK, who have enthusiastically endorsed Community Economic Tourism; and
The people who have worked to ensure that we have a tourism industry through their advocacy and stewardship of the environment, including Jamaica Environment Trust (JET), the Negril, Montego Bay and Portland marine parks, Jamaica Conservation and Development Trust (JCDT), Negril Environment Protection Trust (NEPT) and other environmental NGOs.

We take the Minister’s presentation in Madrid as a commitment to strengthening rural communities’ capacity for self-governance and sustainable development fueled by tourism rather than creating mere attractions and museums. We also trust that his remarks about redressing the imbalance between the providers and beneficiaries of tourism will put to rest the frequent misconception that Community Tourism is but another means for a few outsiders to exploit Jamaica’s riches.

In fact, tourism is said to be the vehicle that redistributes the global wealth to the poor. It is time to put that postulate to the test. At the same time, we hope there is also a commitment to cease developing tourism resort areas as tourism enclaves which ignore the need of the adjacent communities and tourism workers for proper housing, basic infrastructure and healthy, vibrant and attractive surroundings.

We are therefore requesting an urgent meeting with Tourism Minister Bartlett and his team to showcase and seek Government’s acknowledgement of our inclusive Community Tourism past achievements, to present the need for support and appropriate remuneration for future endeavours, and to offer essential advice based on the successes achieved, best practices and lessons learned during long practical experience.

Photo: UNWTO General Assembly in Madrid, Spain. Left- Secretary of Tourism, H.E. Najib Balala from Kenya; (Center) the Saudi Arabia Minister of Tourism H.E. Mr. Ahmed Al Khateeb, and the Minister of Tourism for Jamaica H.E. Edmund Bartlett were all smiles in this photo taken today after the General Assembly vote. (Photo contributed).

Photo : JHTA Award, The Jamaica Hotel & Tourist Association (JHTA) Community Tourism Pioneer Award (2021). Clifton Reader (c), president of the Jamaica Hotel & Tourist Association (JHTA) presents the “Community Tourism Pioneer Award” to Diana McIntyre-Pike, OD (right) and their Annual General meeting, November 24, 2021. Sharing the moment is Camille Needham, JHTA executive director. (Photo contributed).

Contact:

EDITORS: Please note five (5) photos are attached for your perusal. Thank you.

Theo Chambers
Caribnewsroom.com
+1(876) 275-3169

Diana McIntyre-Pike
Countrystyle Community Tourism Network/Villages as Businesses
+1(876) 507-6326

Villages As Businesses Paving the Way Forward for Caribbean Communities

Thu, 02 Sep 2021 14:48:30 +0000

Jamaica has been branded the HOME OF COMMUNITY TOURISM by the International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT) as this is where it was pioneered 45 years ago by Diana McIntyre-Pike owner/operator of The Astra Country Inn Mandeville then and the late Desmond Henry, a past Director of Tourism. Together they created the Countrystyle Community Tourism Network (CCTN) to develop community tourism mainly on the south coast of Jamaica.

In more recent years, CCTN developed a non-profit membership organization called VILLAGES AS BUSINESSES (VAB) which has received local and international recognition. Diana McIntyre-Pike has received several awards for this initiative, the most recent being in 2020 from the newly formed World Tourism Network (WTN) as one of 17 Tourism professionals to be awarded an international Tourism Heroes Award.

DESMOND HENRY

The Villages as Businesses (VAB) programme has been implementing a five-day Entrepreneurship Hospitality Training in several communities in Jamaica and the Caribbean region which is now certified by the University of the West Indies (UWI) Open Campus. The training covers personal development, research of existing and potential assets, environmental awareness, tour and product selection, business development, security and COVID protocols. One of the Jamaican Diaspora organizations, Making Connections Work UK, has endorsed the VAB and marketing COMMUNITY ECONOMIC TOURISM as the umbrella approach.

The Countrystyle Community Tourism Network (CCTN) has recently decided to have the Jamaican and Caribbean Diaspora as its investment and marketing partners. It has created a special community tourism fund called COMFUND with an interim Diaspora Board. COMFUND is now registered in the USA and is presently being finalized with a financial institution to facilitate donations and potential investment. The interest on COMFUND will support low interest loan and grant funding for qualifying sustainable community development projects submitted by members of Villages as Businesses. All future CCTN Community Lifestyle Vacations and Tours will include a contribution to COMFUND.

