Government of Jamaica

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News Releases

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett (second right) leads a unifying group handshake with (from left) Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, Jennifer Griffith, outgoing Chairman of the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), Hon. Godfrey Dyer and incoming TEF Chairman, Ryan Parkes at the Ministry’s One-day Strategic Visioning Retreat held last Wednesday at the AC Marriott Hotel.

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Minister Bartlett Salutes Godfrey Dyer’s 14 Years of Exemplary Service KINGSTON, Jamaica; Thursday, April 30, 2026: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, has named Ryan Parkes, Group Chief Executive Officer of Island Car Rentals and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Tourism Workers Pension Scheme (TWPS), as the new Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), effective May 1, 2026. The appointment, recently approved by Cabinet, was announced at the Ministry’s One-day Strategic Visioning Retreat held on April 22 at the AC Marriott Hotel. In making the announcement, Minister Bartlett also paid tribute to the outgoing TEF Chairman, Hon. Godfrey Dyer, whose 14-year tenure at the helm of the TEF represents the longest record of chairmanship in the fund’s history and one of the longest across government.

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Japan Joins the Global Tourism Resilience Centre Board of Governors

Tokyo, Japan; September 21, 2018: Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett met, today, with the immediate past President of the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), Dr. Ryoichi Matsuyama, who is also the current Trustee of the prestigious International University of Japan, as part of his engagements with senior level officials of Japan’s Tourism Sector, to further deepen cooperation between Jamaica and Japan’s tourism, as well as forge partnerships in the establishment of the Global Centre for Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management in Jamaica. The meeting was convened in the margins of the 2018 Japan Tourism Expo, which is being held in Tokyo, Japan, from 20th to 23rd September 2018.

Bartlett to Re-Engage Japanese Market

KINGSTON, Jamaica; September 19, 2018: Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett departed the island yesterday, to attend the Tourism Expo Japan 2018 and VISIT JAPAN Travel & MICE Mart 2018, taking place in Tokyo from September 20 – 23, 2018.

Tourism Awareness Week to Focus on Digital Transformation

KINGSTON, Jamaica; September 18, 2018: The Ministry of Tourism, its agencies and industry partners will seek to further raise awareness about the importance of digital technologies in tourism, during its annual celebration of Tourism Awareness Week (TAW).

TEF Invests $10 million in 2018 International Coastal Cleanup Day Activities

KINGSTON, Jamaica; September 17, 2018: The Tourism Enhancement (TEF) has invested approximately $10 million in this year’s International Coastal Cleanup Day initiative, which is spearheaded locally by Jamaica Environment Trust (JET).

Bartlett Lauds Travel Agents as Valued Tourism Partners

OCHO RIOS, St Ann, Jamaica, September 17, 2018: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has lauded travel agents as “true partners for Jamaica” as the destination consistently attains record visitor arrivals, especially over the past two years.

“Tourism is a Culture not an Industry” – Bartlett

KINGSTON, Jamaica; September 14, 2018: Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett urged more Jamaicans to embrace tourism as a cultural asset, in order to improve the growth of the tourism industry as well as the country’s earnings.