The International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8 annually.

Pacific women recognised as backbone of tourism industry

FIJI – Pacific women are the unsung heroes of the region’s tourism industry, says the South Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO), as it recognised women’s contribution to tourism development to mark International Women’s Day on March 8.

At every level of the tourism industry, Pacific women are represented, SPTO chief executive officer Chris Cocker said.

He said women are involved from grassroots handcraft producers, and hotel and resort employees, to tourism industry executives.

“Pacific women are the backbone of our tourism industry.

“Without the hospitable service that starts from their homes and which they take to the frontlines of the tourism industry, tourists would not have the enriching experiences that guarantee their return to our shores,” he said.

“At SPTO, the management team and 70 per cent of our staff are women. This speaks to the important role that women are playing in the development of our region’s tourism industry.”

Cocker added: “The current chair of the SPTO board, Papali’i Sonja Hunter, Chief Executive Officer of Samoa Tourism Authority, is a woman”.

“We would especially like to take this opportunity to acknowledge as well as celebrate the immense and often unrecognised passion and efforts of our Pacific women in the informal tourism sector,” he said.

“Pacific women bring an important cultural dimension to activities such as weaving and handicraft that helps make our tourism experience an enriching one for visitors to our shores.”

According to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, in most regions of the world, women make up the majority of the tourism workforce but tend to be concentrated in the lowest paid and lowest status jobs in tourism.

In family tourism businesses, women also perform a large amount of unpaid work.

The SPTO said it is doing its part by urging member countries to work proactively towards more inclusive, gender equal tourism industries.

The SPTO has conducted workshops that have contributed to skills development of women, particularly those running handicraft businesses.

Based in Suva, SPTO works with 16 Pacific island countries to market and develop tourism in the South Pacific region.

- PNC sources