KINGSTON, Jamaica, February 9, 2015:  As part of the activities to commemorate the 70^th birthday of the Hon. Robert Nesta “Bob” Marley, Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, the Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, yesterday (February 8) unveiled a new life-size statue of the late reggae icon at the Trench Town Culture Yard, Marley’s former home.

The statue, sculpted by Scheed Cole, who hails from Trench Town, was commissioned by Minister McNeill as part of a multi-million dollar renovation of the culture yard that is being funded by the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF).  This is in keeping with the Ministry’s drive to develop cultural heritage sites across Jamaica and further enhance and diversify the island’s tourism product.

Minister McNeill said Bob Marley’s “gift to Jamaica is incalculable. His achievements, and those of his fellow artistes who have followed in his footsteps, have put our country on the map as the mecca of popular music. Today the tourism sector continues to attract hundreds of visitors who come to see the country that produced Bob Marley.”

“As a part of our tourism development strategy we are focusing on cultural and heritage tourism and, over the past three years, the Tourism Enhancement Fund has expended some $500 million on upgrading our cultural and heritage sites across the island. The commissioning of this new statue of Bob in the yard where he grew up is a natural fit in this thrust,” Minister McNeill added.

Congratulating Scheed Cole and the many other persons involved in the Culture Yard project, Minister McNeill said, “This new statue will doubtless attract even more visitors to our shores and to Trench Town in particular. Of equal importance is the fact that its presence will serve to inspire the youths in his old neighbourhood. It will encourage them to believe in themselves and understand that they can achieve success despite perceived disadvantages.”

The unveiling of the statue preceded a community symposium, titled “Trench Town Culture Village: From Vision to Reality” that included presentations by Minister of Youth and Culture, the Hon. Lisa Hanna; Chairman of the Agency for Inner City Renewal (AIR), Dr. Henley Morgan; JaRIA’s Junior Lincoln; and  Executive Director of Mediamix/Palm TV, Lennie Little-White.

Kingston, Jamaica: February 8, 2015 – Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, the Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, is extending sincere congratulations to Ziggy Marley for winning the 2015 Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album, for the album Fly Rasta at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards today. Marley, who has won several Grammy awards, also won the category in 2014 for the album Ziggy Marley In Concert.

“I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to Ziggy on an award well deserved. He continues to do Jamaica proud through his excellent music. This is a significant achievement and the entire country is proud that he has won this esteemed award  at a time when as a nation we celebrate the 70th anniversary of the birth of his father, reggae icon Bob Marley” he said. “Ziggy continues to represent Jamaica well on the international stage and is a true ambassador, his latest victory represents a triumph for brand Jamaica," Minister McNeill added.

The announcement of the award was made earlier today during the 57th Annual Grammy Awards, at Staples Center, Los Angeles in the United States.

The five other albums which vied for the award this year, included – Full Frequency by Sean Paul; Back on the Controls by Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry; Out of Many One Music by Shaggy; The Reggae Power by Sly and Robbie and Spicy Chocolate; and Amid the Noise and Haste by SOJA. While hailing Ziggy Marley for emerging the victor amidst strong competition, Minister McNeill lauded all the nominees for their outstanding work in securing a nomination.

Montego Bay, Thursday, February 5, 2015: Expectations of another record year for Jamaica’s tourism industry have been realized with stopover arrivals, cruise ship arrivals and earnings for 2014 surpassing the historic figures achieved in 2013.

Speaking on Thursday (February 5), at the first Post Cabinet Press Briefing held in Western Jamaica at the Office of the Prime Minister - West, in Montego Bay, Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill disclosed the final figures for 2014. “The tourism sector continues to experience steady growth; Jamaica achieved another major milestone in 2014 again welcoming over two million stopover visitors,” he said.

For the 12-month period, January to December 2014, there were 2,080,181 stopover visitors, representing an increase of 71,772 tourists or a 3.6 percent increase over 2013. Concurrently, the island welcomed 1,423,797 cruise visitors, an increase of 158,529 or 12.5 percent more than in 2013.

