MANDEVILLE, Jamaica, Sunday, August 20, 2023: With small and medium tourism enterprises (SMTEs) accounting for 80 percent of all tourism business, Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett says that sector is being positioned to meet the demands of today’s travellers.

In that regard, Minister Bartlett identified the need for three elements to aid the SMTE sector, including training to build capacity, funding for capital development and marketing support.

His remarks were directed at 55 graduates in the third cohort of trainees in the Central Jamaica Social Development Initiative (CJSDI) Youth Entrepreneurship Training Programme at their graduation ceremony on Thursday, August 17, 2023, at Tropics View Hotel.

 “The SMTEs are indispensable to the tourism industry,” stated Mr. Bartlett, but “something is wrong with that picture as “only 20 percent of the returns from tourism goes to this 80 percent.” The three pillars were, therefore, being used to correct the imbalance and build their “to develop more ideas to be able to bring more products on stream and then to fund your capacity to increase the number and the higher quality and, finally, to provide the market for you so that you could get the price you want for the goods that you have provided.”

Mr. Bartlett said the artisan village at the cruise ship port in Falmouth, and others to follow, were being developed with that concept in mind.

“One of the key reasons why small businesses are vital to our tourism industry is their ability to offer unique and authentic experiences,” said Minister Bartlett. “So what we’re saying then is that we must create quality, build capacity and strong standards so that there is no gainsaying of the authenticity and quality of the product”

According to the tourism minister, travellers today were increasingly seeking authentic experiences and wanting to immerse themselves in the local way of life and “small businesses are well positioned to meet this demand by offering personalized tours, locally sourced products and intimate accommodations that showcase the destination’s true essence.”

He also underscored that small businesses had a profound economic impact on the communities in which they operate, create jobs, generate income and contribute to the local economy. With billions of dollars being generated by the industry annually and efforts to make it truly Jamaican, the Ministry of Tourism, through its Linkages Network, “continues to work relentlessly to ensure that the supply needs of the hotel and hospitality sectors are met by Jamaican producers and manufacturers.”

One of the core objectives of the CJSDI programme is to provide these young entrepreneurs with the skills to transform fledgling businesses into successful entities that meet global standards and give graduates small grant funding to support their entrepreneurial goals. The training was conducted in partnership with other public agencies, including the HEART/NSTA Trust, the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) and the Companies Office of Jamaica (COJ).

 “As graduates of the CJSDI you have been given the skills, mentorship and know-how to transform your businesses into thriving entities that can eventually meet global standards in productivity,” Minister Bartlett encouraged them.

Kingston, Jamaica; Wednesday, August 16, 2023: With global forecasts positioning travel and tourism as a leading driver of Africa’s economic growth over the next decade, Jamaica’s Minster of Tourism Hon. Edmund Bartlett has highlighted the strategic importance of the Caribbean in engaging members of the African Diaspora domiciled in the Americas to forge stronger partnerships between both regions and benefit from this promising trajectory.

Speaking earlier today at the Africa Diaspora Travel and Tourism Summit where he delivered the keynote address virtually, the tourism minister said, “In 2018, tourist arrivals among African destinations grew by 5.6 %, which was the second-fastest growth rate among all regions and stronger than global average growth of 3.9 %. According to forecasts from World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), tourism’s GDP will grow at an average rate of 6.8% annually between 2022-2032, more than twice the 3.3% growth rate of the region’s overall economy.”

In this regard, Minster Bartlett explained that the Caribbean, comprising predominantly people of African ancestry and being among the most tourism-dependent regions in the world, had the unique opportunity to connect with the African Diaspora and build meaningful tourism linkages geared towards promoting development across borders.

Noting the continent’s youthful population and the positive shifts in the political landscapes of African nations, Minister Bartlett added, “Africa has great potential to become a major force in global tourism. African destinations also have a competitive advantage amid the growing global interest in experiential tourism, especially culture, heritage and adventure.” 

