Naomi Onwufuju of the British Virgin Islands Wins CTO Award
PROVENCIALES, Turks and Caicos – British Virgin Islands Junior Tourism Minister Naomi Onwufuju brought home the winner’s plaque at the 19th Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Regional Tourism Youth Congress, held at Beaches Turks & Caicos in Providenciales on Friday.
Kenneth Bryan, Chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organization congratulates Naomi Onwufuju of the British Virgin IslandsThe 16-year-old Onwufuju, competing against students from 13 other Caribbean destinations, skillfully presented three innovative strategies her country could undertake to develop and implement an initiative whereby tourism stakeholders and their allied partners can work together to enhance access, safety, use, and enjoyment of the destination’s tourism offerings by visitors with disabilities.
Each Junior Minister made a three-minute presentation on one of the three topics: Wellness Tourism Beyond the Norm, Accessibility Tourism, and Building a Resilient and Sustainable Tourism Workforce.
They were also required to make a one-minute presentation on a “mystery” question. In this category, the contestants were asked to identify an interesting, unusual or unique place, person, thing, event or activity from their respective destinations which they believed would provide a visitor with a rare and exceptional experience.
“Accessibility is not only a responsible tourism policy but also a moral obligation,” declared Onwufuju, a student of the Elmore Stoutt High School, as she described her vision for increasing accessibility to the islands’ beaches, restaurants and other attractions ensuring inclusivity and equity for all visitors, in her 3-minute presentation.
Though happy with her win, Onwufuju was lavish in her praise of her fellow contestants.
“I love my country and I am honored I have gotten the chance to represent and to win this [award] for my Territory to be able to be an influence in tourism so that my ideas and the ideas of everyone who participated in this competition today can be heard. Truly, everyone had amazing ideas!” she stated during a press conference immediately following the Youth Congress event, which was attended by ministers and commissioners of tourism from numerous CTO member countries and territories.
Participants at the 2023 CTO Regional Tourism Youth Congress. Naomi Onwufuju of the British Virgin Islands is center.
Seventeen-year-old Jordan Greig of Barbados, a student at Harrison College, who was named the second-place winner, was recognized for his polished presentation of his thoughts related to executing a strategy for addressing tourism workforce issues facing the island’s tourism industry.
Tobago’s Junior Minister of Tourism Jael Morgan was awarded the third-place award. The 17-year-old student from Signal Hill Secondary School described three innovative strategies her country could carry out to realize an initiative to offer visitors unique, sustainably developed wellness tourism experiences.
The judges for the Youth Congress were Barry Brown, Executive Director – Sales with AFAR Media and a member of the CTO Allied Board; Stacey Liburd, Director of Tourism for Anguilla; and Petra Roach, CEO of the Grenada Tourism Authority.