Dr. McNeill said a total of 3,503,978 visitors graced the shores of Jamaica in 2014, generating gross foreign exchange earnings in excess of US$2.2 billion, which is 5.8 percent more than the amount earned in 2013. “So that the important point that we should be taking from that is that while we are growing consistently in terms of our arrivals, our growth in earnings is outpacing that growth in arrivals,” said Minister McNeill.

The year-round figures were boosted by record figures for December in both stopover and cruise arrivals. Dr. McNeill disclosed that, “we had a very strong December with an increase in stopover visitors of 5.9 percent over the same period in 2013 with 213,129 arrivals and cruise arrivals also increased by 12.6 percent.”

In a breakdown of arrivals from Jamaica’s major markets, Minister McNeill disclosed that stopover arrivals out of Europe grew by 10.7 percent, out of Canada by 5.2 percent and from the US by 2 percent. Inflow from Asia saw the largest increase of 9.2 percent.

Meanwhile, all the main cruise ports registered an increase in arrivals for 2014. Falmouth was up 19.5 percent with 125,829 more visitors than in 2013, while Ocho Rios had an increase of 7.7 percent or 29,214 additional passengers and Montego Bay increased by 0.9 percent with 2,127 more cruise visitors.

As a tourist destination, the island broke the two million stopover visitor arrivals barrier for the first time in 2013. Having topped that mark for 2014, the sector is now looking to further increases in 2015.

KINGSTON, Jamaica: Wednesday, February 4, 2015: The Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) has expended nearly $500 Million on local environmental initiatives since 2012, in keeping with the commitment of the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment to play an active and vigilant role in the protection and preservation of Jamaica’s environment. These initiatives are being undertaken in partnership with governmental and non-governmental agencies, stakeholders and communities.

This was announced today (February 4) by Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, the Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, at the launch of the ‘Nuh Dutty Up Jamaica’ public education campaign at the Jamaica Conference Centre, downtown Kingston.

The aim of the campaign is to improve knowledge and attitudes with regard to waste and its impact on public health and the environment.  The island wide, multi-media campaign is a component of the $34.5 million TEF-funded ‘Clean Coasts Project’ that is being undertaken by the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET).

“Paradoxically, tourism which is so beneficial, if not managed   with vigilance, can threaten the very factors that attract visitors to our island.  This is why we treat as a matter of priority, environmental management, and most relevant to this event, the mitigation of potential damage to the environment,” Minister McNeill told his audience, which comprised representatives from environmental agencies, government and corporate Jamaica.  He added, “we must maintain a delicate balance in these two critical areas - with due care and timely interventions when necessary - to ensure that the industry is sustainable.”

Minister McNeill emphasized that the Ministry’s special interest in these matters was “not merely to ensure the sustainability of the industry but equally to protect and preserve our environment for ourselves as a people”, in keeping with the tenets of the Tourism Master Plan for Sustainable Development.

Some of the TEF-funded environmental initiatives also include the upgrading of 14 public beaches across the island, from Boston Beach in the East to Negril in the West; and the provision of financing, through the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA), for the development and implementation of a holistic plan for the protection of the tourism product.

The plan includes a study of national knowledge, practices and behavior; support for a National Air Quality Programme carrying capacity studies; promulgation and finalization of Development Orders; and the establishment of a Wildlife Sanctuary at Edgecombe, Westmoreland. The implementation of these plans began in the third quarter of last year and has a projected completion date of late 2016. 

NEPA is also working on a project schedule for the establishment of a Black River Watershed Protection Management Unit. A total of $2.7 million has been allocated for this project.

Minister McNeill said that he was pleased to be collaborating with JET to launch the ‘Nuh Dutty Up Jamaica’ public education campaign but emphasized that “at no time are we abdicating the Government’s responsibility to clean up Jamaica.” He pointed out that the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment through the TEF had given $350 million to the National Solid Waste Management Authority to carry out this function.

