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Last Updated: May 1, 2017 - 11:18:35 AM |
 NASSAU, Bahamas — Director General in the Ministry of Tourism Joy Jibrilu assures that all is being done to protect the reputation of The Bahamas in the wake of the failed Fyre Festival. The MOT has been actively engaged with international media partners to ensure that the integrity of The Bahamas is maintained.
“The organizers of the Fyre Festival, which was a private event, have readily admitted that they were in over their heads, and they have taken full responsibility for all that has transpired, and have issued a statement to this effect. It is also pertinent to note that the international media have recognized that all and any shortcomings came from the promoters, and The Bahamas has been insulated from any direct negative repercussions. It should be noted that even though this was a private event, once the MOT became aware of the shortcomings, we did intervene to mitigate as much as possible any fallout, and in particular to try and secure the welfare of visitors that came in for the event. We have received commendation from both the promoters and guests over our efforts in this regard,” she said.
The tourism Director General added that The Bahamas is a destination that has successfully staged dozens of world-class events including the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, the IAAF World Relays and various regattas throughout the Islands of The Bahamas, just to name a few.
“Tourism is our number one industry and it is our aim to deliver world-class experiences and events to our visitors. The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism knows how to stage successful events year round from our sports related events to our festivals. We offer a most heartfelt apology to all who travelled to our country for the Fyre Festival. It is our hope that the Fyre Festival visitors would consider returning to Exuma and all the Islands of The Bahamas in the future to truly experience all of our beauty,” the Director General said.
Ministry of Tourism representatives were on Exuma assisting guests who were affected and ensuring that they had the best experience possible. Meantime, festival organizers are doing their part to rectify the situation and the Fyre Festival team sent out a statement over the weekend on their efforts.
“The Fyre Festival is working diligently to rectify the issues in The Bahamas. We are highly appreciative of the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism for their continued support and we recognize and apologize for our shortcomings in this situation. The Fyre Festival takes full responsibility for the difficult turn of events over the last 24-hours on Exuma. Our guests’ comfort and safe travels back to Miami from the island is our biggest priority at this time. We want to thank the people of the Bahamas for their support and for graciously allowing us the privilege of visiting their islands” the Fyre Festival Team
The MOT Communications team continues to monitor social media and news websites to ensure that only accurate information is being published about the island of Exuma and the entire destination.
“The Ministry of Tourism jealously guards our brand image and that of our islands. As a result, we have been following every story lead, as well as interviewing festival attendees in order to get as many viewpoints as possible,” she said.
While many vendors who assisted the organizers in staging the event are saying that they have yet to be paid, Fyre Festival Co-Founder Billy McFarland has assured the Ministry of Tourism that the vendors will be paid.
The Ministry of Tourism is in regular contact with the Fyre Festival team to ensure that all vendors are compensated and all is done to protect the country’s reputation.
Bahamas Tourism Statement on Fyre Festival
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