Hugh Riley, secretary general of the Caribbean Tourism
Organization since 2009, has stepped down from that post ahead of his scheduled
departure at the end of June.
Neil Walters, CTO's director of finance, will temporarily
take over the position until a successor is appointed.
Hugh Riley
As secretary general, Riley led initiatives to strengthen
the Caribbean brand worldwide. He directed the activities of teams of tourism
professionals in managing Caribbean tourism's human and financial resources and
in raising public awareness of the Caribbean region as a premier warm-weather
destination.
During his tenure with the CTO, Riley is credited with
instituting programs that engaged potential visitors and the Caribbean diaspora
through events in major cities.
Riley joined the staff of CTO New York in 2002 as director
of marketing for the Americas after having worked for his native Barbados in a
number of senior tourism positions in the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean for 20
years.
He got his start in marketing communications with the McCann
Erickson advertising agency and as a BBC-trained radio broadcaster.