Rosa Harris, Cert. Hon

The Director of the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism (CIDOT), Rosa Harris, will be celebrated at the 2023 Caribbean Media Exchange (CMEx) Leadership Awards taking place at the Loews Coral Cables Hotel in Miami on Saturday, 2 December.

The CMEx Leadership Awards honour individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to the tourism and hospitality industry in the Caribbean and beyond. Including Director Harris, who is the first Caymanian to receive this award. The 2023 Honourees include;

• Nicola Madden-Greig, President of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association
• Michele Paige, President of the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association
• Joy Jibrilu, CEO of the Nassau Paradise Island Promotion Board
• Beverly Nicolson-Doty, former CTO chairman and commissioner of the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism, now CEO of the Florida-based Figment Design advertising agency
• Dona Regis-Prosper, the first female Secretary-General and CEO of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO).

Director Harris, a 23-year veteran of the industry, has achieved many milestones during her time with the CIDOT. Most notably, under her leadership the School of Hospitality Studies was opened in 2014 and the Cayman Islands achieved the most stay-over arrivals in history in 2019 by welcoming over 500,000 visitors. She has also led the transformation of the Cayman Islands brand with the award-winning Dream in Cayman campaign.

Critically, Director Harris was also at the forefront of the Cayman Islands tourism recovery strategy post-COVID-19 pandemic, seeing the destination surpass its year-to-date arrival targets for 2023.

In addition to her role as Director of Tourism, she also Chairs the Caribbean Tourism’s Organization (CTO) Board of Directors. CTO has responsibility for spearheading policy recommendations across the region and driving awareness of the Caribbean region globally. Under Director Harris’ stewardship, CTO has recalibrated the organisation’s leadership and the priorities of the region along with the council of Ministers.

The CMEx Leadership Award is in recognition of her dual role and her contribution to both the Cayman Islands tourism industry and the wider Caribbean tourism and hospitality industry.