Kingston, Jamaica: July 7, 2015: State Minister for Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Damion Crawford is urging more Jamaicans to dedicate time and effort to documenting aspects of our unique culture. Speaking recently at the official ceremony to mark handing-over of 100 digital tapes containing priceless interview and concert footage from the Legends of Ska documentary project, Minister Crawford underscored the need for more Jamaicans to produce films, features  and documentaries showcasing our culture such as the successes of our cultural icons and musicians.

The Legends of Ska documentary, which was produced by American film producer Brad Klein, captures the growth and evolution of Ska as a distinctive Jamaican musical genre. It also examines the impact of Jamaican music globally and gives unique insight into the lives and careers of some of our most legendary Ska performers. Mr. Klein dedicated over 12 years of his life to creating the film.

In thanking Mr. Klein for handing over the tapes to the Jamaica Music Museum, Minister Crawford said “this vast catalogue of archival footage and images is truly a national asset. The significance of this footage resonates with those of us who understand the importance of capturing and preserving aspects of our history for the benefit of current and future generations alike.”

Minister Crawford added that “as a country Jamaica continues to captivate the world through our unique culture and music but more Jamaicans need to dedicate the time and effort to telling our own story, to capturing our history and culture on tape so that more people can truly appreciate the achievements of various talented Jamaicans.”

Mr. Crawford underscored that “the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment and its agencies are committed to fostering the continued development of the entertainment industry and the preservation of our cultural heritage. It is this commitment that has guided our decision to finance this initiative through the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), in order to bring these valuable tapes to Jamaica.”

For his part Minister of Transport, Works and Housing and noted music aficionada, Dr. Hon. Omar Davies, expressed similar sentiments, noting that “even as I express gratitude to Brad on this initiative I hope that within Jamaica we will seek to start doing this in a more systematic way, in terms of documenting the work of artistes and ensuring that the next generation will be aware of this rich piece of our history.”

In accepting the footage Director/Curator of the Jamaica Music Museum, which is an arm of the Institute of Jamaica, Mr. Herbie Miller said “I would like to thank Brad for his very generous and committed donation. In accepting this I do it on behalf of the ancestors and the survivors who we call the Legends of Ska, as well as the Jamaican people.”    

The Legends of Ska is among the many films which will be viewed during the Jamaica Film Festival, which runs from July 7-11, 2015.

TEF Provides Over $13 Million to Support Venture

KINGSTON, JAMAICA: July 3, 2015 – The Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) has expressed delight at news that the push to have the Blue and John Crow Mountains designated as a World Heritage Site has yielded significant success. This follows the UNESCO World Heritage Committee’s unanimous decision to have the site inscribed on the prestigious World Heritage List. The decision was made at the 39^th session of the World Heritage Committee Meeting now underway in Bonn, Germany.

The inscription resulted from a strategic partnership between the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment and its agencies, and the Ministry of Youth and Culture. The Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) has provided over $ 13 million to date to support the venture. Overall the TEF has allocated some $761 million to heritage and cultural projects over the last two years, some of which has been used to finance the upgrade of several heritage sites across the island.

The designation marks the first World Heritage site for Jamaica and is also the first mixed (cultural and natural) site for the Caribbean sub-region. The Blue and John Crow Mountains is now one of only 32 mixed sites, which include several world renowned sites such as the The Taj Mahal of India, Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and the Great Wall of China.

Included in TEF $ 13 million allocation, is a tranche of over $ 4.6 million, which facilitated the trip by the Jamaican contingent led by Minister of Youth and Culture, Hon. Lisa Hanna to Bonn, Germany where they successfully defended Jamaica’s nomination at the meeting, which runs from June 28 – July 8, 2015.

In expressing satisfaction at the achievement Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, said “I am elated that the initiative was successful and it is proof of the far-reaching impact that partnerships can have. I am confident that the designation will help to enhance the appeal of Jamaica to travellers with a special interest in culture and boost our standing as a competitive destination in accordance with the Word Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI).”

Executive Director of the TEF, Mr. Clyde Harrison, said “we are very pleased with the outcome of this project and our support for the venture has yielded significant dividends.” He added that “this designation will significantly boost our efforts to develop heritage tourism locally, which is in-keeping with TEF’s drive to safeguard heritage sites and points of interest.” 

Kingston, Jamaica: July 2, 2015: The Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment is ramping up efforts to establish entertainment zones island-wide as it seeks to address the issue of noise disturbances caused by entertainment events held in and around residential areas. This as the Ministry moves to have experts conduct sound level tests in key locations in Downtown Kingston to guide the development of the first in a series of entertainment zones.

