KINGSTON, Jamaica; June 09, 2022: Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says that his ministry has made it a priority to re-imagine the local tourism sector by creating strategic policies, programmes, and initiatives that can aid in building the resilience and increasing the capacity of local small and medium-sized tourism enterprises (SMTEs) to earn more.

Speaking yesterday (June 08) at the Tourism Enhancement Fund’s Business Development Information Session for SMTEs at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel, the Minister said, "We called this gathering and brought all these stakeholders here today to understand the need that we see for building resilience and capacity for our small and medium-sized players who are at the heart of tourism."

"Eighty percent of the value of tourism experiences worldwide is driven by small and medium enterprises. The unfortunate fact is that less than 20% of the returns from tourism go to this sector. So, as we rebound and reimagine, we are bringing a new dynamism to the process, and we are trying to rebalance that anomaly. We want you [SMTEs] to get a larger share of the tourism dollar," he added.

Bartlett noted that the Ministry and its public bodies are offering support to the SMTEs and hospitality workers using three pillars: international certification through the Jamaica Centre of Tourism Innovation; financial support through businesses such as the Jamaica National Bank and the EXIM Bank; and marketing through the Jamaica Tourist Board.

In providing an update on the lending arrangements with the EXIM Bank and Jamaica National, the Minister stated that, "we put $1 billion into the EXIM Bank. They have unlended $1.5 billion to 620 partners who have taken up loans, and they still have $500 million to unlend because it’s a revolving scheme. What it means is that you pay back, and that’s good. We also put $200 million with Jamaica National with the menu of products that they offer, including the TEF 5x5x5, and that has produced results where $900 million has been unlended, and they still have capacity to lend again because it revolves."

As part of increased efforts to boost the competitiveness of the local tourism product and to offer support to budding SMTEs, Bartlett shared that the Ministry of Tourism will be developing an innovation-based tourism incubator (ITI). The initiative, led by the Tourism Enhancement Fund, will support entrepreneurs in converting innovative ideas into viable businesses.

"We are investing in ideas through the innovation incubator that we have established. We have $31 million in this year’s budget to do just that – to go and mine ideas and find young people all across Jamaica with ideas because tourism is driven by ideas,” said the Minister.

The Business Development Information Session for SMTEs is an initiative of the Tourism Linkages Network, a division of the TEF, which was executed with key partners such as the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ); EXIM Bank; Jamaica Manufacturers & Exporters Association (JMEA); Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC); Jamaica National Bank Small Business Loans; and the Companies Office of Jamaica.

The session brought together key business development experts in collaboration with the TEF, and will highlight the products and services available to SMTEs to facilitate their expansion, such as: competitive business loans; GOJ Financing Facilities; Vouchers to assist SMTEs with technical needs; Effective business marketing; Business Development Grants; Product testing services (to ensure products meet market requirements); and Product standardisation services (to ensure products meet market requirements).

KINGSTON, Jamaica; May 20, 2022: Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett has welcomed the return of Jamaica’s premier music festival, Reggae Sumfest to the island’s calendar of events.

Underscoring its importance, Minister Bartlett said: “Events, festivals, exhibitions, meetings and conventions are huge traffic builders; they are drivers of visitors to destinations and so we encourage and support events of this nature.”

He pointed out that “Reggae Sumfest is known to be the greatest reggae show in the world. Jamaica is its birthplace, so we are excited to be partners in this to make sure that more and more people come to us.”

This year being Jamaica’s 60th anniversary of independence, he anticipated that “our Diaspora is going to be here in great numbers but we’re also using the opportunity to open new markets and the good news is that with the Emirates now selling seats to Jamaica we’ll be able to get people from Asia, North Africa, the Middle East and so on to come to us through some North American gateways for Reggae Sumfest and other events later down the road.”

Speaking at the launch of Reggae Sumfest 2022 at the Iberostar Hotel in Montego Bay yesterday (May 19), Minister Bartlett said the festival was being supported by the Ministry of Tourism through the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) and the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), with the expectation of it boosting visitor arrivals during its staging at Catherine Hall in Montego Bay from July 18 to 23.

Sumfest was last held physically in 2019 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. “We’re very happy to be associated with it again this year; the recovery is critical and in recovering we want to do it better and bigger,” said Mr. Bartlett who noted that enquiries were being received from as far as the Middle East.

He said bookings for the months of June and July were very good and this was supported by Montego Bay Chapter Chairman of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association, Nadine Spence who said feedback from hotels for the Sumfest period indicated that “bookings are steady and surpass the same period last year.”