“It has become clear that many African countries offer tremendous promise to become or remain vibrant hosts for tourists, investors and entrepreneurs, which can drive employment for low-skilled workers and economic inclusion for women and youth,” he added.

Notwithstanding this, the tourism minister stressed that the barriers to effective engagement of the diaspora needed to be tackled. At the same time, he advocated for greater efforts to be made by the various stakeholders to ensure increased participation of African diasporas in the economic transformation of the continent and challenged leaders to utilise the resources of the diaspora through the promotion of trade, investments, research, innovation, and knowledge and technology transfers. 

“Greater emphasis also needs to be placed on strengthening policies and programmes to engage the African diaspora at the regional level such as the African Union level. While credit must be given to the efforts of some African countries that have been pursuing policies to develop links with Africans abroad, either to encourage them to return or to use their skills, knowledge or financial capital to foster African development, there is a lot more room for improvement,” noted Minister Bartlett.

Kingston, Jamaica; Monday, August 14, 2023: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has emphasised the important role the literary and creative arts play in driving success within Jamaica’s tourism sector. Minister Bartlett also highlighted Kingston’s emerging status as a cultural powerhouse regionally and indicated the Ministry’s commitment to continue supporting the growth of the local creative industry.

Addressing last evening’s gathering of the 2023 Jamaica Poetry Festival held at the Louise Bennet Garden Theatre, the tourism minister said, “Tourism is a confluence of moving parts, and our culture, food, music, art and poetry are critical to its overall success. The creative arts and tourism work hand in hand to give visitors unforgettable experiences and keep them coming back. As a result, the tourism ministry is serious about uplifting our creatives and through the Tourism Enhancement Fund and its Linkages Network we have dedicated initiatives to doing just that.”

The festival was again sponsored by the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), event partners for the last two productions. The 13^th staging was dubbed the “Arts in Action Edition” and honoured two legendary Jamaicans who contributed significantly to the global recognition of Jamaican art and culture, Louise “Miss Lou” Bennett-Coverley and Harry Belafonte as well as renowned Lebanese American writer, Khalil Gibran.

In addition to speaking on the harmonisation of the creative arts and tourism, Minister Bartlett also read an excerpt from his 2022 book “Tourism Resilience and Recovery for Global Sustainability and Development: Navigating COVID-19 and the Future” that was co-authored with Prof. Lloyd Waller, Executive Director of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC). The tourism minister also performed an original poem entitled “Tourism’s Call, Resilience Siren Song” which explored themes such as the pandemic, adaptability and recovery.

“I am delighted to be at festivals like these because it gives us a statement to make. I want you to know that you are part of a global market that is now 5 billion US dollars strong – art, culture and music. The projection for the next 15 years is that it will get to 22 billion dollars. My job is to try to bring you into that mix and enable Jamaica to get a piece of that action,” Minister Bartlett noted.

This year’s line-up included performances from several notable Jamaicans – Prof. Edward Baugh, Jean Lowrie-Chin, Prof. Clinton Hutton, Boris Gardiner, Dr. Winsome Miller-Rowe and event organiser Yasus Afari, among others. A portion of the proceeds earned will be donated to the Jamaica Society for the Blind to help bolster its programmes and services tailored to improving the well-being of visually impaired Jamaicans.

SANTIAGO, Chile; Wednesday, August 2, 2023: Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett has announced that summer 2024 has been earmarked for the resumption of nonstop flights with LATAM Airlines to Jamaica. The move follows discussions today with top executives from LATAM airlines in Chile.

In 2019, LATAM Airlines, the largest airline corporation in Latin America, operated three weekly flights to Montego Bay with convenient connections from cities in Peru, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia. The route was operated by Airbus A320 aircraft with capacity for 174 passengers, offering a total of 52,600 seats.

