By Devonne Cornelius
St. Kitts and Nevis (WINN): Junior Minister of Tourism for Nevis Ms. Khalia Huggins-Simmonds is set to participate in the 2022 Regional Tourism Youth Congress on September 15 at the Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman.
Ms. Huggins-Simmonds, a student of the Charlestown Secondary School, was named Junior Minister of Tourism for Nevis in May at the 2022 Bank of Nevis Limited Tourism Youth Congress.
Ms. Khalia Huggins-Simmonds of the Charlestown Secondary School, Junior Minister of Tourism for Nevis, accepts awards from Bank of Nevis Limited Marketing Officer Mr. Pheon Jones at the 2022 Bank of Nevis Limited Tourism Youth Congress held on May 18 at the Nevis Performing Arts Center“The winner of the Bank of Nevis Tourism Youth Congress, which was held during Exposition Nevis, is currently preparing to travel to the Cayman Islands where she will represent Nevis in the 2022 Regional Tourism Youth Congress hosted by the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO). We of course wish our Junior Minister, Khalia, all the best as she represents the island of Nevis,” noted Premier and Minister of Tourism Hon. Mark Brantley.
The title of Caribbean Junior Minister of Tourism has been secured by Nevis twice. Ms. Neila Jones won the title in 2013 and Mr. Rol J Williams in 2014, both students of the Gingerland Secondary School at the time.
To date, eleven countries have confirmed their participation in the 18th edition of the Regional Tourism Youth Congress. Turks and Caicos, the winner of the last Youth Congress staged in Antigua and Barbuda in 2019, is set to chair this year’s Congress.
The participating countries are Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, The Bahamas, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Tobago, and Turks and Caicos. The Caribbean Tourism Youth Congress is a developmental competition involving students aged 14 to 17 from CTO member countries who debate on regional tourism matters. Its main aim is to stimulate greater awareness and excitement about tourism among young people in our Caribbean communities.
The event will be attended by the Tourism Ministers of CTO member countries, Directors and CEOs of Tourism, senior executives, media, and regional students who participate in the Caribbean Youth Congress, as well as international aviation experts.
The Regional Tourism Youth Congress forms part of the CTO State of the Tourism Industry Conference.