A partnership has just been finalized with a Caribbean Diaspora organization mobile application platform called TravelJamii which will be rolled out in September 2021. The TravelJamii App will enable the Global Community to experience everything Caribbean, by promoting tourism, community tourism, major brands, local businesses, attractions, events, cuisine, history, nature, news and more.

www.visitcommunities.com/jamaica

Countrystyle Community Tourism Network developed the Villages as Businesses Programme to offer opportunities

Sat, 01 Feb 2020 22:03:58 +0000

PDF File Countrystyle Community Tourism Network developed the Villages as Businesses Programme to offer opportunities

Villages As Businesses

Thu, 02 Jan 2020 14:52:20 +0000

Villages As Businesses (VAB) is a community-based membership organization which has been established to assist communities in developing their infrastructure so that they can offer community experience tours to local and international visitors, so that these visitors can experience the lifestyle of our villages, our people, our heritage, our culture, our Jamaican foods and so much more.

The Countrystyle Community Tourism Network (CCTN) has over the past 35 years developed positive relationships with many communities all over Jamaica.

This has resulted in a large network being established, and many of these communities have been offered without cost, sensitization training programs showing the benefits of community tourism.

Many of these communities have been, and still are, actively involved with the creation of new businesses, which then are included in the Countrystyle ‘Community Experience’.

In recognizing the need for communities to be properly trained, CCTN in collaboration with the National Best Community Foundation (NBCF) set up the Villages as Businesses program.

This funding will be used for the training of community entrepreneurs in each Village, and to prepare them for market ready tours that can be included in the Jamaica Tourist Board’s marketing campaign, and also offered to local and international Tour Operators and the local accommodation sector.

Training is provided in hospitality skills, small business management, product development, marketing and community governance.

Jamaica’s Ministry of Tourism, through Permanent Secretary Mrs. Jennifer Grifith, has endorsed the Villages as Businesses program, stating that:

“It will complement the Government of Jamaica’s emerging thrust towards community-based tourism and encouraging provision of assistance to Countrystyle Community Tourism Network.”

The CCTN/VAB Board of Directors has been formed with the Chairman being Professor Ian Boxill, Head of the Centre for Tourism and Policy Research.

VAB Member Villages

Nine village communities have been named to receive JSIF/REDI funding in the first phase of this program.

Albert Town, Trelawny
Axe‐and‐Adze, Hanover
Beeston Spring, Westmoreland
Bluefields, Westmoreland
Charles Town, Portland
Hopewell, Hanover
Lancaster Village, Manchester
Resource Village, Manchester
Treasure Beach, St. Elizabeth

Others that have subsequently been enrolled as members are:

Camrose, St James
Middle Quarters, St Elizabeth

Villages or Communities enrolled in this program can submit information about their village.

International Recognition

Countrystyle’s Diana Mcintyre-Pike has been at the forefront of getting global recogniton of Jamaica’s Community Tourism and Villages as Businesses models through her work with Unesco and the International Instiute for Peace Though Tourism (IIPTT).

Over the past twenty years, Jamaica has hosted groups from St. Lucia, Dominica and the United States to study our model of community tourism, which has won many international and local Responsible Tourism Awards.

Jamaica is now recognized thoughout the Caribbean, and internationally as the pioneer and leader in sustainable community tourism, which includes village tourism, heritage tourism, eco-tourism, health tourism and others

There is one International Chapter of the CCTN/VAB – South Africa.

The Caribbean chapter is being formed and will be launched at the end of August 2012.

