NEGRIL, Westmoreland, Thursday, December 14, 2017: The Ministry of Tourism’s commitment to sustainable destination management has resulted in 16 primary and high schools in Hanover and Westmoreland collecting 360,000 plastic bottles in less than six months in their communities.

The bottles, weighing 14,686 pounds, were collected as part of the Negril Recycling Competition sponsored by the Ministry of Tourism in partnership with the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo), Recycling Partners of Jamaica (RPJ) and the Negril Area Environmental Protection Trust (NEPT).

Mount Airy Primary and Infant School emerged overall winner while also taking the top prize in the primary school category, having collected 30,000 bottles. As a reward, the school received a projector, a 50-inch flat screen television, an all-in-one printer, scanner and copier, and a plaque presented by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, Mrs. Jennifer Griffith.  Second place among primary schools was Negril All Age while Revival All-Age took third spot.

Among the high school participants in the competition, Godfrey Stewart High took first place with a collection of 28,125 plastic bottles and was rewarded with three desktop computers and an all-in-one printer, scanner and copier. Rhodes Hall High School collected 20,425 bottles to claim second place.

Speaking at the competition’s awards ceremony at Royalton Negril last week, Executive Director of TPDCo, Dr. Andrew Spencer, noted that the competition had brought out the students drive and passion in a positive way and he underscored the importance of environmental stewardship and what could be done to contribute positively to tourism as the economy’s mainstay.

He reminded from Nature Conservancy 2016 that, “Environmental stewardship is the responsible use and conservation of the earth’s natural resources through practices that help preserve our world.”

Dr Spencer told the gathering of students, “We must continue to do the work despite the challenges, if we are to leave a legacy for the next generation. We must harness the collective will and energies of young and old to make Jamaica the place to live, work, do business and raise families as is our Vision 2030 goal.

He also appealed for more agents of change in society sharing their enthusiasm for environmental stewardship. The participants were implored “not to treat this activity as just a competition in a moment of time but as a cultural shift which will see you advocating and acting in a most responsible way to protect our environment.”   

The recycling initiative in resort areas is one of the activities implemented by the Ministry of Tourism and its agencies to mark 2017 being declared the Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

KINGTON, Jamaica; December 14, 2017:  Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett says his Ministry is committed to playing a key role in the transformation of the agricultural sector to better meet the needs of the hospitality sector. This will be bolstered by a series of initiatives scheduled to be launched by the Tourism Linkages Network in 2018.

“We will be  introducing an Entrepreneurial Training and Coaching Programme to help farmers to better understand the tourism industry, allowing them to tailor their production, distribution and logistics to match the requirements of businesses in the sector. This is very important because a lot of the farmers don’t understand how to trade with tourism partners,” said the Minister.

He went on to share that he would be visiting leading tourism stakeholders in Europe in the first quarter of 2018, with Minister of Industry, Commerce Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Karl Samuda and a team of high-level tourism officials.

While there, he hopes to discuss critical issues of linkages and the best methods that can be employed to enable local farmers and manufacturers to become more integrated in the production and consumption patterns within tourism.

“I am also going to be having conversations with investors in the sector with regards to this critical imperative of changing the production and consumption patterns of tourism – in favour of more locally sourced goods and services,” he said.

Minister Bartlett made the announcement at the launch of the Tourism Agri-Linkages Exchange (ALEX) platform, at the Montego Bay Convention Centre on December 13, 2017.

ALEX, which is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Tourism and the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), is an online platform which will bring hoteliers in direct contact with the farmers and, in turn, reduce leakages and retain more of the economic benefits of tourism in Jamaica.

“We are excited about making ALEX the first step in this new technological advance that is going to bring our suppliers and our buyers together so that we can enhance the capacity of Jamaica to produce the things that the visitor wants. It now gives our farmers, an opportunity to talk to your market and for your market to talk back to you. It is going to reduce, in the end, the need for middle men,” explained the Minister.

