Most Ministers of Tourism and indeed chairman of the Tourist Board begin their term of office promising to provide better facilities for the domestic traveller. But as they settle in and get drawn into a life of brighter lights, good living and foreign fanatics, their perceived good intentions to their fellow nationals fall by the way-side.

This is nothing new. It has happened even to confirmed socialists who were recognised Trotskyites from their undergraduate days!

When elections come round and the ruling party is soundly beaten in the rural electorates there is plenty of soul searching as to what went wrong.

True the Tourist Board has facilitated the growth of an entire industry with much investment and avenues of employment. But this has been confined mostly to the Western coastal belt. In any case, the local traveller with his meagre income cannot possibly avail himself of plant built for people with foreign exchange.

The World Tourism Organisation at one stage indicated that for every foreign traveller there are ten domestic tourists on the move. This is not an exaggeration in our case judging by the numbers of people who travel locally. I am sure the Tourist Board is aware of the tremendous surge in domestic tourism. But why are they so inactive in pushing for better facilities to cater to them.

The Board does not have a large budget or a staff big enough to service every need. To balance that they could use the resources of the Provincial Councils. These Councils realise there is money in tourism but, they have neither the training nor the know how to get their acts together. My own province is a pathetic example. Over the years, efforts have been made to establish a separate unit for tourism with little result. It seems a certain amount of guidance and insistence from the specialised rational body is a necessity.

Realising the importance of activating the rural economy the UNF government has more than one ministry for rural economic development.

Surely the Ministry of Tourism could also be a big player in it by encouraging investments to provide better facilities for our people?