He said the Commonwealth is in a strong position to promote tourism between its 56 member states, which could aid in the economic recovery of countries hard hit by the Covid pandemic.

Measures to boost tourism between Commonwealth nations could include a streamlined visa process, increased air connectivity between countries, investing in tourism and hospitality training and developing multi-destination experiences, suggested Bartlett.

“Tourism is a confluence of many economic activities and social engagements and is driven by consumption. Tourism also has the fastest convertibility rate of all industries, so it is the fastest way to generate foreign exchange outside of grants,” he said.

“I think that the Commonwealth, which has 56 countries, 2.5 billion people and large group of highly tourism dependent countries plus large countries, is an enormous opportunity for tourism convergence as an instrument of recovery.”

We have enough people and ideas within the Commonwealth to strengthen our tourism activities in these countries,” added Bartlett, who also called for a follow-up meeting between Commonwealth tourism ministers to discuss strategies as part of the recovery from the pandemic.