The Minister also used the opportunity to announce that his Ministry will also be facilitating the development of berry farming in Jamaica to support the needs of the hoteliers for fresh high quality berries to meet the needs of their guests. 

In addition, he shared that an updated Tourism Demand Study, which will provide the empirical data to allow for the effective planning and identification of goods and services in the tourism sector, will be ready in March 2018.

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica; Wednesday, December 6, 2017: Caribbean government ministers and senior officials of investment promotion agencies have been told they must embrace regional collaboration and harmonization of policies as a valuable strategy to promoting investment in the region.

The charge came from Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett in his keynote address at the ‘Ministerial Roundtable on Investment Promotion in the Caribbean’, yesterday at the Iberostar Rose Hall Suites in Montego Bay. The event was hosted by the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) in collaboration with the Caribbean Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (CAIPA) and JAMPRO.

Minister Bartlett pointed out that the Caribbean was vulnerable and each country going it alone did not give them the economies of scale. However, with a combined population of 40 million, “if we project the region as one there is a bigger market to appeal to investors who, for instance, could set up an operational base in Jamaica and reach out to the other islands.”

Quoting from the World Investment Report 2017, Minister Bartlett pointed out “global foreign direct investment (FDI) lost momentum in 2016, showing that the road to recovery remains bumpy.” FDI inflows decreased by 2 percent to US$1.75 trillion “amid weak and significant policy risks.”

The report went on to state, “the downward trend in FDI flows to Latin America and the Caribbean accelerated, with inflows falling 14 percent to US$142 billion, owing to continued economic recession, weak commodity prices and pressures on exports.”

FDI is seen as the largest and most constant source of finance for Caribbean economies with positive spill over effects in such areas as technology transfer, job creation and insertion into the global value chain as “essential not just to trade arrangements that we put together but indeed, as we look for investment within the region as well.”    

Underscoring the importance of deliberations by the association, Minister Bartlett said with investors often looking at the region before making a decision in which country to invest, “Making the Caribbean brand known must become a priority for us if any of us is to benefit from investments. We must proactively engage with each other and face this challenge of low foreign investment together as we face other challenges that confront us in the face of our new realities.”

Among issues that he said must be addressed, were climate change, regional security, regulation of the foreign service sector, unemployment in general and poverty as an offshoot “as we seek to build out a strategy to drive more investment in our region.” Adding investment promotion and policy dialogue was also necessary, he said as survival of small economies depended on that.

Of major concern to many, said Minister Bartlett, was how to make Caribbean integration work with countries struggling to achieve economies of scale because of their size and the transportation challenge, which he said, was at the core of efforts to do collaborative activities.

“And how do we get over the notion of political integration which is fraught with all kind of difficulties and causes all sort of things, insularity and feeling of nationalism, to creep in? How do we make that transition to what we call a more collaborative approach?” he questioned, adding, “How do we get to avoid political logic and to focus on economic logic?”

Minister Bartlett suggested that understanding tourism presented a huge pathway to understanding the value of regionalism, regional cooperation and collaboration. “Perhaps that’s where the economic logic needs to come from and a tourism diplomacy might very well be the vehicle to make this transition,” he said.

He directed the ministers and their senior investment officials’ minds to consider how to come together and work together to create the power of a Caribbean that was very visible to a world that viewed all the islands as one geographic area called the Caribbean. 

KINGSTON Jamaica; December 19, 2017:  Minister of Tourism Hon. Edmund Bartlett and the outgoing Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Dr. Taleb Rifai today (December 19, 2017) signed the Montego Bay Declaration which will chart the course forward for a sustainable tourism world agenda.

Following the signing, which took place during the UNWTO’s Closing Ceremony for the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017, in Geneva, Switzerland; Minister Bartlett stated that, “the Montego Bay Declaration cements our legacy in the industry’s history books forever.”

