Junior Minister for Tourism, Hon Sharie B. de Castro (AL), said the programme, called the HLSCC Tourism Certification Training Programme, is geared at Skills Task and Result Training (START) and it has now taken to the road to make it easier for industry personnel to take advantage of the free training, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“On Friday [October 23, 2020], 26 participants living on Jost van Dyke did not have to travel to Tortola for the training, as HLSCC brought the programme to them. Virgin Gorda and Anegada are up next,” Hon de Castro said in a Facebook post on Saturday, October 24, 2020.

Junior Minister for Tourism, Hon Sharie B. de Castro (AL), said the programme, called the HLSCC Tourism Certification Training Programme, is geared at Skills Task and Result Training (START) and it has now taken to the road to make it easier for industry personnel to take advantage of the free training, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Training in time for Tourism re-opening

“In the end - and in time for the December reopening of our Tourism Sector - it is our intention to have persons working in the sector be qualified, with this internationally recognised certification,” she added.

The first phase of the tourism training is geared towards persons working in line-level positions where certifications will be provided for restaurant servers, guest room attendants, front desk representatives and kitchen cooks.

Gov't gives $100K towards training programme

On Thursday, October 22, 2020, while at a community meeting in Jost van Dyke, Hon de Castro said Gov’t had collaborated with the BVI Tourist Board through an MOU with H. Lavity Stoutt Community College (HLSCC) to upskill the Territory's human resources, adding that the training was "not just a COVID-19 protocol-specific training."

She had also disclosed that the Government gave HLSCC $100, 000 for the tourism certification training programme.

The internationally recognised programme is being done through the American Hotel and Lodging Institute.