This year continues to be a landmark year for the Islands of The Bahamas, with this latest recognition for leading the way in delivering a quality product and service by the ESQR (The European Society for Quality Research), which awarded The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism with Gold at its Quality Achievement Awards last week in London. This latest award was of particular note as The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism was one of only five organisations to receive an award in the Gold category. The top award for Quality Management came in recognition of the relentless hard work and the achievements that The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism has made in customer service, hard work and commitment to quality.
Each year the ESQR recognises organisations, public administrations and companies from Europe, Asia, the Americas, Africa and Australia, which have demonstrated outstanding commitment, support and effort to endorse and improve quality management. The organisation looks at industries across all seven continents that impact their regions in such a positive manner that they improve the quality of life for residents, to ultimately make each region a better place to live. Therefore, this latest award is truly special for the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, proving that its relentless work has made a difference in improving the Islands—for both visitors and residents.
Tourism Director General, Joy Jibrilu, was on hand to accept the latest award. “What winning these awards says to us, not just as the Ministry of Tourism, not just as an organisation, but also the people of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas on the whole, is that we are doing something right and we are on the right track. The world is watching, they are recognising us, and they’re letting us know that we are getting it right,” Jibrilu said.
While being the most recent award, the ESQR Gold Award joins the many nominations and awards The Bahamas has received thus far in 2015. The Bahamas has already won the Trip Advisor 2015 ‘Best Beaches’ award. Junkanoo was also voted ‘#1 Festival in the Caribbean’ in USA Today’s 10 Best Readers’ Choice Awards in 2014. The Bahamas was voted in the top 10 places in the Caribbean to visit by U.S. News and World Report in 2015. Additionally, The Bahamas has been nominated in nine different categories for the 22nd World Travel Awards, for which voting will close in August of this year. Established in 1993, the World Travel Awards acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all sectors of the tourism industry. Today, the World Travel Awards brand is recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of quality.
Not only is 2015 shaping up to be a landmark year in industry recognition,
but at a projected tourism growth rate of 6.7% according to the WTTC, The Bahamas expects to host more visitors than ever in 2015. To meet this increased demand, there is expected to be an increase in room availability, as well as more attractive events for visitors to look forward to, such as the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival that attracted thousands when it debuted in May, and a variety of sporting events from the Bahamas Marathon to the Popeye’s Bahamas Bowl. There are endless activities for travellers to choose from when visiting the Islands of The Bahamas.