Montserrat

Project/Location
The volcanic eruptions between
1995-7 destroyed much of the
Caribbean island of Montserrat. In
the aftermath, Montserrations were
faced with the enormous task of
resettling in the northern part of the
island, rebuilding the infrastructure
and redeveloping the economy.

Prior to 1995, Montserrat received
about 21,000 tourist arrivals
annually. Traditionally, tourism had
been a significant contributor to the
economy, representing 36% GDP.
With the destruction of a
considerable proportion of the
island's natural resource base and
infrastructure, coupled with
concerns about safety, tourism
declined sharply.

Despite the reduction of available
landscape, Montserrat still
maintains its distinctive charms,
based on the intimacy of its size,
the friendliness of its people and
the relaxed/easy pace of life. The
challenge is to build a tourism
industry around these fundamental
strengths.

Project Description
John Robinson was team leader
with CHL Consulting, commissioned
to prepare a plan to facilitate the
rebuilding of the tourism sector as
a major catalyst for suitable
economic and social development.

Five realistic scenarios were
conceived and tested in relation to
the Government's socio-economic,
financial and environmental
objectives. At one extreme there
was the 'do nothing' scenario that
would likely happen if no initiatives
were undertaken. At the other
extreme was the rate at which the
industry could grow if sufficient
public and private capital
investment was available.