During the campaign launch JET released the 2014 International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) Day Jamaica National Report, which documented the amount and composition of the 85,766 pounds of garbage collected by over 7,400 volunteers who cleaned 101 miles of coastline on ICC Day Jamaica 2014.

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica: Wednesday, January 28, 2015: Representatives of the nearly 200 supplier and buyer companies which participated in the first ever Tourism Linkages Speed Networking Event, have hailed the venture as a success and are keen on participating in such events twice per year.

The inaugural event, which was held recently at the Half Moon Conference Centre in Montego Bay gave suppliers 15-minute appointments to make buyers aware of the goods and services they offered with a view to securing purchasing deals.

The organization of the event was spearheaded by the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment, the Jamaica Manufacturers' Association (JMA) and other key partners.

Buyer representatives came from small boutique hotels to expansive resort properties, while suppliers included businesses offering a wide range of goods and services. These ranged from suppliers of craft, toiletries and guest amenities, chemicals and cleaning products, cosmetic and spa products, furniture, bedding, food and beverage, uniforms, printing and packaging, construction, training, ICT, electrical, meat and fresh produce.

At the close, the consensus was that it was a very successful event, achieving its objectives and many expressed that it should be held twice yearly.

For Professor Harvey Reid of Country House Products, “it gives the hoteliers an opportunity to find out what is available in Jamaica.”

Kirk Clarke of Altamont Court Hotel had a similar view. “It was very informative on the different products that we manufacture here in Jamaica. I have a better insight on what we do locally and going forward I think it’s very good throughout the industry to ensure that all of us as Jamaicans buy Jamaican and create more jobs and more opportunities.”  He also believed that “because everybody cannot be present in one forum, it should be held twice a year.”

“I think it’s a very good initiative because we get to know our vendors better,” said Joan Coore of Half Moon, who said she made some “lasting relationships” and also felt it should be held twice yearly.

Abigail Huxtable was pleased with the response to the many products made by her company, Pear Tree Press. “At first I was a bit apprehensive about it because it takes time for you to get your sales pitch in and you only have 15 minutes but I got a lot done today,” she admitted, adding,  “I really enjoyed today and I think it’s something that we should do again.”

Beverley Dendie of Jewel Resorts, admitted, “it’s a good event for us; we’re doing Brand Jamaica and so we’re going local and it’s nice to accommodate our local suppliers.” She would like to see “local suppliers come out more to promote what they do have.”

BH Paints’ Claude Manning also came away feeling, “it has been a very successful event.” He pointed out, “the number of persons I’ve spoken with in one day it normally would have taken me three or four months to get to all those persons.”

He expects that going forward, “not only my company but the other companies here are going to convert this into actual local business sales with the hotels so there will be a greater purchasing from the local manufacturing sector.” He expects that “there will be more of these events going forward to link up with the local users, who in many cases are buying overseas, to drive the economy and drive the growth in the productive sector here.”

President of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), Nicola Madden-Greig noted that “hotels and attractions already spend millions of dollars annually supporting local industry, including manufacturers and farmers and this event gave them an opportunity to cement those relationships and build new ones. The range of products that can be supplied locally is quite impressive and the suppliers definitely benefited from one-on-one interactions with hoteliers and operators of attractions.” Mrs. Madden-Greig added “we are very pleased with the results of this first event and view it as an investment in our people and Brand Jamaica.”

Project Manager of the Ministry’s Tourism Linkages Hub, Carolyn McDonald-Riley, was pleased with the responses, describing the outcome as remarkable. “I think persons were extremely surprised at the value they got from the event on both sides; the hoteliers were blown away by some of the things offered to them and although some of the suppliers did not get to meet with representatives of some of the properties that they initially wanted, they said that their best meetings were the ones they did not ask for.”

