Thursday, July 16, 2009

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Letters | Opinion | Art & Culture | Weekend Report
Create a Ministry of Tourism and Culture With the extraordinary fall-off in public revenue, Prime Minister Ingraham may be considering a reduction in and rationalization of Government Ministries. We offer a modest suggestion in this regard. Our recommendation is that the responsibilities of the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture be incorporated into other ministries, namely, Youth and Sports returning to Education, and Culture becoming a part of Tourism. As an aside, while Tourism should keep Aviation, it need not appear in its official name. The new Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports may have a senior Minister overseeing Education and a junior Minister of Youth and Sports. Transferring Culture to Tourism will be groundbreaking, though not without risk. That risk has been firmly addressed by current Minister of Tourism and Aviation, Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace who has repeatedly and correctly warned of the danger of developing national heritage sites and programs as well as cultural institutions primarily for touristic purposes. Unfortunately, some of the discussions regarding the revitalization of the City of Nassau have been too tourist-centered. Fortunately, there is an emerging critical mass of Bahamians who view cultural development initiatives as primarily for Bahamians, with the added benefit of sharing them with international visitors. Minister Vanderpool-Wallace is clearly among this group, constantly pushing his Ministry to ensure that its activities and promotions are authentically Bahamian. The Minister's deep appreciation for the cultural integrity and richness of The Bahamas, along with his creative energy and the often innovative culture of the Department of Tourism may help to transform the Department of Culture, which has often struggled to understand its mission, and has often not been taken seriously by successive governments and the general public. Tourism's world-class and extensive background in marketing, promotions, visitor experiences, special events and various entrepreneurial initiatives can help in the development of many of our cultural institutions and programs, which are often less than forward-thinking in their planning, management and effectiveness. Many of them need an infusion of new ideas and energy a more direct partnership with Tourism may bring, including an enhancement of various heritage sites and cultural centers as well as ensuring that more and more Bahamians and visitors enjoy the cultural diversity and riches of the Bahamian archipelago. Tuesday, June 16, 2009