The Declaration is one of the major outcomes of the recently concluded UNWTO, Government of Jamaica, World Bank Group and Inter-American Development Bank Global Conference on Jobs and Inclusive Growth: Partnerships for Sustainable Tourism, held at the Montego bay Convention Centre from November 27-29, 2017. It has been described as a blueprint for global tourism sustainability issues that will inform the next set of global millennial goals. 

Building on the legacy of the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017, which had the objective of setting a common action plan towards 2030, the Declaration which is a 15-point action plan, also highlights two principal points which the Minister believes are pertinent to the development of Jamaica’s tourism sector.  

He noted that it outlines the need for Governments, private sector, donors and international and regional organisations to support the establish recommendation for the establishment of a Global Tourism Resilience Centre in the Caribbean.

“I am very pleased to share that the declaration not only has the support of the UNWTO but also the international community at large, who have expressed particular interest in the proposal to establish a Resilience Centre to mitigate the possible impact of disasters. We are currently in discussions with key stakeholders who I am certain will be giving their official endorsements soon,” said the Minister.

The Declaration also highlights the need for multilaterals to channel development financing to Small and Medium-Sized Tourism Enterprises (SMTEs), which drive 80 percent of global tourism and are important to the development of Jamaica’s second biggest employer and foreign exchange earner.

The aim of the closing ceremony was to bring the international community together to commit to realizing the universal 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development through tourism, at the national and global level.  Most importantly, it brought to a close, the initiatives and actions initiated this year to provide a roadmap for the global community at large to embrace sustainable practices and maximize the engagement in the global development agenda.

Minister Bartlett is scheduled return to the island on December 21, 2017.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; December 19, 2017: American low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines has announced the addition of flights to Montego Bay, Jamaica from the Baltimore-Washington International Airport in Maryland, USA. The carrier is scheduled to start service the service on March 22, 2018.

Elated by the announcement, Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett stated that, “We are seeing solid results. This is yet another indication on the heightening demand for Jamaica and augurs very well for our tourism growth strategy .Montego Bay will be the second international route for Spirit from the Baltimore-Washington International Airport. The carrier only started service to Cancun, Mexico last month.”

Currently the airline operates non-stop flights between its Fort Lauderdale, Florida hub and Montego Bay and Kingston. Spirit is an American low cost carrier headquartered in Florida and operates scheduled flights throughout the United States and in the Caribbean, Mexico, Latin America, and South America.

The additional flights comes just after major U.S. airline Southwest Airlines increased their flight itinerary to include two daily non-stop flight service between Fort Lauderdale and Montego Bay – adding another 52,000 new seats in and out of Jamaica and increasing connectivity to other US cities.  This bring to roughly 7 the number of daily flights into Montego Bay by Southwest, which also runs non-stop flights between Montego Bay and Orlando, Florida; Houston, Texas; Chicago, Illinois and Baltimore, Maryland.

Montego Bay will also see several new non-stop flights, with some started already, including Vancouver, Canada; Munich, Germany; Warsaw, Poland; Madrid, Spain and elsewhere. Discussions are ongoing on more flights from other destinations around the world.

The Minister also explained that, “Jamaica has 40,000 additional airline seats committed for winter from Canada, with Sunwing confirming that they will operate over 100,000 airline seats for the season, a historic development, including nonstop flights between Montego Bay and Vancouver, Canada’s third largest metropolitan area."  

Chief Executive Officer of MBJ Airports, the operators of Montego Bay’s Sangster International Airport, Dr Rafael Echevarne said that the facility is prepared to seamlessly handle the projected influx in passenger arrivals.

He went on to disclose that half-way through the 30-year concession MBJ Airports Ltd has had to run the airport, the board of directors approved expenditure of US$40 million to invest in further improvements in 2018 on infrastructure. This will include renovations to the ticketing area, the Immigration hall and other public areas.

