KINGSTON, Jamaica; September 26, 2018: Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett has officially launched the Hospitality and Tourism Management Programme (HTMP). The HTMP is the first of its kind certification programme for high schools developed by the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI) and will allow students to gain entry-level qualification in tourism.

Speaking at the handover of HTMP books to students and teachers, at the official launch at Spot Valley High on Monday (September 24), Minister Bartlett explained that “The objective of providing skills training and enabling certification of competence is one of the basic and fundamental development that must happen in ensuring the building of the human capital within our country and specifically tourism. This has become even more necessary as the sector experiences exponential growth,

Fifty years ago, 400 thousand people visited Jamaica and spent USD87million, last year, 4.3million people visited the island and spent USD3Billion. In the same period, fifty years ago, we employed 9,000 people and this year up to August we employed 120,000 people directly.”

The Ministry of Tourism provided $100 million to launch the HTMP and the initiative is being done in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information. The programme will be delivered in conjunction with colleges participating in the Centre of Occupational Studies (COS) Programme, which facilitates technical training and certification at the college level.

Minister Bartlett added, “Tourism is now a profession which requires training. The business of the industry is always about giving higher service and higher value to the visitor so in order to do that we have to equip you with higher levels of skills to have more knowledge, more information and be able to apply the information in a more creative and valuable way,

We are doing this in two folds, training our high school students through this HTMP and also building the professional cadre in the industry and by providing a pathway to professionalism for those who are currently working in the industry through the Jamaica Centre for Tourism Innovation.”

The Jamaica Centre for Tourism Innovation (JCTI) was born out of Vision 2030’s Tourism Sector Development Plan, which calls for the development of a training institution focused on developing a management cadre with the skills, knowledge and motivation required by tourism entities. It will facilitate the certification and licensure of Jamaicans working in tourism as well as facilitate innovation in tourism. In April this year, there were over 150 graduates who acquired Associate Degrees in Customer Service, and gained AHLEI Certification, NVQJ Certification, and Customer Service Industry Association recognition.

“What we are doing is part of our commitment to the overall human capital development in the tourism industry so we can redefine the labour market arrangements so tourism workers can demand more pay and work anywhere in the world,

We are also going to make it a requirement that all hotels and key providers of tourism services not only recognize the graduates and their qualification but enable access to all of them within at least the first five years so that we can guarantee no second guessing of the quality and the integrity of the experience that we are marketing globally,” Minister Bartlett concluded.

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica; September 26, 2018:  Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett departed the island yesterday to attend the Jamaica Travel Market (JTM) in London. This trip forms part of the Ministry’s new strategy to aggressively target new and traditional markets, to attain double-digit growth and promote Jamaica as the ideal winter tourism destination.

The Minister and his delegation will also take the opportunity to meet with top tour operators in the UK to share exciting resort developments and new offerings.

The JTM is being organised by the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) for the third time, to showcase Jamaica as a premiere destination. It provides the ideal B2B platform for British tour operators and agents, primarily, to meet with Jamaican suppliers and partners directly.

“This important JTB event continues to grow from strength to strength.  It is so important that we regularly come together to strategically identify what the consumer passion points are and what drives people to Jamaica so that we can deliver these things to them,” said Minister Bartlett.

The JTM will offer a chance for buyers, planners, suppliers and agents to network and participate in workshops, with the aim of gaining new business. The JTB will also host an event focusing on Jamaica’s most unique, top-end hotels and resorts. 

The meetings with key international stakeholders across the world, has already shown some positive results. The Minister shared that so far that there will be 1.3 million seats for this winter, which is the largest number of seats the country has ever had.

A breakdown of the seats show that there will be 870,000 seats from America, an increase of 38,000 over last year; 370,000 out of Canada, an increase of 43,000 over the corresponding period last year; 25,000 seats out of Latin America, which is 5,000 more than the previous year; and 10,000 from the Caribbean.

Minister Bartlett will be accompanied by Mr. Donovan White, Director of Tourism, and will return to the island on September 30, 2018.  A full report of the tour will be presented in November 2018.

