Eight Students to Compete for British Virgin Islands Junior Ambassador of Tourism Top Secondary School Debaters Vie to Represent BVI at CTO Regional Tourism Youth Congress
Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands, 31st May 2024 – Eight outstanding students from secondary schools across the British Virgin Islands will vie for the prestigious title of Junior Ambassador of Tourism on Wednesday, 5th June. The competition, organised by the Training Department of the British Virgin Islands Tourist Board & Film Commission (BVITBFC), will take place at UP’s Cineplex in Road Town at 2 pm. The winner will have the honour of representing the British Virgin Islands at the Annual Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) Regional Tourism Youth Congress in the Cayman Islands from 4th to 6th September 2024.
Building on the momentum from last year’s historic victory in the regional competition by Naomi Onwufuju of Elmore Stoutt High School, this year’s competition marks another milestone: it will feature representatives from all eight secondary schools in the Territory, for the first time. The competitors and their respective schools are:
• Carey-Ann McKie, Bregado Flax Educational Centre Secondary Division
• Soccorria Telseford, BVI Seventh Day Adventist School
• Annabelle Maina, Cedar International School
• A’Nia Turnbull, Ciboney Centre for Excellence
• Asaud Smith, Claudia Creque Educational Centre
• Adrianne Thomas, Elmore Stoutt High School
• De-Andra Sylvera, St. George’s Secondary School
• Brenique Deane, Virgin Islands School of Technical Studies
“We have eight competitors this year, and we are ecstatic to see the outcome and the unique perspectives each student brings to the tourism table,” said Mrs. Natalie Penn-Lake, Standards and Training Manager at the BVITBFC and coordinator of the territorial competition.
An invitation was extended to all secondary schools, outlining the competition criteria. Interested students were encouraged to express their interest to their teachers.
Participants were given four tourism topics provided by the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) to choose from, and each will have 3 minutes to present their selected topic. The competition also includes a mystery question round where students have 5 minutes to prepare and 1 minute to respond.
Director of Tourism Clive McCoy added, “This competition is a vital part of raising awareness about the opportunities and challenges in the tourism industry among the public, especially the youth. It often generates great ideas and lively debate. Some participants also go on to pursue careers in tourism or become staunch tourism advocates.”
The winner of the competition will receive a one-month internship at BVITBFC, $1000 cash, participation in the regional competition, a one-year tenure as CCT Brand Ambassador and a laptop. Other prizes for the finalists include iPads and other electronic gifts, and gift certificates for an ATV excursion on Jost Van Dyke.
This year’s competition is generously sponsored by Maria’s by the Sea Hotel, Infinite Solutions, National Bank of the Virgin Islands, CCT, Omar’s Fusion, SAID, Mobihub, Salt Life Adventure Sports, and BVITBFC.