(St. John’s Antigua; August 10, 2010); Commitments were made yesterday (Mon) between the Hon. Minister of Tourism John Maginley, the Antigua Hotels and Tourists Association (AHTA), and the Immigration department to find methods by which improvements can be made to service delivery at the V.C. Bird International Airport.
This, as it relates to the ease and efficiency with which inbound and outbound passenger traffic flows through the facility. The matter was raised by the hoteliers as they look towards the upcoming winter season.
According to Neil Forrester General Manager of the AHTA, his membership is of the opinion that on specific days when major air traffic is present at the airport, it takes too long a period for passengers to be processed and cleared via immigration and customs with long queues making the arrivals and departure areas very cumbersome.
Colonel Ivor Walker, Chief Immigration Officer assured the panel that already improvements are being made to the method of service delivery with respect to immigration to relieve the congestion and provide ease of movement to all passengers.
All things considered, the hoteliers are quite delighted at Minister Maginley’s recommendation to make provisions for immigration and security clearance to be provided on the second level of the airport to help improve the flow of passenger traffic on the outbound portion of their travel.
It is the hope of all partners involved, that the second level clearance will become daily operational instead of just on days of heavy travel.
According to the Hon. Minister of Tourism, “The importance of bringing all the tourism partners in the public and private sector together continues to be of great importance in ensuring that we continue to improve our tourism product.”
The Hon Minister has upheld his pledge to continue to dialogue with key tourism stakeholders and partners on the way forward to make strides in upgrading the quality of the island’s tourism product.
Prior to the carnival season, the Hon. Minister met with Finnish Ambassadors Mr. Pasi Patokallio and Mr. Mikko Pyhälä to discuss opportunities for nationals to seek further education in the area of tourism management and sustainable tourism.