This is in addition to the US$24 million now being spent improving the apron, taxiway and runway.

KINGSTON, Jamaica; December 17, 2017: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett travels to Geneva, Switzerland today (December 17, 2017) , to present the recently unveiled Montego Bay Declaration, to delegates attending the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) Closing Ceremony for the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017.

“The Declaration of Montego Bay will become incorporated in the documents and the outcomes of the International Year of Sustainability. This is the perhaps the biggest legacy that we could hope for as a small destination – that our name will be indelibly etched in the lexicon of tourism references so that children yet unborn, will know that Montego Bay existed,” said Minister Bartlett.

The 15-point Declaration was one of the major outcomes of the recently concluded UNWTO Global Conference on Sustainable Tourism held in Montego Bay from November 27 to 29. It was first presented by Minister Bartlett and Executive Director of the UNWTO, Carlos Vogeler, on November 29 at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St. James.

The Minister received the invitation to make the presentation from the UNWTO’s outgoing Secretary General Dr. Taleb Rifai, for the event which will take place on December 19, 2017.

“One of the elements I am most excited about from the Declaration is the establishment of a Global Resilience Centre – which we need here in the Caribbean, especially to build the capacity to respond to natural disruptions. Now the Caribbean, and Jamaica, will be the centre of an international resilience centre that will have the attention of the world,” he said.

The Minister also revealed that preliminary discussions have begun with representatives from the University of West Indies, Mona to establish the centre at their facilities. He also noted that 18 institutions from across the globe, have already indicted their willingness to work with Jamaica to establish the centre.

The United Nations designated 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. In the context of the universal 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the International Year has promoted the change in policies, business practices and consumer behaviour towards a more sustainable tourism sector that can contribute to all the 17 SDGs.

The aim of the closing ceremony is to bring the international community together to commit to realizing the universal 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development through tourism, at the national and global level.  Most importantly, it brings to a close, the initiatives and actions initiated this year to provide a roadmap for the global community at large, to embrace sustainable practices and maximize the engagement in the global development agenda.

Minister Bartlett is scheduled return to the island on December 21, 2017.

OCHO RIOS, Jamaica, Monday, December 11, 2017: On the eve of the country welcoming four million visitors for the first time in its history, Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett has declared 2017 to be “a dream year for Jamaica.”

“We’ve annexed all sorts of new horizons and frontiers; we’re going to make four million visitors this year and we’re going to earn in the region of US$3 billion,” he told top producing travel agents from the USA, Canada and the United Kingdom at Moon Palace Jamaica, Ocho Rios, Saturday night.  “It will be a truly historic moment for our tourism sector and I thank you for the role that you are playing in helping us to reach this important milestone and another record-breaking year in visitor arrivals," said Minister Bartlett.

The White Affair Gala recognized the top 50 travel agents who have booked visitors to Jamaica this year. Combined, they accounted for 130,000 rooms representing about US$39 million in business. They were treated over three days under the theme, “Fly Me To The Moon … Be Among The Stars.”

Minister Bartlett outlined to them a list of outstanding achievements by Jamaica and Jamaicans during 2017.  Among them, the legendary Usain Bolt retiring from an active career as the world’s greatest athlete; the staging of a high-profiled US college basketball tournament at an indoor facility here (Montego Bay Convention Centre) for the first time, giving Jamaica widespread international coverage; the hosting of the first ever global tourism conference on job creation and inclusive growth; and Jamaica’s Davina Bennett placing as second runner-up in the Miss Universe contest.

In other tourism developments, the Tourism Minister said he was pleased that Canadian market had recovered from having “slipped badly” by 17 percent, to record an 8 percent growth.  Also, “groups and conventions have taken off and we’re beginning to see something new and exciting in that area,” he said.

Meanwhile, the UK market is also showing growth and five of the top producing agents were among the awardees.