Minister Bartlett used the occasion to reinforce the Government’s commitment to the entertainment industry, pointing out that plans were being pursued for the development of a Tourism Entertainment Academy adjacent to the Montego Bay Convention Centre.

He stressed that $50 million had already been earmarked by the TEF to get it started and on completion the facility will be marketed as an attraction for visitors to experience Jamaica’s authentic high quality cultural offerings. Programmes developed for the Academy are expected to increase employment opportunities for professionally trained and skilled artistes.

Dubai, UAE; May 15, 2022:  Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett (right) and Chairman of the World Free Zones Organization (WFZO), H.E. Dr. Mohammed Al Zarooni, discuss logistics for the Caribbean's first World Free Zones Organization Annual International Conference and Exhibition (AICE), which will be hosted by Jamaica from June 13-17, 2022, at the Montego Bay Convention Centre.

Minister Bartlett and Director of Tourism, Donovan White met with the WFZO Chairman and other key conference planners in Dubai recently to discuss conference activities, legacy projects, resilience and sustainability as well as institutional capacity building support for Jamaica and the Caribbean.

The World Free Zones Conference will be attended by over 1,500 participants, including world leaders, CEOs and investors worldwide. Conference delegates include operators in more than 3,000 free zones from across the world, representing over three million companies.

The meeting was held on behalf of Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Senator the Hon. Aubyn Hill and the Jamaica organizing committee headed by the Jamaica Special Economic Zone Authority (JSEZA).

In 2019, Jamaica won the bid to host the 2021 staging of the AICE, but the event was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The conference is being held under the theme ‘Zones: 2022 Your Partner for Resilience, Sustainability and Prosperity’.

Kingston and Montego Bay now available for booking on Emirates Airlines System

DUBAI, UAE; May 10, 2022: In a historic first for Jamaica and the Caribbean, Emirates Airlines, the largest airline in the Gulf Coast Countries (GCC), is now selling seats to Jamaica. This arrangement opens gateways from the Middle East, Asia and Africa to Jamaica and the rest of the region.

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett made the announcement today following high-level meetings between Jamaica’s tourism officials and a team from Emirates Airlines led by His Highness Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai World Trade Centre Authority and Chairman & Chief Executive, Emirates Airline & Group, at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) in Dubai.

This groundbreaking agreement is a major outcome of Jamaica’s debut participation in the Arabian Travel Market, which runs from May 9-12, 2022.

According to Minister Bartlett: “This is a major initiative for Jamaica as it is opening the Middle Eastern gateway from Asia and North Africa. It is the first time that Destination Jamaica has been entered into the ticketing system of a GCC airline and gives the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) significant leverage to negotiate direct flights to the destination.” Discussions began in October 2021 when Minister Bartlett and Director of Tourism, Donovan White made their first visit to Expo 2020 Dubai.

Both Norman Manley and Sangster International Airports are now listed in the airline system, with ticket pricing available accordingly.  Flights are offered with options including JFK, New York, Newark, Boston and Orlando.  One option goes through Malpensa, Italy, allowing access to the European market as well.  Importantly, the flights are being sold by Emirates Holidays.

Minister Bartlett’s trip to Dubai is part of a mega marketing tour to further boost growth in the island’s tourism industry, which includes stops in New York, Africa, Canada, Europe and Latin America, with breaks in between.DUBAI, UAE; May 10, 2022: In a historic first for Jamaica and the Caribbean, Emirates Airlines, the largest airline in the Gulf Coast Countries (GCC), is now selling seats to Jamaica. This arrangement opens gateways from the Middle East, Asia and Africa to Jamaica and the rest of the region.

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett made the announcement today following high-level meetings between Jamaica’s tourism officials and a team from Emirates Airlines led by His Highness Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai World Trade Centre Authority and Chairman & Chief Executive, Emirates Airline & Group, at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) in Dubai.

This groundbreaking agreement is a major outcome of Jamaica’s debut participation in the Arabian Travel Market, which runs from May 9-12, 2022.

According to Minister Bartlett: “This is a major initiative for Jamaica as it is opening the Middle Eastern gateway from Asia and North Africa. It is the first time that Destination Jamaica has been entered into the ticketing system of a GCC airline and gives the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) significant leverage to negotiate direct flights to the destination.” Discussions began in October 2021 when Minister Bartlett and Director of Tourism, Donovan White made their first visit to Expo 2020 Dubai.

Both Norman Manley and Sangster International Airports are now listed in the airline system, with ticket pricing available accordingly.  Flights are offered with options including JFK, New York, Newark, Boston and Orlando.  One option goes through Malpensa, Italy, allowing access to the European market as well.  Importantly, the flights are being sold by Emirates Holidays.