“The resumption of airlift from the largest airline in Latin America bodes well for our push to increase arrivals from this lucrative and important region. We were well on our way to leverage this airlift in 2019, and then COVID-19 halted our progress. Chile is our 2nd largest market in the region, so it is truly gratifying to be in discussions now to build on what we started," said Minister Bartlett.

Buenos Aires; ARGENTINA; Tuesday, August 2,2023: Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett, in relaying some of the strategic objectives for the Latin American (Latam) market, has singled out Argentina as a critical part of those objectives. Home to popular international football player Lionel Messi, with a population of 45 million, Argentina represents the largest market for Jamaica in the region.

"We recognize the importance of increasing arrivals from this large and influential country in our overall strategy to fully reengage Latam. Before the pandemic, we welcomed over approximately 7,000 visitors from Argentina and was poised to significantly improve those numbers, but the pandemic hit. Now, as we rebuild in the region, Argentina will be a key focus for us," said Minister Bartlett.

The Minister made the announcement at a special luncheon that hosted over 120 of Jamaica's travel, trade, and media partners at the Four Seasons Hotel in Argentina yesterday.

Kingston, Jamaica; Wednesday, August 2, 2023: Buoyed by the full recovery of Jamaica's tourism sector, Hon Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism is targeting 250,000 visitors from Latin America (Latam) over the next 5 years. The move forms part of the Minister's aggressive push to reengage this large source market.

"The Latin America region has over 600 million people, a growing middle class and represents one of the largest source markets for Jamaica that we must capitalize on. With travel fully returned and the potential of new airlift out of the region, we are building out strategies to attract these visitors," said Minister Bartlett.

Just prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, there were some 11 weekly flights between Panama and Jamaica via Copa Airlines and new services by LATAM Airlines with some three flights per week between Lima, Peru, a major South American travel hub, and Montego Bay.

Copa Airlines remains the strongest airline partner with an increased frequency of 4 flights weekly to both Montego Bay and Kingston, with the aim of providing 5 flights weekly to both cities by early 2024.

"Now is the time for Jamaica, a sought-after destination, to leverage this very lucrative market as part of our drive to welcome 5 million visitors by 2025. With 20 thousand rooms coming on stream in Jamaica, we will need to engage our airline partners for more airlift and seats, our tour operators, and create more investment to support this drive," said Minister Bartlett.

In 2019, Jamaica welcomed over 38 thousand visitors from Latam, and the island was poised to increase this number in 2020, but then COVID hit. Coming out of the pandemic, in 2022, Jamaica was able to welcome over 22 thousand visitors from the region.

Minister Bartlett is in Latin America with a team of senior tourism representatives as part of a high-level strategic reengagement of the region.

Over the course of eight days, Minister Bartlett and other tourism officials will visit Buenos Aires in Argentina, Santiago in Chile and Lima, Peru. Mr. Bartlett and members of the team have undertaken a full slate of scheduled engagements which involves a series of meetings with representatives of various local authorities, ministries of tourism and Copa Airlines, one of the major carriers in the region.

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica; Friday, July 28, 2023: Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett has urged delinquent employers in the tourism industry “to step up to the plate and honour their commitment to workers to match the 5 percent contribution” made by members of the Tourism Workers Pension Scheme (TWPS).

The call came at the first annual general meeting of the scheme, held in hybrid form at the Montego Bay Convention Centre recently. The TWPS was launched in January 2022 and Minister Bartlett stressed that “up to July 21, 2023 membership enrolment stood at 6,214, with contributions totalling approximately $876 million.”

As of January 1, 2023, the contribution rate for members of the scheme was increased from 3% to 5% of their earnings. This is to be matched by a 5% contribution from their employers. However, Minister Bartlett lamented that some employers are not paying the employers portion and need to do the honourable thing. Mr. Bartlett also suggested that employees could contribute a higher portion of their earnings, such as 10%, ensuring a pension higher than the $200,000 per year minimum benchmark.