Reacting to suggestions of the event being twice per year, she said the organizers “would go back to the drawing board, make an assessment and decide on the way forward.”

The other entities which partnered to host the event are Sandals Resort International, the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO), and the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC). 

KINGSTON, JAMAICA: November 7, 2014 – Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, the Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, is set to travel to Shanghai, China, to participate in the 16^th session of China International Travel Mart (CITM 2014) at the invitation of the National Tourism Administration of the People’s Republic of China.  The Minister departs the island on Monday, November 10.

CITM 2014, the biggest travel mart in Asia, will be held at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre from November 14-16, 2014.  More than 200 exhibitors from over 100 countries and over 1000 overseas buyers are expected to attend this leading travel industry event, which serves as an important platform for enhancing linkages between China and the rest of the world.

Jamaica is interested in attracting more Chinese visitors to the island and CITM 2014 will provide ideal forum for exploring opportunities and conducting business that will benefit the island’s tourism sector. In February, the Jamaican Government approved the conditional waiving of visa requirements for Chinese nationals travelling to Jamaica for tourism purposes for periods of 30 days or less in a bid to ease travel between the two countries.

CITM 2014 is jointly organized by the China National Tourism Administration, Civil Aviation Administration of China and Shanghai Municipal People's Government.

Minister McNeill, who is being accompanied by Director of Tourism, Paul Pennicook, will return to the island on Sunday, November 16, 2014.

Kingston, Jamaica: November 7, 2014 – State Minister in the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment, the Hon. Damion Crawford, has been invited by the Caribbean Export Development Agency (CEDA) to attend the second Caribbean Exporters' Colloquium in Bridgetown, Barbados, from November 11 – 12, 2014. He will depart the island on Monday, November 10, 2014.

The two-day Colloquium, being held under the theme “Building Economic Resilience in the Caribbean”, is intended to provide Caribbean counties with a road map for future economic growth.   The forum will focus on examining among other issues, the state of regional exports, private sector advocacy, innovation and entrepreneurship, branding and intellectual property protection, and key issues affecting competitiveness.

Minister Crawford will be a panelist on one of the Colloquium’s series of interactive discussions titled “Clearing the Hurdles:   Key Issues Affecting Caribbean Private Sector Competitiveness.”   The session will identify specific challenges that may stymie the ability of the private sector to be competitive with the objective of generating recommendations that will enable them to play a greater role in regional economic development.

This event will bring together over 100 leading Caribbean business persons, policymakers, business support organizations, regional and international development organizations and political leaders from all CARIFORUM countries.

State Minister Crawford will return to the island on Sunday, November 16, 2014.

KINGSTON, JAMAICA: January 26, 2015 – In its continued bid to strengthen the linkages between the tourism industry and other sectors of the economy, the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment’s Tourism Linkages Hub is collaborating with the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), the Jamaica Manufacturers’ Association (JMA) and other partner entities to host the first ever Linkages Speed Networking event. The session will be held on Wednesday, January 21, 2015, at the Half Moon, A RockResort, in Montego Bay.

The innovative networking event will entail a series of fifteen-minute meetings between Managing Directors, General Managers and CEOs of local companies which supply products and services and owners as well as Managers of properties, restaurants, attractions and other tourism entities. Additional representatives from core areas within the hotel’s operation such as Purchasing, Food and Beverage, Housekeeping, Maintenance and Guest Services, who are in a position to make purchasing decisions, will also be in attendance.

“The initiative is in keeping with our ongoing efforts to improve the linkages between tourism, manufacturing, agriculture and other sectors of the economy to increase business with local suppliers of goods and services,” said Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, the Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill. “We are very pleased to be able to provide this opportunity to local business interests.  The strengthening of linkages between tourism and other sectors will help us to build a more lucrative industry which will benefit more Jamaicans,” he added.

