The press also asked the President of the BHA about the support which its membership provides to artisans and craftspersons.
During the recent launch of the MSME Strategy and Roadshow, both the Prime Minister and the Tourism Minister made the case that Belizean products have to feature more prominently in the marketplace to sell Belize as a tourism destination. Mahler also mentioned that he often visits Belizean gift shops marketed to tourists that feature items not crafted in Belize.
Reynaldo Malik also lamented that matter and insisted that support for local artisans help to sell the "Belize" brand to their guests:
Reynaldo Malik - President, Belize Hotel Association
"For the hotel industry it would be a welcome boom for us. If you are selling Belize, the culture, cuisine, then selling made in Belize would be the next natural step for us, so the amenities that we require for the successful operation of our hotels or resort; soap, stuff for the giftshop etc., if we were able to source those things from local vendors that I believe would lend itself to the product we are marketing. Nothing hurts me more than when I see going to giftshop and I see a figurine or a lilted mop or something and then I flip it over and it says made in Guatemala. We need to do better than that. So for us in the industry we very much welcome that the government is taking an initiative to hopefully empower more of these small and micro enterprises to be able to put their products out there and its something we can take and run with in the industry."