Minister Bartlett’s trip to Dubai is part of a mega marketing tour to further boost growth in the island’s tourism industry, which includes stops in New York, Africa, Canada, Europe and Latin America, with breaks in between.

New York, USA; May 4, 2022: In his first address at the United Nations General Assembly today (May 4), Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett urged global tourism leaders to take decisive steps to ensure that people remain at the heart of tourism recovery globally. 

In his keynote address, during the high-level thematic debate on tourism under the theme, ‘Putting sustainable and resilient tourism at the heart of an inclusive recovery,’ Minister Bartlett said, “people must be considered and consulted. People must be included and involved. People must be at the heart of the policies, programmes and practices, because people are and will always be the foundation and heartbeat of our societies, structures, systems and sector.” 

The high-level roundtable presentations included Minister of Tourism of Spain, H.E. Ms. Maria Reyes Maroto Illera; Chairman of the Committee of Tourism Development under the Government of Tajikistan,H.E. Mr.Tojiddin Jurazoda; Minister of Tourism for Honduras, H.E. Ms. Yadira Esther Gómez; and Minister of Environment and Tourism of Botswana, H.E. Ms. Philda N. Kereng. 

Tourism recovery and resilience were central to Minister Bartlett’s presentation, and he highlighted that: “It is necessary to develop short, medium and long-term strategies to boost tourism's resilience and increase its sustainability during times of crisis and beyond.”

“The growth and stability of Small and Medium Tourism Enterprises (SMTEs) underpin the survival of the sector. In this regard, Jamaica continues to deliver critical assistance to SMTEs that constitute 80% of the tourism experiences delivered to our visitors,” he added.

Minister Bartlett also called for a full debate on resilience-building through funding for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to facilitate the even recovery of the global tourism sector.  

“The issue of supply chain disruptions in terms of goods and services and human capital have made the prospects of an equitable recovery challenging. We urge a full debate here at the UN and relevant agencies on the challenges to recovery, with a focus on resilience-building through funding for SIDS who are highly tourism dependent but weakly resourced,” the Minister expressed.

Like other countries, Jamaica was hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, the national economy declined by 10.2 per cent, and tourism ended the year with an estimated loss of a staggering US$2.3 billion. The phased re-opening of the tourism sector began in June 2020, and by the end of 2021, the island welcomed 1.6 million visitors and earned US$ 2.1 billion. Additionally, some 80% of the tourism workforce are back at work.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; April 29, 2022: Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett yesterday (April 28) joined an esteemed group of high achievers in the international travel and hospitality industry, with his induction into the prestigious Global Travel Hall of Fame.

The Global Travel Hall of Fame, formerly dubbed The British Travel and Hospitality Hall of Fame, “recognizes the highest achievers in the travel, hospitality, tourism and leisure sectors.” Inductees are also hailed as having not only “achieved phenomenal business success but have also inspired and shaped those around them.” Minister Bartlett is the first Caribbean tourism leader to receive this honour.

The elaborate induction ceremony was held at The Chesterfield Hotel in London. The British Travel and Hospitality Hall of Fame was acquired by Jacobs Media Group in 2014. However, the event was later forced to take a break during the COVID-19 pandemic and was subsequently renamed.

Minister Bartlett said he was “humbled by the recognition” which follows a stream of other worldwide industry awards bestowed upon him. “It is really a humbling experience to be recognized in this manner and to be included as a member of such as revered group, more so because it recognizes not just my own contribution to the sector, but the fact that Jamaica stands out as a prime example of what can be achieved in tourism,” expressed Minister Bartlett.

He has also given credit to the team that he leads in the Ministry of Tourism and its public bodies, describing members as “very dedicated and hardworking public sector workers who appreciate the significance of what they do to the success of tourism and its important contribution to the Jamaican economy.” Minister Bartlett also lauded tourism stakeholders across the island for their contribution and support as partners in developing the sector over the years.

Minister Bartlett’s awards include being named the Caribbean’s Leading Personality for Outstanding Services to Tourism at the 23rd World Travel Awards in 2016 and the Caribbean Tourism Minister of the Year at the Caribbean Travel Awards in 2017.

In 2018 the Pacific Area Travel Writers’ Association (PATWA) named Mr. Bartlett Minister of the Year for Sustainable Tourism. In 2019 he was presented with the TRAVVY Awards inaugural Chairman’s Award for Global Tourism Innovation for the development of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC). He also received the prestigious Gusi Peace prize from the Gusi Foundation in 2020.

