BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – St Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Dr Denzil Douglas has pointed to high-end tourism services as a major component of the new economy of the country.

He said that the diversification of the economy from agriculture with an emphasis on sugar to tourism, financial, information and communication technology and offshore education services was already delivering substantial social and economic benefits to the people.

"The strategic focus is on the high-end sector of the tourism industry because it does not seem likely that mass tourism can deliver to our people the quality of life that is consistent with our own long-term goals and aspirations as a people," Douglas said at the 76th annual conference of his St Kitts-Nevis Labour Party on Sunday.

"We believe that high-end tourism gives us the opportunity to obtain the best value for the services we offer the world and creates the value added necessary to support progressive increases in the wages and salaries of our people without undermining the competitiveness of our federation.

"High-end tourism services also allow us to earn substantial foreign exchange without having to accommodate large volumes of tourists and to place undue burdens on our social and economic infrastructure and on our fragile eco-system."

Douglas insisted while many people associated high-end tourism with exclusivity, the policy of the government on the issue was very clear and was properly reflected in all development agreements.

"Our beaches and our natural assets and built heritage sites are the property of our people and every Kittitian and Nevisian must always have adequate access to these assets at all times," the prime minister said.

"Development is about expanding the freedoms that people enjoy and giving and creating more options for them as they pursue their personal goals and aspirations."

He said that as more high-end tourism-related projects began operating, the quality, class and price of the services offered would be significantly enhanced over time. (CMC)