At the Radisson Aruba Resort & Casino
AHATA President and CEO Jorge Pesquera addresses general assembly
DIARIO Aruba
12/08/2005

ORANJESTAD (AAN) – At the recent AHATA General Assembly, the president and CEO if the association addressed the assembly. ‘We mean business’, he said when he called a welcome to the members of the association, members of parliament and leaders of the community.

Tourism is the heart and soul of Aruba, he reiterated, and worries everyone profoundly. With a new management team and a strong membership base, AHATA called for a welcome of the new year with much satisfaction for the past achievements and an anticipation of even better things that will come.

According to Pesquera, the coming year will be marked by challenges in respect to airlines and a lot of competition by the surrounding islands. This deals with consumer confidence that waivers due to a weak American economy, high cost of heating, bird flu fears and passport requirements to travel to the Caribbean.

Aside the challenges, Pesquera looked at past and present achievements; he cited two companies that were recently recruited to lend their expertise to Aruba: La Cure and USDM. Both are positioned to become strong contributors in the general category of marketing.

New advertising, a new web site, as well as the destination revision by the conference planners, Aruba’s future is bright, declared Pesquera.

During the last six months, as a result of the disappearance of Holloway, AHATA reacted rapidly and effectively, he explained, by creating the Strategic Communications Task Force, recruiting the NGO’s, exerting media control in America, launching www.arubatruth.com , nurturing relationships with the community and diverting the Dr. Phil boycott in Philadelphia and contracting spokesperson Steve Cohen to work on behalf of the island.

The other aspect of ‘We really mean business’ includes training, education and acknowledgement, three important aspects that AHATA is promoting by hosting international speakers, such as Prof. Chekitan Dev and by continuing with a fruitful consortium with the University of Aruba and Dr. Ryan Peterson.