TOKYO, Japan; September 25, 2018: Honourable Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism, along with His Excellency Ricardo Allicock, Jamaica’s Ambassador to Japan, met recently, with Mr. Hiromi Tagawa, President of the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) and Chairman of the Board of the JTB Corp., to continue discussions on Japan’s partnership with Jamaica in the establishment of a Global Centre for Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management, which is to be housed at the University of the West Indies, Mona.

This, along with his encounter with the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) of Japan, His Excellency Hiroshige Sekō, as well as senior level executives of the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), served to further promote the government’s agenda towards enhancing tourism relations between Jamaica and Japan.

In keeping with the foregoing, talks were held on possible airlift options and packages that would see greater interest in travel to Jamaica and the wider Caribbean region. The Minister noted recent trends in the Japanese millennial market, as an important feature of Japan’s increasing outbound travel and the opportunities for closer engagement between the travel agencies of both countries.

Minister Bartlett acknowledged the significant efforts of the Japanese government, travel agencies and other private stakeholders in staging a successful 2018 Tourism Expo, given the level of international support received and partnerships forged - including Japan’s partnership in the Global Centre for Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management in Jamaica.

The Minister noted that Jamaica embraced Japan’s pre-eminence in the field of Tourism Resilience and was honoured to have their contribution at the level of the Board of Governors in the Global Resilience Centre.

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica; September 24, 2018:  Tourism Minister, Hon Edmund Bartlett says that 2017 has been the most significant year to date in the island’s tourism history – shattering records in arrivals, earnings and investments.

Speaking to stakeholders at the opening of the Jamaica Product Exchange (JAPEX) yesterday, at the Montego Bay Convention Centre, the Minister shared that “in a single year, we increased arrivals by 500,000. We increased our earnings by US$500 million – a record for any English-speaking Caribbean country in this area. We were able to do that because of you our partners who have helped to establish the known fact that Jamaica is the best destination anywhere in this side of God’s beautiful earth.”

He further noted that his Ministry has already put measures in place to build on this success by strengthening relations with airlift partners, major cruise-lines and investors.

Following a recent tour of major markets such as  Latin America, Canada, USA, Europe and Japan, the Minister says that the outcome of these deliberations will lead Jamaica to exceed the 5% projected for the third consecutive year.

“We have negotiated thousands of additional seats for the 2018-2019 Winter season that we think will give further momentum to the market, including: 38,000 more seats out of the USA; 42,400 more seats out of Canada – a record; 12,000 more seats from Continental Europe; and 7,455 more seats out of the UK and Northern Europe,” said the Minister.

The Minister also announced that commencing this October, several new flights will be making their landing at the Sangster International Airport directly out of Eastern Europe, including Pegas Fly and Norwind.  

Canada's newest low-cost carrier, Swoop, a subsidiary of Westjet, will also commence twice-weekly non-stop flights between the city of Hamilton in Ontario and Montego Bay, starting December 16. While Sunwing will start once-weekly non-stop flights between the city of Sudbury in Ontario, Canada, and Montego Bay, starting this December and ending in April next year.

“We are also going to be increasing connectivity with France. In fact, we are going to France very soon to tie up an arrangement to ensure that there will be air connectivity from Paris into Montego Bay, Jamaica.

“Additionally, on the 26th of October the first flight from Russia with love, will come back to Montego Bay – a Dreamliner with 414 passengers. They told me they had to increase the number of rooms in a certain Negril hotel because the flight was selling so well,” said the Minister.

He noted that the high-performance of the industry was recognised by the illustrious World Travel Awards, which took place on Saturday September 22, where Jamaica received a large number of accolades.

“Jamaica had the greatest showering of awards that the island has seen in decades at the world travel awards…We got almost every award... Partners all I must say to you that sometimes in my quieter moments, I think that we are perhaps the most awarded destination the Caribbean,” he said.

During the prestigious ceremony, Jamaica was awarded the Caribbean's Leading Destination, Caribbean's Leading Cruise Destination, Caribbean's Leading Cruise Port, and the Caribbean's Leading Home Port.

Other accolades included the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) being named Caribbean's Leading Tourist Board, the Sangster International Airport being named the Caribbean’s Leading Airport, as well as the Montego Bay Convention Centre getting the Caribbean's Leading Meeting and Conference Centre award.