CCTN Villages as Businesses is also a member of the …

Endorsements

Many organizations have endorsed the CCTN’s Villages as Businesses. Some of them are:

National Association of Jamaican and Supportive Organizations (NAJASO)
Sandals Foundation
Western Hospitality Institute
Northern Caribbean University Morris Entrepreneurship Centre
Hamilton Knight and Associates
Positive Tourism Network (Pancarib)
International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT)
Jamaica National Building Society
Mandeville Hotel
Sunset Resort & Villas – Treasure Beach
My Jamaica Travels
Leisure for Pleasure Vacations and tours
I am Jamaica
Glamour Destination Management
FIT Consultancy Limited
Jamaica Standard Products Limited
National Best Community Foundation (NBCF)
Marigot Village Dominica
Charles Town Maroon Council
Beeston Spring Community Development Committee
Resource Citizens Association
Axe and Adze Community Development Committee
Hanover Homecoming
Round Hill Hotel Hopewell Hanover
Albert Town Citizens Association
Belmont Cherry Hill Nature tour
Dominica Association of Local Community Authorities (DALCA) Inc
UWI Centre for Tourism and Policy Research

More Information

You can view and download the following brochures …

Contact Diana to book tours or for more information about the Villages as Businesses initiative, or if you wish to help and support this program either by …

Picking-A-Project While On Vacation
Adopting-A-Village While on Vacation

Member Village Profiles

Is Your Village or Community Enrolled in
The Villages as Businesses Program
run by CCTN ?

If so, please set up your page here.

Write 300 words or more telling your target visitor what your Village or Community has to offer.

Up to 4 photos can be submitted below, but please resize them to a width of 450 pixels.

In the Title box enter the name of your Village or Community and its location separated by a comma.
e.g. Camrose, St James

Villages as Businesses jamaica Radio Interview

Tue, 12 Nov 2019 09:38:55 +0000

http://visitcommunities.com/jamaica/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Villages-as-Businesses-radio-interview-May-11-2011.mp3