State Minister for Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Damion Crawford, emphasized that “this forms part of an overall initiative to tackle the issue of night noises. We are working along with partner Ministries and agencies such as the Ministry of Local Government, the Urban Development Corporation (UDC) and the Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation (KSAC) to establish these entertainment zones. This is a pilot project and if it is successful it will be replicated in key locations across the island.”

The tests will be conducted Friday July 3, from 8:00 pm to 12 midnight in six parking lots and open spaces in Downtown Kingston which have been identified as potential entertainment zones. Minister Crawford reiterated that “this is in-keeping with our plan to retrofit the UDC and KSAC owned parking lots in the area to accommodate entertainment events, using temporary fencing.”

Minister Crawford explained that “we will be using six sound systems in the locations which we have identified in order to simulate an actual entertainment zone. We have hired sound experts who will measure the point at which the level of the music is likely to cause a disturbance to residents living in the area.”

The venues where the tests will be conducted include the Pechon Street parking lot; Lot 20 located along the Kingston Waterfront; the bus terminus located on Darling Street; and the Water Lane Transportation Centre. Residents of communities in the area will be given the opportunity to contact Ministry representatives to report noise disturbances caused during the exercise.

Kingston, Jamaica: July 2, 2015: Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon.  Dr. Wykeham McNeill, has urged the nation’s farmers to plan strategically to benefit from the increased demand for local produce expected as the tourism sector continues to experience strong growth.

With tourism arrivals continuing to trend upwards, 1600 new hotel rooms being added to the accommodation inventory in the next 18 months, and thousands more rooms in the advanced planning stages, Minister McNeill asked the audience of some 100 famers, agricultural produce suppliers, and representatives of agricultural organizations from across the island, “Who is going to feed all these visitors?”

Minister McNeill was giving opening remarks at a meeting hosted by the Ministry’s Tourism Linkages Hub yesterday (July 1) to sensitize the farmers and suppliers to the anticipated boom in tourism  and the need for them to effectively plan production to meet the increase in demand.  The meeting was held at the Golf View Hotel in Mandeville, Manchester.

“Someone has to feed these people.  We can either bring in the food or grow the food,” Minister McNeill stated.

“We cannot continue to look at tourism success from the angle of tourism arrivals and investments. I want the benefits of tourism to reach the Jamaican people too. That is my priority,” the Minister stated, adding that “tourism must be used as a tool to decrease poverty and give more Jamaicans wealth.”

“But it is not going to happen just like that.  We have to work together to make it happen,” said Minister McNeill.  He pointed out that the Tourism Linkages Hub is on a mission to ensure the tourism sector becomes better integrated with and creates more opportunities for local agriculture.  The Minister said he would like the day to come when nearly everything consumed in local hotels is produced in Jamaica.

In addition to charging farmers and suppliers to pay careful attention to quality, quantity and pricing, Minister McNeill pointed to fruits, premium products and the “farm to fork” concept as three areas of opportunity from which they could benefit.

In his address, the Minister of Agriculture, Labour and Social Security, Hon. Derrick Kellier, praised Minister McNeill for his vision not just in establishing the Hub but in ensuring its vigilant stewardship as it seeks to increase the supply of agricultural products to the tourism market.

“Jamaica can only prosper on a sustainable basis when we develop and maintain linkages to ensure that every industry and economic activity allows as many people as possible to prosper,” said Minister Kellier, adding that “one han’ cyan clap so collaboration remains critical”.

He concluded by saluting the efforts of the linkages hub as the two ministries continued to work together to identify the market demand for agriculture produce in the tourism sector and effectively plan production and distribution to meet those needs.

Leading discussions at the meeting were Tourism Linkages Hub Project Manager, Carolyn McDonald Riley; Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Mr. Donovan Stanberry; and Tourism Linkages Council Member, Dr. Derrick Deslandes.

Representatives from the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA); Agro-Investment Corporation (Agro Park); Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA); Jamaica Agriculture Society and JAMPRO were also in attendance.

Kingston, Jamaica: June 26, 2015: Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon.  Dr. Wykeham McNeill, has charged tourism and sports stakeholders to work together to maximize the potential of sports tourism and its benefits to Jamaica.  He stated that, “given the strength of Brand Jamaica and our prominence in sports there is no limit to the success we can achieve if we come together.”

