Hospitality Training Centre has great potential to become another BVI Success Story

The BVI government must be complimented for taking a  positive step to establish a comprehensive Hospitality Training Centre in Road Town.

In making the announcement last week Tuesday Chief Minister, Dr. Orlando Smith said that the move is aimed at an extensive and comprehensive training  programme from " how to run a kitchen, how to tend a bar, how to make up a room, how to hire and manage a staff, how to deal with vendors, how to market a hotel locally and internationally"

The government has acquired Prospect Reef Resort not only for a culinary arts facility, but for a comprehensive A to Z programme, and it is hoped that the young people in the British Virgin Islands make full use of the facilities. They should be happy that their government has seen the wisdom in setting up such an institution and stop the silly thinking that hotel jobs as subservient. They should be aware that hundreds of persons started as waiters and bar tenders and became CEOs in five stars and four stars hotel chains.

Tourism is the second main revenue earner in the BVI after the Financial Services and this Hospitality Training Centre will not only strengthen the territory's marketing effort, but will create jobs for its people and provide revenue that helps to fund schools, clinics and roads. The Chief Minister went further to say that the institution "will become one of the crown jewels of our Territory's ever growing professional educational centres.”

The Centre will also be the spin off for large conferences which would bring hundreds of guests to our shores in one sweep, and ultimately more guests at hotels throughout the territory which will result in more diners in restaurants, more customers in our taxis and more shoppers.

The New England Culinary Institute (NECI) has played an important role in training some of our chefs in culinary arts, and as one of the graduates Linda Schwartz said "Perhaps even more than instruction in basic cooking techniques, my education at New England Culinary Institute reinforced two important principles: learning through hands on experience, and the value of team work".

However the NECI only attracted some young people, and there is no doubt that the new institution set up by government because of the wide ranging programme and the high level of training planned, will encourage far more of our youths.

The Centre will seek the assistance of Johnson and Wales University, one of the largest and highly respected hospitality training institutions in the United States, to assist in the establishment of the training programme for our students to develop world-class hospitality professionals.

Steps are also being taken to make the Hospitality Training Centre the hospitality training hub for other United Kingdom Overseas Territories of Anguilla, Montserrat, Cayman Islands, the Turks and Caicos and the wider Caribbean.

The multi-talented and hardworking Robert Mathavious, who has placed the BVI on the Financial Services world map is the Chairman of the five member Board and no doubt he and the other experienced members will work assiduosly to make the Centre a viable institution.

Guest editorial by Oscar Ramjeet