JAPEX is the premier trade event for the travel industry locally and is a collaborative initiative between the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) and the JTB. Staged annually, the three-day trade show provides the ideal forum for leading suppliers in Jamaica’s tourism industry to negotiate, network, and meet with tour operators, travel wholesalers and other tourism partners from across the globe.

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

Minister Bartlett acknowledged the significant efforts made by Japan in promoting the country’s ever-growing Tourism product both regionally and globally, as well as reaffirmed Jamaica’s support during the recent series of natural disasters that have affected the island state.

Given the common geological vulnerabilities of Jamaica and Japan, the Minister used the opportunity to share Jamaica’s vision for the establishment of a Global Centre for Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management in Jamaica, with the former President of the JNTO, Dr. Matsuyama, during whose Presidency this important initiative received support.

The establishment of the Centre also featured as an important outcome of the recently concluded United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) in November of last year, in its outcome document entitled the Montego Bay Declaration.

The purpose of the Centre, which willbe housed at The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus (UWI), Kingston, will be to assess, plan-for, forecast, mitigate, and manage risks related to tourism resilience and crisis management, through the following objectives: (i) Research and Development, (ii) Advocacy and Communication, (iii) Programme/Project Design and Management, and (iv) Training and Capacity Building.

Given the shared recognition of the importance of the Centre, the Minister highlighted the mutually beneficial opportunities for partnership with Japan in its establishment, which was equally acknowledged by Dr. Matsuyama, who in accepting the membership to the Board of Governors, noted that the Centre would be an important step towards increased resilience in Global Tourism Resilience.

Japan’s significance with regard to its partnership with the Centre resides in its leadership in global resilience building as reflected in its capacities to recover, quicker and better, from natural and man-made disasters as well as the many disruptions it has faced over the years.

The Minister will meet, tomorrow, Saturday 22^nd September, with Mr. Hiromi Tagawa, Chairman of the Board of the JTB Corporation, to continue discussions on the establishment of the Global Centre for Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management in Jamaica.

The Minister is joined in Tokyo by Director of Tourism, Donovan White and his Executive Assistant Anna-Kay Newell. They are expected to return to the island on Sunday September 23, 2018.

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

The trip is being organized as part of the Ministry of Tourism’s efforts to re-engage the Japanese market, on a more sustained basis and grow visitor traffic to Jamaica.

“Two decades ago, Jamaica received upwards of 20,000 Japanese visitors per annum but that has since declined to roughly 2,000 per annum, due in part to a long economic slowdown in Japan and other factors.

Outbound connections that Jamaica has with Delta, through Naruto is significant. Delta has a number of rotations through Atlanta and they fly directly into Tokyo. That connection will help to re-engage this market,” said the Minister.

The Minister further noted that “with the world’s fourth largest economy offering up 17 million overseas travelers each every year, we want to take the opportunity to promote Jamaica as a premier vacation option for the Japanese traveler.”

Tourism Expo Japan is a premier event for travel brands serious about capturing a share of the lucrative Japanese outbound market. It is one of the largest travel events in the world and provides opportunities for travel professionals from over 130 countries to exchange travel information and conduct effective business meetings, while inspiring consumers through the power of travel.

The Japan Travel and Tourism Association (JTTA), Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) and the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) are organizing the event, under the theme, “Managing Sustainable Tourism for Community Development.”

It will feature presentations by industry leaders such as Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization and Gloria Guevara Manzo, President and CEO, World Travel & Tourism Council.

During his visit, the Minister will also engage in a series meetings with Japanese tourism stakeholders such as Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) and members of the Japanese Government.

The Minister will be joined in Tokyo by his Executive Assistant Anna-Kay Newell. They are expected to return to the island on Sunday September 23, 2018.

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

The weeklong celebration will be observed from September 23 -30, under the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) theme for World Tourism Day on September 27- “Tourism and the Digital Transformation”.

It promises to be an engaging week, with a series of activities highlighting the work the Ministry and its agencies are doing, to better utilize technology to improve entrepreneurship for Small and Medium Tourism Enterprises; create greater inclusion in the industry; improve resource management and data collection; and attract more visitors to the island.

“The Government of Jamaica, and by extension the Ministry of Tourism, recognises the value of technology and the potential positive impact it can have on revolutionising the lives of every Jamaican.  Rather than fearing the change, we have opted to use the way our modern-traveller depends heavily on technology, as an opportunity to engage them and reach a larger segment of the travel market. 