Minister McNeill was addressing the stakeholders at a JAMAICA Sport workshop held yesterday (June 25) at the Knutsford Court Hotel, New Kingston.  The workshop introduced two models for evaluating the economic impact of sports events, STEAM Jamaica and Media PRO.

“The value of sports tourism is said to be over US$600 billion internationally. Given Jamaica’s prominence in sport and the strength of our brand we have to ensure we can get a slice of this pie,” said Minister McNeill.

He pointed out that sports tourism affects the host country in two ways, the direct effect of attendance of competitors, spectators and other accompanying persons and the indirect effect that comes from marketing the destination. As an example of the power of sports as a marketing tool, Minister McNeill cited the successful Jamaica House concept, an initiative that leverages the global focus on the Jamaican track and field team at major sporting events to market Destination Jamaica.

To underscore his point, Minister McNeill noted that “prior to 2012, we had experienced four consecutive years of negative growth in visitor arrivals out of the UK. In 2012, we hosted Jamaica House at the London Olympics.  In 2013 we saw the positive impact in an increase in arrivals; in 2014 arrivals increased by 17.5% and since the start of 2015 we have had a 27% increase in arrivals out of the UK.” He emphasized that, while not the sole reason for increases out of this market, the concept played a significant role in boosting arrivals.

The Minister welcomed the introduction of Jamaica STEAM (Sport Tourism Economic Assessment Model), which will project and measure the economic impact of both sports and entertainment, and Media PRO, which will measure the media value and reach of these events. “We want to ensure there is an empirical mechanism to ensure the sports events have maximum impact on tourism given our financial constraints,” said Minister McNeill.  He encouraged all sports organizations to embrace the use of these evaluation models to measure their events for various purposes including sponsorship.

The sport evaluation workshop was conducted by Anthony Fisher from the Canadian Sports Tourism Alliance and Derek Mager from Canada’s Data Jungle, who have a proven record in both fields.

JAMAICA Sport Chairman, Chris Dehring described the models as “tried, tested and true” and said that in a very competitive environment it is important to professionalize sports investment and properly assess how the money is being spent.

JAMAICA Sport is a multi-sectoral body established in 2014 to examine the commercial opportunities provided by sports tourism; leverage Brand Jamaica and sporting events held locally and internationally to ensure that Jamaica maximizes marketing and promotional opportunities while encouraging additional visitors to our shores.  

KINGSTON, JAMAICA, June 24, 2015: Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, has credited Jamaica’s Tourism Master Plan for Sustainable Tourism Development with providing guidance for the development of the industry, its current success and ability to contribute significantly to the nation’s economic growth.

He was addressing a six-person tourism delegation from Belize yesterday (June 23) that is being hosted by his Ministry to assist that country with further development of its tourism industry.  The weeklong visit is an initiative of the Interregional Cooperation in Tourism. 

“Because of how Jamaica has been positioned, there is now a great demand for the island as a vacation destination,  with measurable growth in both stop over and cruise arrivals as well as investment by both international and local investors,” the Minister stated.

Head of the delegation, Belize’s Chief Tourism Officer, Abil Castaneda, explained that his country is a crossroads with regard to its tourism development.

“We need inputs on how to structure our tourism sector to move forward. Over the course of this week we hope to discuss institutional challenges and how it affects policy and framework in the long run,” he stated. 

“Our hope is that the exchange of knowledge and ideas will help to build and strengthen my country’s tourism industry,” he stated.

The delegation will hold consultations with the Ministry, its agencies and stakeholders – the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo); the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF); and the Jamaica Tourist Board.  Their itinerary also includes meetings with senior staff of Jamaica Trade and Invest (JAMPRO); the Jamaica Business Development Centre, (JBDC); the Micro Investment Development Agency (MIDA), and the Self-Start Fund. The team will also be hosted by the Passport and Citizenship Agency on a site visit to the Sangster International Airport where they will observe visitor facilitation systems at international points of entry.

 Belize, which has a relatively new formal tourism sector compared to Jamaica. Located on the Eastern Coast of Central America,  the country is 22,800 square kilometres with a population of 340,844. More than 1.2 million persons visited Belize in 2014.

The delegation’s mission to Jamaica was sponsored by the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB).

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica; June 17, 2015: Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, has called on members of the Diaspora to take on the role of being ambassadors for Jamaica’s growing tourism industry as a valuable means of helping their homeland.