Minister Bartlett attributed Jamaica’s tourism success to strategic partnerships, adding, “Our year on year dynamic growth in arrivals is in large part due to the Jamaica Tourist Board’s excellent marketing performance and the diligent efforts of our travel partners, prime among them are you our travel agents.”

Underscoring “the invaluable role” many of them have played in sustaining Jamaica’s tourism industry, Minister Bartlett referenced the importance of technology in connecting people and enhancing experiences but stressed that tourism was all about the human touch and artificial intelligence would never replace the warmth of human intelligence.

Informing the travel agents and partners that “we need you,” Minister Bartlett assured them, “You are always going to be here, you are always going to be needed and you are always going to be at the centre of the whole tourism development irrespective of what happens.”

Lindsey Johnson of Tropics Travel Agency LLC emerged in first place this year among the top 50 leading booking agents. Joining her in the top ten were Donna Daniels (Fox Travel American Express), Michelle Wiseman (Toms Tours), Anthony Tucker (All Inclusive Outlet), Sharon Little (Wedding and Honeymoon Travel Group), Darlene Rhoden (The Travel Net Inc.), Marlene Johnson (MJ Travel Group), David Parker (All The way Travel), Kimberly Felix (Honeymoons Inc.), Mark Henngan (Dreamer’s Travel) and William “Bill” Munroe (Barrhead Travel).

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica; November 30, 2017: Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett yesterday (November 29, 2017) announced Canadian university, Ryerson, as the first-ever winner of the Jamaica Community Tourism Innovation Challenge Award.

He revealed the winners at a special awards ceremony, on the final day of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Government of Jamaica World Bank Group, Inter-American Development Bank Global Conference on Jobs and Inclusive Growth: Partnerships for Sustainable Tourism, which took place at the Montego Bay Convention Centre.

“What is great about this challenge is that it is a win-win for all involved, as Jamaica benefits from this increased exposure of our island among an age group that is adventurous and open to new experiences, while raising awareness among students of issues surrounding sustainable tourism for development,” said Minister Bartlett.

The competition was organised as one of the Ministry of Tourism’s activities to celebrate the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development and was a partnership with the George Washington University International Institute of Tourism Studies.

It was open to university students from across the globe, and required them to develop a marketing campaign strategy that would encourage other students to visit Jamaica and experience the country’s community-based tourism attractions.

“The student traveller represents fully one-fifth of all international arrivals in the travel industry today. They command a market value of some US$320 billion and they are willing to spend to create experiences; so you see the value of this demographic. So the development of this global initiative was therefore, a very strategic marketing move which allowed us to tap into this very important market,” said the Minister.

‎Executive Director of the International Institute of Tourism Studies at The George Washington University School of Business, Seleni Matus, applauded the Ministry of Tourism for providing university students with the opportunity to apply their classroom learning to help solve a real world challenge and to understand how sustainable tourism is being used by governments to support the Sustainable Development Goals.

Speaking at the awards ceremony Matus went on to explain that “The challenge put out a call to over 100 universities around the world to really offer innovations on how to effectively promote community-based tourism here in Jamaica. It would follow the fantastic work that team tourism here in Jamaica has been doing. We had 46 innovative teams join and from that we selected five finalists.”

The UNWTO, Government of Jamaica, World Bank Group and Inter-American Development Bank Global Conference on Jobs and Inclusive Growth: Partnerships for Sustainable Tourism’ was an official event of the United Nations’ International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017, which gathered 1500 participants and over 150 speakers in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica; Wednesday, November 29, 2017: Prime Minister Andrew Holness has given an unqualified commitment to the development of tourism in Jamaica.

Underscoring the importance of tourism to Jamaica and the wider Caribbean, Prime Minister Holness said, “We must pivot our tourism growth strategies in line with the key areas that the United Nations International Year for Sustainable Tourism promotes.”