“It is for this reason, we have invested heavily in technology and are using information and communications technology to create a more seamless, safe and most importantly, sustainable tourism sector,” said Minister of Tourism Hon. Edmund Bartlett.  

According to the UNWTO, from 2016 to 2025, digitalization in aviation, travel and tourism is expected to: create up to US$ 305 billion of value for the sector through increased profitability; and migrate US$ 100 billion of value from traditional players to new competitors. Their studies also predict that it will generate benefits valued at US$ 700 billion for customers and wider society through a reduced environmental footprint, improved safety and security, and cost and time savings.

“My Ministry has been working on a number of initiatives, which utilise innovative technology to improve visitor experience and to connect local entrepreneurs with buyers in the hotels so that they have greater potential to increase their earnings. I am proud of the strides we have made as an industry thus far in joining the world in this metamorphosis that is taking place,” said the Minister.  

The slate of activities for Tourism Awareness Week will include a: public awareness campaign in print and digital media; social media competition; Tourism Action Club forum; and the annual Tourism Awareness Week Church Service, which will be held in Montego Bay on September 23.

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

Speaking at JET’s flagship site at the Palisadoes Go-Kart Track on September 15, TEF’s Executive Director Dr. Carey Wallace said, “Tourism relies on our coasts being clean and beautiful.  Therefore, we believe this programme is good value for money. We put $8 million into the International Coastal Cleanup Day. After that, we put another $2 million for our Ministry and its agencies to participate. We have been sponsoring for the past 10 years, and have spent approximately $50 million during that period.”

International Coastal Cleanup Day is coordinated globally by the Ocean Conservancy (USA) and locally by JET. TEF has been a major sponsor of the island wide coastal cleanup initiative since 2008. It attracts millions of volunteers in more than 100 countries who clean up beaches and waterways to raise awareness about marine pollution.

Last year, Jamaica had 9,675 volunteers at over 147 sites, which was the 12th largest ICC event in the world. This was also the largest ICC day turnout in the English-speaking Caribbean.

“As far as our participation in this event from a global perspective, we are doing extremely well.  It is very encouraging and heartwarming to see that as Jamaicans, we not only spend the time and energy to clean up our coastlines but we also demonstrate to the world that we are environmentally responsible. Last year it was 93 miles of coast that was cleaned up by the programme, “said Dr. Wallace. 

The clean-up activities took place days before today’s announcement by the Government of Jamaica to implement a ban on single use plastic bags, plastic straws and Styrofoam effective January 1, 2019.

The JET CEO, Suzanne Stanley, welcomed this decision and shared that she is excited about the future outcome.

“We are very excited about the announcement for single use plastic. We are looking forward to those strategies being implemented by the government, which on the legislative side, can address some of the problems. But we as Jamaicans also have a responsibility to dispose of our garbage properly,” said Stanley.  

She went on to share that, “It is very important that we raise awareness amongst our communities, about proper disposal of waste. Nuh Dutty Up Jamaica has been doing this for the past few years and we are really encouraged by the support that we’ve confirmed from the Government of Jamaica [TEF] and the private sector, via Wisynco Group, to continue with the programme for another 3 years.” 

The Ministry of Tourism’s clean-up activities took place at 15 beaches across the island by 487 volunteers from Destination Assurance Councils, Tourism Action Clubs, as well as members of staff.

International Coastal Cleanup is a fraction of the Ministry of Tourism’s partnership with JET through the Tourism Enhancement Fund, to protect the environment. In 2014, the Ministry expanded its commitment with a Clean Coasts Project. To date, TEF has given $146 million, including $25 million in 2018 in funding. The project includes environmental education for adults and children along with practical strategies for tackling poor solid waste management and marine debris in Jamaica.

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

The accolade was showered on the travel agents on Saturday night as the Tourism Minister delivered the keynote address at the Sandals 16^th Annual USA Travel Agent Golf Tournament Awards Dinner at Sandals Ochi Beach Resort. He told the 150 team members from North America that their being here provided “a wonderful opportunity for us to show off who our true partners are and who are the great producers for Jamaica.”