Earlier this month Minister Bartlett was also named among 50 global icons of travel and tourism “who have innovated and created new benchmarks in the travel, aviation, tourism, hospitality and allied sectors.”

Under his leadership, Jamaica has seen its all-important tourism industry bouncing back from the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic and on its way to equaling pre-pandemic record figures for arrivals and earnings.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; April 22, 2022: Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett and a high-level team are scheduled to arrive in London tomorrow (Saturday), which marks the start of a mega marketing tour to further boost growth in the island’s tourism industry.

Supported by Director of Tourism, Donovan White and other representatives, the team will be locked in a series of back-to-back engagements in London over the next six days. “The UK is our second largest source market for stop over visitors and this visit is to initiate discussions aimed at boosting arrivals and earnings,” said Minister Bartlett.

The London blitz includes media exposure through interviews with several major media outlets and travel writers, as well as meetings with key stakeholders such as Virgin Atlantic. Mr. Bartlett will also address top UK tour operators who sell Jamaica at a special recognition dinner.

Other highlights of Mr. Bartlett’s London trip include his induction into the Global Travel Hall of Fame at a grand gala next Thursday. Inductees who are selected from among outstanding business leaders, are recognized for having created a lasting legacy in the travel, tourism, leisure and hospitality sectors.

Earlier in the week Mr. Bartlett will join his colleague Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon Olivia “Babsy” Grange at two events to promote Jamaica 60 independence activities among the Diaspora.

Mr. Bartlett stated: “Celebrating 60 years of independence is significant, not just in terms of years, but Jamaica’s achievements. Many members of the Diaspora either would have left here at a young age or were born in the UK and have not had the opportunity of seeing the strides being made in their homeland, and our message to them is to come see and enjoy the beauty, the culture, the music and cuisine in the land of Marcus Garvey, Bob Marley and all the great men and women who have contributed and are still doing so, to the development of our island home.”

The UK launch of the book, “Tourism Resilience and Recovery for Global Sustainability and Development: Navigating COVID-19 and the Future”, edited by Minister Bartlett and Executive Director of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC), Professor Lloyd Waller will also take place on Thursday.

The marketing tour will then move on to New York, Africa, Canada, Europe and Latin America, with breaks in between.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; April 21, 2022: Elated by the rate at which Jamaica’s tourism industry is recovering from the devastating COVID-19 fallout, Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett is all set to embark on a global marketing tour to boost visitor arrivals.

Arrival figures indicate that “this winter, closing at the end of April, is going to see in excess of a 70 per cent recovery in tourism in Jamaica,” Minister Bartlett disclosed at yesterday’s (April 20) ground-breaking for RIU’s seventh hotel in Jamaica – the 753-room RIU Aquarelle. Inclusive of cruise passengers, Jamaica is looking at just under one million visitors and earnings of about US$1.5 billion.

Additionally, “bookings for summer are now looking better than pre-COVID in 2019 and we’re just hitting the market,” said Mr. Bartlett as a prelude to disclosing that this Friday (April 22) he leaves the island with a team “to start a mega marketing campaign across the world.”

The first stop is in the United Kingdom this weekend when he will join Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange in promoting activities to mark Jamaica’s 60th anniversary of independence.

The tourism team will move on to New York to stimulate travel from the US North-eastern Seaboard, inclusive of New Jersey, Connecticut, extending to Boston. “And then we leave from there and we hit the new market of the Middle East. We’re meeting with all the mega airlines, including Emirates, Etihad, Qatar, S.A.L. and we’re going over to Riyadh as well to meet with King Khalid, their big aviation company, which wants to open 225 new gateways and we want Jamaica to be in that,” said Minister Bartlett.

The itinerary also includes a meeting with representatives of Royal Jordanian Airlines, as a plan is rolled out to establish Jamaica as the hub for the Middle Eastern market for the Caribbean and the Americas.

With breaks in between, the marketing tour will also go on to Africa, Canada, Europe and Latin America.

At the end of the global marketing blitz in October, Minister Bartlett expects to have agreements signed for an additional 8,000 new hotel rooms in Jamaica.

Delivering the keynote address at the ground-breaking ceremony, Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness lauded RIU Hotels for investing in seven hotels in Jamaica in 21 years, describing it as a remarkable achievement.

He invited the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Carmen Riu to explore building an eighth hotel on the south-eastern coast, which Jamaica is developing for a different kind of tourism experience.

“Tourism and hospitality have become very important to us here in Jamaica which, thanks to investments like (that of) the Riu family, our tourism product has become a sought-after destination in the Caribbean region,” expressed Mr. Holness. He said over the years the tourism industry had taken on increased significance “because the truth is that the government has focused on the industry, giving leadership and direction and emphasis to the industry.”