During a panel discussion at the 6^th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference now underway at the Montego Bay Convention Centre, Dr. McNeill asked members to: “Keep on being ambassadors, keep on coming back home and encourage your friends and family to come as well.”

He advised Diaspora members, “there are a lot of opportunities opening up in Jamaica,” adding that now was a good time to invest and it was important for them to know “because what I don’t want is for us not to have had this discussion and when the investment takes place some people come and say how come we never get a chance.”

The panel discussion, which was led by Dr. McNeill, focused on “Exploring and Contributing to Jamaica’s Tourism Product.”  This was set against the background of the country being globally recognized for its tourism product and a determination to hold pride of place as the top destination in the Caribbean.

He stressed, however, that more focus should be placed on wooing second, third and fourth generation Jamaicans in the Diaspora as a tremendous opportunity existed in that market segment to give them a feeling of belonging here.

He said while there were many events on which the Jamaica Tourist Board and the Diaspora work together, “I believe there’s a lot more we could do.”

Dr. McNeill also pointed to the need for collaboration at the community level and the importance of Community Tourism in ensuring that the benefits of the industry are felt at all levels.

Speaking on the current status of Jamaica’s tourism, he said, “I could say we are hot as we are experiencing our biggest boom in tourism” with a 5 percent growth in stopovers this past winter season and a double-digit increase in cruise ship arrivals.

The United States market was up 9.1 percent while Europe moved up “phenomenally” with the United Kingdom up more than 27 percent.

He also spoke of increased seats and new air services opening up routes to Jamaica from both traditional and non-traditional markets.

“What this means is that with the new airlift, the partnerships we have developed, the investment that’s coming in, and I only speak of those that we have written down, all told we’re expecting in excess of 5000 rooms over the next five years in Jamaica.” Of that number, 1600 are slated to come on stream within the next eighteen months.

“When you consider that, the projection for tourism going forward is very strong,” Dr. McNeill declared.

RUNAWAY BAY, St Ann; July 23, 2015: Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill has welcomed Jewel Runaway Bay’s $570 million Lagoon Water Park as a great addition to the tourism product.

While maintaining that “we have tremendous attractions in Jamaica,” Dr. McNeill has pointed to the importance of investment that is taking place across the length and breadth of the island and creating more opportunities for investors in attractions and the transport sector, ultimately allowing for more visitors to get out of their hotels and explore the country.

The Tourism and Entertainment Minister was speaking at the official launch of Jewel Lagoon Water Park recently. The 9,000 sq. ft. attraction is one of the largest water parks in the region and provides excitement for guests of all ages. Since going into operation in March, it has been used by over 45,000 guests.

The ribbon cutting had guests waiting anxiously for a special guest to emerge from the huge water slide to create a big splash; there was quite a surprise when Miss Jamaica World, Laurie-Ann Chin, appropriately clad in bathing suit, emerged like a mermaid to join in the ceremony.

Dr. McNeill lauded Sagicor, owners of the Jewel brand of hotels, and the many other investors that have been showing confidence in the local tourism industry.

“What has been happening over the last three years is that Jamaica has been performing well in tourism; our occupancies are up, as well as our room rates and for the investor in the industry this is a good thing as their profits are up. What we’re seeing is investment in the industry with a lot of that going into buying and refurbishing existing plants so there has been a transformation of the sector over the last three years,” he added.

With the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment recording some $54 billion worth of investment in the past few years, Dr. McNeill was pleased that several properties have been expanded and upgraded to a brand new level. Additionally, new investment including the creation of the Jewel Lagoon Water Park is taking place and by year-end construction will start on an additional 1,600 hotel rooms.

Minister McNeill expressed the view that “the investment climate in Jamaica now is the best it has ever been” and “the future is looking good.”

That view is shared by President and CEO of Sagicor Group Jamaica, Richard Byles who said “our experience in tourism, I must say, has been very good; we’re very satisfied with it. We like it because it is part of the global market and that means it can grow, we can grow and we’ve experienced that. Every year we’ve had better occupancies, better rates and that’s wonderful.”

Mr. Byles lamented, “I hear so many Jamaican businessmen bemoaning the fact that they can’t get growth, well I tell you if you are in the tourism business you can get the growth.”

He said his company also liked tourism “because it creates such a great linkage in the economy” and citing Red Stripe as an example, Mr. Byles said, “I encourage Jamaican corporations, Jamaican individuals to look seriously at the business of investing in tourism, More Jamaicans need to own and be part of the tourism business, not just work for it but own it also.”  