Minister Bartlett said Jamaica was “very serious” about honouring travel agents and tour operators “because we are perhaps one of the few countries in the Caribbean that actually gives national honours to our partners both in the distributive trade as well as in other areas of tourism relationships.”

He mentioned that travel agent Edith Baxter from the Edith Baxter Group was awarded the Order of Distinction “in recognition of the work that she has done for tourism in Canada on our behalf.” In October this year, two Americans will be honoured accordingly. Bill DiMaggio of Mark Travel who has brought visitors to Jamaica for 50 years is one and the other John Mullen, now retired from Apple Vacations.

Underscoring that the travel agents’ support and marketing of Jamaica has paid off, Minister Bartlett noted that 50 years ago 400,000 people visited Jamaica as tourists and spent US$87 million compared to 4.3 million visitors last year spending US$3 billion. Additionally, the tourist industry employed 119,000 Jamaicans last year against 9,000 50 years ago. “So you see that because of you, today over 53 percent of the foreign exchange generated by the country is directly from tourism,” he told them.

The Tourism Minister said according to STATIN and the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), tourism was the only industry that had grown as a percentage of GDP over the last ten years, moving significantly from 7.1 percent in 2007 to 8.4 percent in 2017. “The hardcore fact that these numbers are indicating is the economic value and impact of tourism today,” he said.

Minister Bartlett gave an assurance that Jamaica had grown over the years not just as a centre where people come to enjoy sand, sea and sun “but we have emerged to becoming a safe, secure and seamless destination.”

Minister Bartlett also commended the Sandals for its singular role in creating the world’s top hotel brand in Jamaica and the success of its travel agents golf tournament. He mentioned that as part of the Sports and Entertainment Network in the Tourism Linkages Network, a deliberate effort was being made to develop sports tourism and in that regard, discussions were held with a firm in Canada recently to bring golfers to Jamaica.

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

Speaking yesterday at the closing session of the inaugural Tourism Resilience Summit of the Americas, the Minister explained that, “tourism is not a business, not a sector, but it is a culture. In order for us to build a culture of tourism, it must become a way of life for the Caribbean. This is how we are going to grow, as it is the essence of our economic being and any denial of that puts us in fantasy land.” 

“I want us to leave from this summit today fully empowered, not just with the knowledge, but also with the certainty that from this day, we are going to be advancing our culture through tourism,” he continued.

Recently released provisional data from the Jamaica Tourist Board outlines that gross foreign exchange earnings from the beginning of the year to July, increased by 6.3 per cent with approximately US$2 billion, compared to the same period last year.

The Minister believes that Jamaicans can further strengthen this strong performance by further embracing the industry as a major part of their lives and as an opportunity for generating a steady income.

He went on to share that “the facts are there to show, that tourism has been for more than 50 years, a mainstay of this Caribbean country. It has overtaken all other industries, no question about it – by way of: employment, foreign exchange generation, contribution of GDP and transformational activities of many of the resort areas.” 

The summit was a precursor to the official 2019 launch of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre which was one of the major outcomes of last November’s UNWTO Global Conference on Sustainable Tourism in Montego Bay. Its mission is to carry out policy-relevant research and analysis on destination preparedness, management and recovery from disruptions or crises that impact tourism and threaten economies and livelihoods globally.

During his closing remarks, the Minister also announced that former Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization, Dr Taleb Rifai would act as the Chairman Pro Tem  of the the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre, to help guide the development of the Centre until it is launched in January.

Minister Bartlett noted that a blueprint is going to be developed in the upcoming months, using data garnered from the discussions at the Summit. This document will help to guide the world in discussing and treating with disruptions of the nature and type that we have indicate.

Under the theme of “Tourism Resilience through Global Synergies”, the summit forms part of the Ministry of Tourism’s efforts to build resilience in a world that is hyper-connected and, as such, is more susceptible to events that disrupt tourism, such as climate change, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism and cybercrime and natural disasters.

Headline speakers included Professor Lee Miles, Disaster Management Centre, Bournemouth University, UK; Professor Aldrie Henry-Lee, Director of the Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Studies (SALISES) and Dr Barbara Carby, Director of Disaster Risk Reduction Centre at the University of the West Indies.