He was delivering the keynote address at yesterday’s opening session of the UNWTO, Government of Jamaica, World Bank Group and Inter-American Development Bank Global Conference on Jobs and Inclusive Growth: Partnerships for Sustainable Tourism, at the Montego Bay Convention Center.

Among the key areas highlighted by the Prime Minister were: Inclusive and sustainable growth, social inclusiveness, employment and poverty reduction, resource efficiency, environmental protection and climate change, cultural values, diversity and heritage, mutual understanding, peace and security.

Prime Minister Holness suggested to the over 1400 delegates who had registered by day two of the three-day conference that tourism-dependent states should give critical consideration to how the industry’s product must adapt and evolve to reflect the new realities of today. Those considerations should include: climate change; evolving tourist preferences, in particular, how to treat with the new millennials; terrorism, travel and safety security concerns; as well as new and emerging markets, products and technology.

He underlined that respect was due to tourism “as an industry that has contributed so significantly to our economies” and, as a result of tourism, “we can teach our people to respect our environment and heritage as natural assets.”

Prime Minister Holness outlined several projects being undertaken to improve infrastructure, noting that when local lives were allowed to be better for the citizens they then create the product, the experience (and) the authenticity that brings the visitor.

“The Government of Jamaica continues to take concrete steps to expand our tourism product and to create more opportunities that will improve the livelihood of Jamaicans,” he told his international audience.

The Prime Minister further reinforced that tourism enabled local communities to achieve inclusive and sustainable growth and besides its direct contribution to jobs, “tourism’s multiplier effect on related sectors such as training, agriculture, manufacturing and construction further amplifies its employment impact.”

Minister of Tourism, Hon Edmund Bartlett who has been the main force behind the staging of the global conference in Jamaica, said the country was a model of sustainable tourism and reminded that the conference emerged out of a meeting to bring together stakeholders with the common goal of achieving good, sustainable jobs, inclusive growth and sustainable development. He said the world had come to recognize that these goals could be achieved through tourism.

Minister Bartlett pointed to the need for greater loan support to tourism, in particular to the small and medium-sized enterprises, which account for 80 percent of the industry.

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica; November 29, 2017: Jamaica’s Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) has today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with international sustainable tourism NGO, the Travel Foundation, during the UN World Tourism Organisation’s Global Conference on Sustainable Tourism being held in Montego Bay.

The agreement establishes a framework of cooperation and collaboration which will support both organisations to work more closely on sustainable tourism initiatives in Jamaica. Their partnership will focus on increasing local economic benefits from tourism, for instance by supporting craft markets and other tourist attractions to make changes to their practices, and by encouraging visitors to explore outside their hotels.

It will build on their existing partnership, which recently launched a Warm Welcome campaign for Montego Bay. As part of the campaign, a team of trained Resort Ambassadors has been created to help visitors get the most out of Montego Bay during their stay.  Initially comprised of frontline hotel staff, and soon to be joined by contract carriage drivers and district constables, Warm Welcome Resort Ambassadors will receive training and resources so that they can confidently impart insider ‘top tips’ that help promote the best of the local area.

Dr. Andrew Spencer, Executive Director of TPDCo, said, “The Warm Welcome campaign is about utilizing our greatest asset — the passion all Jamaicans have for their place of home — and sharing this with our guests. And by encouraging people to explore beyond their hotels, local businesses and traders are more likely to benefit from the tourist spend. We intend to roll-out this best practice approach to visitor engagement in other resorts across Jamaica, with the Travel Foundation’s support.”

The Travel Foundation’s CEO, Salli Felton, said, “We know that we can achieve so much more by working with TPDCo. Their commitment and drive to build the capacity of the Jamaican people, creating new opportunities from tourism that can improve their quality of life, matches our own sustainability ethos. As well as sharing our knowledge and expertise on the Warm Welcome campaign, we’ll also be working with TPDCo to build capacity for craft traders to meet international visitor demand and support tourist attractions to improve their practices and meet sustainability criteria.”