Señora Riu said the company currently has 3,500 rooms in Jamaica and employs 2,200 workers. During the COVID-19 pandemic induced shutdown, the RIU Montego Bay and RIU Ocho Rios hotels were refurbished, and all their hotels in Jamaica have now been updated with new services being offered.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; April 20, 2022: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has expressed profound sadness at the passing of the General Manager of Bath Fountain Hotel, Mr. Desmond Blair who had headed the St. Thomas attraction since 2001.  Bath Fountain is one of the tourism ministry’s eight public bodies.

“I am deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Mr. Blair. On behalf of the entire tourism fraternity, I would like to offer my condolences to his family.  He was a thorough and astute manager who used best practices that led to great improvements at Bath Fountain,” said Minister Bartlett.

“He was passionate about seeing improvements to the health and wellness facility that would cement its status as a world-renowned mineral bath and was looking forward to impending developments that would do so.  I am saddened that Mr. Blair will not see these changes come to fruition but very grateful for his many years of dedicated service to the local tourism industry. May his soul rest in peace,” the tourism minister added.

The St. Ann native was a stalwart in the hospitality industry, having honed his skills over the decades in management positions at various Montego Bay and St. Ann properties, including Quality Inn, Montego Bay Club Resort, the Gloucestershire Hotel, Americana Hotel and Runaway Bay Hotel.  From 1975-1981, he was the Hotel Inspector at another of the Ministry’s public bodies, the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo).

In 1972, Mr. Blair was awarded a scholarship by the Federal Republic of Germany to pursue studies in hotel and tourism management at the Carl Duisberg Hotel & Tourism Institute in Munich, Germany.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; April 13, 2022: Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has been recognized among 50 global icons of travel and tourism “who have innovated and created new benchmarks in the travel, aviation, tourism, hospitality and allied sectors.”

This latest accolade for Minister Bartlett is recorded in a book written by veteran journalist and Secretary General of the powerful Pacific Area Travel Writers Association (PATWA), Sagar Ahluwalia.

In 2018 PATWA awarded Mr. Bartlett Minister of the Year for Sustainable Tourism, adding to the numerous awards conferred on him over 40 years of public service. In 2017 he was accorded Caribbean Tourism Minister of the Year at the Caribbean Travel Awards.

In global icons of travel and tourism, Mr. Bartlett is recognized as having positioned tourism “as a catalyst for economic growth and the transformation of communities” and establishing the five networks (Gastronomy; Shopping, Attractions and Transportation; Health and Wellness; Sports and Entertainment; and Knowledge) to fuel growth.

Mr. Bartlett has also initiated the Tourism Linkages Network (TLN) within the Ministry to strengthen sustainable linkages between tourism and other sectors of the economy. The TLN is a division of the Tourism Enhancement Fund and is governed by a Council comprised of public and private sector leaders.

“The region has also benefited from the minister’s innovative thinking, as he views other Caribbean and Latin American destinations not as Jamaica’s competitors but as partners that can use their combined tourism offerings to attract more visitors to experience multi-destination tourism,” states the citation which identifies him as “an ardent proponent of public private partnerships (PPPS), which he considers essential to the sustainable development of the tourism industry.”

Mr. Bartlett was first appointed Minister of Tourism in 2007, serving until December 2011.  Subsequently, as a member of the Shadow Cabinet, he travelled the world forging alliances with strategic partners for global initiatives which he has been implementing since returning to the helm of the Ministry of Tourism in 2016.

Hailed as one of the world’s leading Tourism Ministers, Mr. Bartlett has represented Jamaica regionally and internationally, serving as Chairman of the Board of Affiliate Members of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), and Vice Chairman of the UNWTO Executive Council, as well as Vice Chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO).

He received the International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT) Champions in Challenge Award at the International Travel Crisis Management Summit (ITCMS) in London in November 2018 and served as Chair of the Regional Commission for the Americas (CAM). Minister Bartlett was recently elected by acclamation as the new Chairman of the Organization of American States (OAS) Inter-American Committee on Tourism (CITUR).

Mr. Bartlett is also founder and Co-Chair with former Secretary General of the UNWTO, Taleb Rifai, of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC) at the University of the West Indies, Mona, which has been gaining worldwide acceptance with satellite centres being established in areas such as Canada, Kenya, Jordan, Bulgaria and London. In 2019 he was officially presented with the TRAVVY Awards inaugural Chairman’s Award for Global Tourism Innovation.