He said the Lagoon Water Park fulfilled a commitment made in 2014 when the Sagicor X Fund raised $1.5 billion from an initial public offer.

Kingston, Jamaica: July 30, 2015: The Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) has received $80 million from the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment, through the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), which will go towards purchasing and repairing JCF vehicles used in resort areas.

A portion of the funds have been used to purchase 10 new vehicles at a cost of $45 million and the remaining $35 million will be used to conduct repairs to over 100 vehicles currently in use.

For its part, over the past few years the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment has been collaborating with the Ministry of National Security to further boost crime fighting efforts island-wide. Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill has stressed that “we must unite around the issue of national security. It has a profound and far-reaching social and economic impact.”

Over the last two years the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) has provided over $241 million to aid the JCF in securing additional resources. Some of these ventures have included the provision of $25 million to effect repairs to the Negril Police Station as well as $57 million to support the effort to fund the installation of a closed circuit television system in Ocho Rios.

This recent donation forms part of an ongoing initiative to boost the resources of the island’s crime fighters as they seek to boost the safety of visitors and citizens.

Minister of National Security Hon. Peter Bunting has expressed gratitude for the funds and the collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment, which has yielded benefits for citizens and visitors alike. “I am hoping that this cooperation and this example of ‘joined up government’ is really the start of a true integrated multi-disciplinary approach to improving citizens’ security … by reducing the threat of crime to citizens, improving public safety and public order, and to really create an environment where we don’t have to rely entirely on the police to make an intervention,” he shared.

The Commissioner of Police, Dr. Carl Williams has expressed thanks for the latest donation and emphasized that “the Jamaica Constabulary Force recognizes the symbiotic relationship between security and tourism and will continue to review current deployment and operational plans to address the issues identified by our stakeholders as they arise. We are thankful for this expression of confidence in our abilities and look forward to continued partnership.”

 “We are going to continue to implement measures to further enhance the safety of all Jamaicans as well as our many visitors and to tackle issues such as visitor harassment. Only then will we begin to see a wider cross section of Jamaica’s communities, businesses and individuals benefitting as they should from the tourism sector,” Minister McNeill said.

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica: August 2, 2015: Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill has added his voice to calls for drivers or insurance companies to pay for damaging public property as a result of reckless driving on the roads.

“One of the things that we must ensure is that persons who drive recklessly and crash into utility poles, and other road infrastructure, that they pay or their insurance company pays for the repairs; it should not be the people of Jamaica who pay for it,” said Dr. McNeill.

He was speaking recently at the official commissioning of 800 LED lights that have been installed along Montego Bay’s Elegant Corridor, running from the Sangster International Airport round-a-bout to Lilliput.

Minister McNeill said the project which took over a year from inception, was executed on time at a cost of $271 million provided by the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF). “This project is going to enhance the lives of Jamaicans and the value of our tourism product. Value along the Elegant Corridor and hotel rates can now go up”, he added.

However, Dr. McNeill also stressed that while the TEF was transforming Jamaica, the work done on projects were not being done specifically for visitors; “the visitor benefits from it but it’s really done to improve our country, to make Jamaica a better place for our Jamaicans then visitors can come and enjoy it with us.”

He was satisfied that the Elegant Corridor lighting project accomplished the objective of being transformational, affecting the lives of both Jamaicans and visitors to the resort city.

The LED lighting was implemented in collaboration with the Ministries of Transport, Works and Housing and Local Government and Community Development.

Local Government Minister Noel Arscott also underscored that though it was a hefty sum, “when you consider the possible effect on the earning potential of the tourism industry and the safety of our citizens then it’s not too heavy a price to pay.”

He said government was hoping to install LED lights right across Jamaica and if successful, that would save the country 50,000 barrels of oil per year, “therefore this demonstration of modern technology is in itself, an example which we really want to appreciate.”

Minister Arscott also welcomed the multi-ministerial collaboration as a good example of “joined up government” adding that, “it is more of these things that we need to do to enhance and stretch the dollar that we have to invest in Jamaica.”

The lights were welcomed by Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Glendon Harris who also pointed to the value they bring to what he said was the fastest growing city in the western hemisphere.

The central switch controlling the lights was switched on jointly by Ministers McNeill and Arscott, officially commissioning the lights and giving motorists who were travelling along the dark corridor a pleasant surprise.

The contractor, Y.P.  Seaton & Associates, the National Works Agency and other parties associated with the execution of the project were commended for a job well done.