Situated 70km north west of Tarawa, the island of Marakei is the only enclosed atoll in the Gilbert group of Islands in Kiribati. The island is well-known for its babai (swamp taro) and its local oyster, te rabino while the people of Marakei are celebrated for their traditional dancing skills such as the te bino and te kaimatoa.
The relative proximity of Marakei to Bonriki International Airport, the urban centres of South Tarawa, its rich cultural history and unique island geography presents the island with the potential for ecotourism development.
To explore these potentials, the Product Development team of the Tourism Authority of Kiribati (TAK) undertook a scoping mission on the island in early May 2021.
In collaboration with the Marakei Island Council, TAK conducted an ecotourism awareness consultation and presentation to all its councillors and community representatives. This was met with enthusiasm with the councillors agreeing to the establishment of a Marakei Tourism Development Committee. Once formalised, the committee will work with TAK to deliver tourism product development, capacity building, and marketing and promotion for the island.
Whilst on Marakei, TAK also used the opportunity to update the island’s two accommodation providers on the progress of the revamped Mauri Mark Accredication Program. The revamped Mauri Mark Accreditation Program will be the national tourism business quality accreditation program for Kiribati. This program will rate accommodation, restaurant and bars, tourism leisure crafts and dive operators based on their compliance to relevant industry safety and service standards.
