San Pedro Sula, Honduras, September 5-6, 2013

1. Initiatives Supporting Tourism Development in the Americas Maryse Robert, Director Department of Economic and Social Development Executive Secretariat for Integral Development San Pedro Sula, Honduras, September 5-6, 2013

2. INCREASING TOURISM COMPETITIVENESS THROUGH SUSTAINABLE DESTINATION MANAGEMENT AND CAPACITY-BUILDING IN CENTRAL AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN • WHY: • OAShas since 1939 provided a hemispheric forum for discussion, dialogue and the sharing of experiences on emerging issues in tourism development • This must however also be backed up by practical support to member states through specific initiatives which build capacity and strengthen public and private sector institutions • WHAT: • Destination Sustainability Demonstration Projects in four (4) tourism destinations • An on-line sustainable professional tourism course • Dissemination of destination sustainability good practices and experiences • Use of a destination sustainability monitoring framework • RESULTS: • A unified and comprehensive approach for destination sustainability • Each pilot destination will be equipped with the key tools and training • At least 200 MSMEs and 120 tourism decision-makers completed the on-line Sustainable Tourism Professional course • Destination sustainability good practices and experiences will be disseminated regionally

3. CASE STUDY ON UPGRADING THE TOURISM GLOBAL VALUE CHAIN (GVC) IN THE AMERICAS • WHY: • GVCs eliminate the need for firms to have a competitive advantage for an entire product. Instead, firms can focus on a single task • Capturing the gains from tourism growth depends on the linkages both within the local and global industry. In their absence, a destination becomes merely “a place” taking advantage of its natural assets but providing little in terms of domestic firm ownership, supplier connections, and workforce growth • WHAT: • Identification of the services inputs in the tourism value chains: Questionnaire/Interviews to/with the tourism firms to identify how they utilize services inputs in their operations and the role that services play in the various components of the tourism value chains (special focus on MSMEs) • Review of public policies in the area of tourism –with a particular focus on MSMEs-- to highlight best practices for the development of sector to upgrade the value chain structure and its services components • RESULTS: • Development of a framework to identify the options, strategies and public policies for • a) countries to move up along the value chain; • b) the type of institutional involvement and skillset needed to facilitate upgrading

4. INCREASING RESILIENCE TO NATURAL HAZARDS IN THE TOURISM SECTOR IN THE AMERICAS • WHY: • Tourism is one of the main economic drivers for many countries in the Americas and to maintain its long-term viability, the tourism sector must be prepared to absorb and recover from a wide range of internal and external shocks especially from geophysical events • Follow up to OAS seminar: Increasing Resilience to Natural Hazards in the Tourism Sector in the Americas (Nov. 2010) • WHAT: • Country needs assessment with multi-stakeholder participation • Regional meeting of experts and government officials to share and exchange practical experiences and good practices • RESULTS: • Identification of priorities for action aiming at reducing the vulnerability of the tourism sector • Set of practices, lessons learned and good practices in the tourism sector with regard to reducing vulnerability and increasing resilience • Portfolio of projects for horizontal and triangular cooperation

5. EXPANDING THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC POTENTIAL OF CULTURAL HERITAGE IN THE CARIBBEAN • WHY: • The link between culture and tourism is most often visible in cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible • It is important that public policies and practices promote sustainable tourism that incorporates the rational use of cultural – especially heritage – and natural resources • WHAT: • A survey targeted at actors working in areas related to cultural heritage, tourism, planning and the environment to identify the regional needs, priorities and opportunities of cultural heritage • Survey respondents were from the public, private, academic and civil society sectors • A regional meeting of experts and government officers in the areas of culture, tourism, planning and community development with the objective of expanding and verifying the information obtained from the surveys • RESULTS: • A qualitative and quantitative analysis on the state and perception of cultural heritage in member states of the Caribbean • An online platform and regional network to facilitate the exchange of information and collaboration among relevant actors • A set of concrete recommendations to build regional capacity and coordinated actions among all actors related to cultural heritage with the aim of enhancing their socio-economic potential in the development of the region • One of the central themes of the recommendations focuses on the importance of sustainable tourism that reinforces the tourism offer in concert with the vitality of the local culture