MIAMI – Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, has been appointed Chair of a new high-level Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) committee. The committee will craft a regional strategy to manage the supply side of tourism. Plus, how retain a larger share of tourism earnings within Caribbean economies.
Supply-Side Tourism Committee Representatives
The committee will focus on deepening linkages between tourism and sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing and the creative industries. This will ensure that more value is created and kept in Caribbean communities. It will include representatives from Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
“This committee is about moving from leakage to linkage,” Minister Bartlett said. “Our goal is to ensure that more of every tourism dollar stays in the Caribbean, builds our businesses, creates quality jobs for our people and strengthens the resilience of our economies. By working together as a region, we can secure a bigger share of the value that tourism generates in our own space,” he added.
Building Stronger Linkages
Barbados’ Minister of Tourism and International Transport and Chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organization, Ian Gooding-Edghill, explained:
“The appointment of Minister Bartlett to chair this Committee concretizes the decision taken by the CTO member countries at the September 30 Council of Ministers and Commissioners of Tourism meeting to expand the region’s focus on building stronger linkages in the tourism sector.”
“As Jamaica has been a leading proponent of the supply side of tourism and the retention of revenues from the sector, the Council of Ministers and Commissioners unanimously agreed that Minister Bartlett should lead this regional initiative,” the Chairman said.
“We are pleased that the Minister has accepted yet another challenge to further advance the development of the region’s tourism sector, as the CTO’s Council reaffirms its commitment to pursuing this strategy,” he expressed.
To build a strong technical base for the initiative, Minister Bartlett offered the help of Professor Lloyd Waller. He is the Executive Director of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC). Professor Waller will create the Terms of Reference (TOR) to guide the committee’s work.
Update on Jamaica’s Recovery
He updated ministers on Jamaica’s recovery after Hurricane Melissa. The country is set to have about 70 percent of its hotel rooms open by January. This is thanks to ongoing repair and renovation work. Capacity at Jamaica’s three international airports is now more than 85 percent of what it was before Hurricane Melissa. Air travel is being restored for the winter season.
Minister Bartlett expressed deep appreciation for the strong show of solidarity from sister Caribbean countries, including the Turks and Caicos Islands, the US Virgin Islands, The Bahamas and others, emphasising that regional support has been vital in accelerating Jamaica’s recovery and protecting tourism jobs.
The CTO Secretariat has also been mandated to undertake exploratory work on the carrying capacities of member states. This will provide critical data to support the committee’s recommendations and to underpin sustainable, resilient tourism growth across the region.