The scheme is designed to cover all workers ages 18–59 years in the tourism sector, whether permanent, contract or self-employed. This includes hotel workers and people employed in related industries, such as craft vendors, tour operators, red cap porters, contract carriage operators, and workers at attractions. Benefits will be payable at age 65 or older.

The Government of Jamaica committed J$1 billion to seed the scheme so that immediate benefits can accrue to qualified pensioners. Sagicor Life Jamaica manages the Fund and Guardian Life Ltd. is the administrator.

Underscoring the importance of the Tourism Workers Pension Scheme, Mr. Bartlett said it had the potential for nearly 500,000 contributors in Jamaica alone with the capacity of having trillions of dollars made available for investment in the economy.

This public savings, said Mr. Bartlett, “now becomes the pool of capital that is available for on-lending for infrastructural development and investment in commercial activities with high levels of appreciation and the returns come back to build the fund and to strengthen the capacity of the country itself.”

He said the pension fund could also be accessed for investment in tourism as employers would in time be able to borrow for expansion and development “and the good news is that the government has provided an opportunity for tax relief from that contribution.”   

He also said plans were in the works for a major public education programme targeting tourism workers at all levels and senior students in high schools “because this programme is not just about providing a social safety net, but also building the culture of saving to create domestic savings.”

Minister Bartlett said the pension programme was one element of a broader strategy aimed at “rolling out an architecture to create a labour market arrangement for tourism overall that makes our industry more attractive and workers feel more secure and that their future is also assured.”

He said the second element was the training and certification of tourism workers while the third was ensuring that classification is brought fully in line with remuneration. What will eventually happen in the industry, he said, “is a new system of meritocracy with equity; you are trained, you qualify, you’re certified, you’re classified; you cannot be denied access.”

Kingston, Jamaica; Thursday, July 27, 2023: In a bid to boost Jamaica’s share of the lucrative South American travel market, Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has departed the island en route to three Latin American countries where he will engage critical tourism stakeholders during a weeklong visit to the region.

“South America’s economic recovery to pre-pandemic levels has been quite impressive and we’re confident that this is a good time to pursue opportunities for collaboration between Jamaica and tourism players in that region,” asserted Minister Bartlett.

“Prior to COVID-19, we would have observed significant interest coming from the Latin American market and post-pandemic, the demand has increased. Given this trajectory, we are excited about the future and developing our market share in this side of the world, as we seek to foster the continued growth of our tourism sector,” Minister Bartlett added.

Over the course of eight days, Minister Bartlett and other tourism officials are scheduled to visit Buenos Aires in Argentina, Santiago in Chile and Lima, Peru. The scheduled engagements will involve a series of meetings with representatives of various local authorities, ministries of tourism and Copa Airlines, one of the major carriers in the region.

Before COVID-19, there were some 11 weekly flights between Panama and Jamaica via Copa Airlines and new services by LATAM Airlines with some three flights per week between Lima, Peru and Montego Bay.

In this regard, Minister Bartlett added: “Our mission is to enrich the relationship with Latin America and bolster visitor arrivals coming from the south as we strive to meet our target of 5 million annual visitors by 2025. I was recently in Ecuador for the UNWTO Regional Commission for the Americas Meeting and the feedback coming from our partners there was overwhelmingly positive and encouraging, so we must strike while the iron is hot.” 

Minister Bartlett will also meet with representatives from local universities to discuss expanding the Jamaica-based Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre’s (GTRCMC) presence in South America.

The tourism minister and the other Jamaican representatives are scheduled to return to the island on Friday, August 4.

Kingston, Jamaica; Monday, July 17, 2023: The pivotal role of tourism as the lifeblood of many rural communities in Jamaica and in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has been outlined to a global audience by Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett. Minister Bartlett highlighted the importance of the sector in this regard while addressing participants at a special side event during the United Nations (UN) High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on sustainable development recently.

During the panel discussion, held at the UN headquarters in New York City, Mr. Bartlett was asked to share the challenges and opportunities within the context of championing tourism resilience, that he currently faces as a minister in putting tourism front and centre in efforts for achieving the SDGs.