Some 50 hotels and 80 businesses offering a wide range of goods and services will participate in the networking event, including suppliers of craft, toiletries and guest amenities, chemicals and cleaning products, cosmetic and spa products, furniture, bedding, food and beverage, uniforms, printing and packaging, construction, training, ICT, electrical, entertainment, meat and fresh produce.

The other entities which are partnering to host the speed networking event are the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO), and the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC).

Chairman of the Tourism Linkages Council, Donavon Perkins pointed out that the event is “an outstanding opportunity for hoteliers, restaurateurs and attractions to place orders, discuss contracts and prices and other areas of interest with the producers and suppliers of a range of critical products and services used by the tourism industry.  It will also give them a chance to learn about the many novel and high quality products now being produced in Jamaica and we hope more of our local products and services will ultimately be used within the sector.”

Kingston, Jamaica: January 27, 2015 - Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, the Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, is currently in Madrid, Spain, to attend FITUR 2015, one of the largest and most important tourism trade shows on the international calendar.

The 35^th staging of FITUR, which takes place from January 28 to February 1, 2015, will see the participation of some 9,107 companies from 165 countries and approximately 200,000 visitors from around the world.  

Jamaica will be among the leading tourist destinations that will be showcased at FITUR, as the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) will be mounting a booth at the highly anticipated event. JTB’s Regional Director in charge of Europe, Mr. Gregory Shervington, and the agency’s representative for Spain and Portugal, Mr. Marc Meister, will also be in attendance to market the destination.

While in Spain Minister McNeill will also attend the 11^th United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner on January 28.  The flagship awards for the global tourism sector recognizes exceptional initiatives and individuals that contribute to advance knowledge and innovation, in line with the principles of the UNWTO Global Code of Ethics and the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. The event will be celebrated for the second consecutive time in collaboration with the FITUR international tourism trade fair. The minister will also participate in the VI Tourism Investment and Business Forum.

Jamaica, represented by Minister McNeill, is currently the chair of the UNWTO Executive Council (EC) for the year 2014-2015.

Minister McNeill is being accompanied to FITUR 2015 by Chairman of the JTB, Mr. Dennis Morrison. He will return to the island on Friday, January 30, 2014.

OCHO RIOS, Jamaica, Sunday, December 6, 2015: Tourism and Entertainment Minister, Hon.  Dr Wykeham McNeill, has welcomed news that Palace Resorts plans to increase investment in the island’s hotel sector.

Information on the plan was provided by Executive Vice President of Palace Resorts, Gibran Chapur, at the recent official opening of Moon Palace Jamaica Grande, the first resort property outside of Mexico to be opened by that country’s largest hotel chain.

“Very good things happen in Jamaica and we want to be part of this country’s continued success,” Mr. Chapur said, adding, “we already have invested more than US$200 million, why not invest 300 million more.”

Elaborating in an interview, Mr.  Chapur disclosed that “we are working on plans to acquire new properties in order to build new hotels. I think that’s good; it will bring new inventory to the destination and we want to do five-star hotels as we have here.”

With the creativity of designers from Miami and a skilled Jamaican work force, Palace Resorts spent US$210 million to transform the former Sunset Jamaica Grande into one of the finest hotels in the Caribbean.

Minister McNeill said he was pleased that Palace Resort was looking at further investment here as this would be a further boost to the tourist industry. “We’re really seeing a transformation of Jamaica’s tourism,” he said.

Commenting on Moon Palace Jamaica Grande, Dr. McNeill said, “They’ve done a fantastic job with the renovation and it’s hard to see this as the project that was Jamaica Grande. They’ve carried it up another notch with the largest spa in Jamaica and the fine finish to the work that was done.

He lauded the Chapur family and expressed appreciation for their keeping 600 members of staff of the former Sunset Jamaica Grande fully employed since last year September when the transformation began. Some 200 of those workers were sent to Mexico to be further trained while a number of Mexicans came here to work alongside Jamaicans.