Top Caribbean tourism leaders announced during a press conference at Caribbean Travel Marketplace 2026 the creation of a regional working commission aimed at designing a Caribbean tourism logistics hub, an initiative intended to transform the sector’s economic structure and increase revenue retention across the region.

The announcement was led by Dona Regis-Prosper, Secretary-General and CEO of the Caribbean Tourism Organization, alongside the organization’s chairman Ian Gooding-Edghill and Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett. All three emphasized the need to strengthen integration within the regional tourism ecosystem from the supply side.

The initiative follows an expanded meeting between the CTO and Caribbean hotel associations, during which terms of reference were established for a new regional committee focused on coordinating tourism supply chain policies, business competitiveness, and productive development. Representatives from Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, Belize, and other Caribbean destinations participated in the discussions.

According to Regis-Prosper, the objective is to build a more formal framework of cooperation among governments, private sector stakeholders, and multilateral organizations to strengthen the tourism value chain. A strategic roadmap was defined around eight key pillars: connectivity, investment, infrastructure, digital economy, human capital, labor mobility, supply chain resilience, and visitor facilitation.

Minister Edmund Bartlett stressed that the Caribbean must deepen the link between tourism and regional economic development by strengthening local capabilities to meet tourism demand. He also highlighted the importance of professionalizing the supplier chain and expanding regional production capacity to better serve the Caribbean tourism industry while reducing dependence on imports.

Meanwhile, Ian Gooding-Edghill explained that the project is not simply a response to the pandemic, but part of a long-term regional strategy. He argued that the Caribbean must capitalize on the millions of visitors it receives annually by retaining a greater share of tourism spending within the region, generating employment, productive linkages, and added economic value.

At the institutional level, officials confirmed that the CTO Council of Ministers has already approved the conceptual framework of the initiative, moving now into the implementation phase with the support of international financial institutions such as the Inter-American Development Bank and the World Bank, which are expected to provide technical assistance and potential financing.

The proposal for a regional tourism logistics hub is emerging as a structural step toward greater Caribbean integration, with direct implications for destination competitiveness, supply chain efficiency, and the region’s ability to convert high tourism arrivals into stronger economic development for island economies.