He presented tourism as often being the only viable economic sector generating mass employment for residents and income opportunities for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. This became particularly evident post-COVID when tourism demonstrated that it was the main engine of growth for an economy that had been devastated by the pandemic.

Measured against the 17 SDGs, Minister Bartlett said: “The tourism sector has demonstrated its enormous potential to deliver results in relation to several of these.”

In Jamaica, he said, “tourism remains one of the most labour-intensive sectors of the national economy and generates jobs not only in the sector, but through its value chain in many other sectors such as the cultural industries, agriculture, construction, manufacturing, transportation, entertainment, handicrafts, health, financial services or information and communication technologies.” He said ultimately by keeping thousands of Jamaicans employed and earning wages that stimulate consumption in the broader national economy, tourism was a significant catalyst of poverty reduction.

Minister Bartlett stated that the tourism sector promoted social inclusiveness and inclusive economic growth by generating a wide range of employment opportunities for Jamaicans across all age ranges, skill levels, educational levels, social and economic classes and geographical locations. Also, with more than 60% of tourism workers being women, the sector was contributing positively to their economic empowerment.

In spite of the positive attributes, Mr. Bartlett admitted that there were long-standing challenges presenting implications for the transition of the tourism sector to sustainability. Minister Bartlett argued that generally, tourism development in Small Island Developing States (SIDs) such as Jamaica typically highlighted the difficulty of balancing economic development with environmental sustainability since the tourism product in these countries was considerably based on the exploitation of depleting natural resources.

He noted that issues such as the pervasiveness of ‘economic leakage,’ and making the sector more inclusive needed to be addressed globally. Minister Bartlett maintained however, that the challenges he outlined were not insurmountable as economic growth and environmental sustainability were not in conflict and “countries like Jamaica have significant potential to accelerate the development of niche tourism markets that balance economic growth with environmental sustainability such as eco-tourism, health and wellness tourism and culture and heritage tourism.”

Kingston, Jamaica; July 13, 2023: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett will be travelling to the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York City to attend a High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development. Minister Bartlett departs the island today, Thursday, July 13 and is expected to participate in the HLPF’s official side event on Economic, Social, and Environmental Sustainability in Tourism on Friday, July 14.

The event is being organised by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) in collaboration with Croatia’s Ministry of Tourism and Sport, the Ministry of Tourism for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Tourism of India. It is aimed at showcasing how multilateral, public and private sector partnerships are contributing to the fulfilment of tourism’s potential in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“Jamaica is currently pioneering some of the most transformational tourism-related strategies and policies internationally. The Destination Assurance Framework and Strategy is almost at the white paper stage and we’ve been partnering with the IDB to develop the Tourism Strategy and Action Plan. So, this forum provides an ideal opportunity to share the approaches we have been taking but more importantly, it gives us a chance to benefit from the knowledge, best practices and expertise in tourism that other member states bring to the table,” asserted Minister Bartlett.

Mr. Bartlett will participate in the forum alongside ministers of tourism from countries such as Croatia and India as well as Spain’s Secretary of State for Tourism. Some of the event’s objectives include enhancing awareness around the need for resilient tourism practices and sustainable recovery strategies, emphasising the role of data in tracking progress and ensuring the alignment of tourism initiatives with broader policy objectives and demonstrating how the private sector can advance towards effective sustainability actions for tourism.

In keeping with this, Minister Bartlett noted that: “A key focus of the forum is to inspire common action between the public and private sectors to achieve social, environmental and governance sustainability within the tourism industry. In Jamaica, our strategic direction aligns perfectly with this mission. We understand that tourism is a confluence of moving parts often led by privately owned entities. Once we work together in a synergistic way, we’ll be able to push forward innovative solutions that strengthen tourism’s role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.”

Minister Bartlett is scheduled to return to the island on Sunday, July 16.