Case study: Villages as Businesses, Trinidad and Tobago

Tue, 08 Oct 2019 14:05:03 +0000

The Lopinot Experience Submitted by Michele D. Celestine, The National Trust, Trinidad and Tobago, March 2016, for Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Commerce’s next quarterly publication
A village as a business? Country-style community tourism as a means of sustainable employment? In July, 2015 the sleepy village of Lopinot, nestled in the valley among the foothills of Arouca, east Trinidad, was completely transformed when these questions were answered in the affirmative.
Since the early 1950s, there had been an appeal by the villagers to have the ecologically important valley with its fascinating history declared a “heritage village”. However this declaration was never made until last year when the National Trust listed the 17th Century estate house there, still known as “Count Lopinot’s house”, as a national heritage site, and simultaneously facilitated the five-day “Villages As Businesses” workshop. The training was conducted by regional Countrystyle Community Tourism Consultant, Diana McIntyre-Pike and sponsored by TDC (the Tourism Development Company).
The village is the beneficiary of a vast array of cultural traditions derived from its ethnically diverse population, which today stands at just about 3000 – being mostly comprised of families who have lived there for generations – and an environment that continues to garner the interest of historians, nature lovers and leisure seekers.
No one could believe that the old estate house, with its very basic museum, rustic cocoa drying house, dirt oven, beautifully landscaped grounds and wooden walk-over bridge, is visited by over 100,000 people each year – and that’s just the ones who sign the Guest Book!
Lopinot is in fact able to offer the perfect heritage tourism product. The main natural attraction is the Arouca river flowing right through the middle of the village and passing just beside Count Lopinot’s house. It has huge bathing pools that are flanked by comfortable sheds for cooking and relaxing on the river bank. The lush green valley is hugely popular for bird watching, cave exploration and trail walking, which extends all the way north into Brasso Seco and Blanchisseusse and west to the Caura valley.
The village derives its name from the owner of the once-upon-a-time La Reconnaissance estate. Legend has it that a very cruel Count Joseph Lopinot rode his horse up the river with his 100 African slaves in tow and settled in the area to develop a cocoa and coffee estate. Later on, some sugar cane was also planted and indentured Indians arrived. Eventually, the estate’s labour force included ‘coco panyols’ from Venezuela, augmented by an influx from the nearby Caura valley, for which plans had been drawn up to construct a dam, leading to the resettlement of some of its villagers in Lopinot.
Within the past decade, archaeological digs have revealed that a significant First People’s population inhabited the valley. Numerous artefacts were unearthed and taken abroad for carbon date testing by Dr. Neal Lopinot, archaeological researcher at the Centre for Archaeological
Research at Missouri State University in the USA and a direct descendant of the Count. Professor Lopinot has however, expressed reluctance to return the artefacts to the valley until there is a space properly designed to preserve them.
The village has a festive appeal all year round, but is especially known for its joyful Parang music and tasty Pastelles both during and outside of the Christmas season. During the workshop young Daniella Fuller the widely acclaimed “Pastelle Queen” announced her intention to take Pastelles to the world! The reality is that the labour intensive business of Pastelle making is a means of sustainable employment and its exportation can be a national foreign exchange income earner. Parang has developed into a thriving industry both for the musical entertainer and the craftsman who skillfully produces the associated musical instruments.
Thriving also, is the historical economic mainstay of the valley. Cocoa innovation has spawned a host of entrepreneurs and there are delicacies and desserts made in Lopinot that have won awards internationally and cannot be sampled anywhere else in Trinidad and Tobago. From chocolate Ponche de Crème to dark chocolate dips, chocolate bread pudding and various meats cooked in a secret cocoa sauce recipe, many families have a resident chocolatier and have created their family brand of eating and drinking chocolate delights.
With all of that on offer, the villagers were taught during the workshop to collaborate and provide a series of enjoyable and affordable tour packages combining all aspects of their heritage – built, natural and cultural. Apart from the Count Lopinot house there is a shrine dedicated to La Divina Pastora further up the valley which was carved out of the hillside, as well as the old Anglican Church. Mr. Cyril’s cocoa estate is still operational and dancing the cocoa in an authentic cocoa drying house to live parang music is an unforgettable experience. These tours have been accredited by the Tourism Development Company (TDC) and are now promoted by tour operators locally and abroad with a minimum of six families from within the village benefitting from each tour. The verdant valley has already spawned a few guest houses with restaurants that serve local organic fare and since the workshop ‘home stays’ are being encouraged for those visitors who want a ‘Trini family’ experience, especially at Christmas time. After all, “Trini Christmas is de best”!
A Calendar of Events within the valley has been established by the interim Lopinot Countrystyle Community Tourism Committee chaired by Marcia Guerrerro. Its first project, the “Ole Time Christmas Market” was a huge success after being heavily promoted by local media! The village was filled with enticing smells and sounds for that event. It provided the opportunity to experience the tradition of seeing and smelling ham boiling in a biscuit tin/ pitch oil pan over a fireside fed with cinnamon and bay logs. Many visitors remarked that they had only read or heard about this practice. The dirt oven at the side of the historical house was reactivated on the day and generated hundreds of rolls of delicious baked cassava bread. Market produce, traditional sweets, drinks and craft items were all on sale with continuous live Parang music throughout. The next project, an “Easter Market” was being executed in late March, even as this article was being written, with one of the highlights being cocoa pork – an entire pig lathered in chocolate roasted on an outside fireplace!
A great contributor to the overall success of the initiative has been the gratis advice provided to the Lopint Countrystyle Community Tourism Committee by senior personnel employed with E&Y (formerly Ernst & Young). The Committee is a registered NGO with an account at First Citizens and functions in accordance with clear written guidelines for transparency and accountability. Citizens for Conservation also rendered voluntary assistance in assessing the structural condition of the historic house and provided a Report that enabled TDC to seek an allocation from Central Government to finance the most urgent restoration works.
The Lopinot experience is a viable model which can be replicated throughout Trinidad and Tobago, especially in our rural communities. In creating the concept and brand of Countrystyle Community Tourism Network (CCTN), regional expert Diana McIntyre-Pike identified that “The assessment, development and marketing of natural and cultural community resources can add value to the experience of local and foreign visitors and simultaneously improve the quality of life in communities.”
As this country charts its way through the current dire economic straits, it is timely that the National Trust should initiate such a venture and encourage the creation of heritage tourism products that will sustain rural communities in a holistic manner. The preservation of our historic sites, cultural traditions and peoples’ ability to earn a livelihood are all imperative to our strong national identity and positive psyche.
Let’s support local business. “When our Carnival ends our Community Fun begins”. An increase in “staycations” and growth of the local food production industry can only have a positive result.