Editor, The biggest challenge that will continue to haunt us if we don’t address it, is our workforce. We need practical, on-job training that is consistent and relevant to today’s global traveler. If hotel/restaurant owners continue to look at their staff training as a “burden cost” as opposed to an “investment”, then we will fail to reach that level of service education we so badly need in order to attract that “high-end” tourist. As a country competing for every tourism dollar we can get, we need a “national message” to the world that is immediately recognised as Rwandan. A branded message that is inviting, captivating and raises enough curiosity to set the tone. The time and money spent on “studies and reports” could be re-directed into practical, real, hands-on solutions. At the end of the day, it is the people that serve our guests. We have to start there. Jacqueline, Rwanda Reaction to the story, “Lack of skills and poor pay hurting tourism sector – new survey shows” (Business Times, February 4)
