MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica – Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett, has said that the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), was embarking on an aggressive marketing strategy, with the aim of maintaining and where possible, increasing market share, in light of the global recession, which has led to a reduction in travel worldwide.
The Minister, who was delivering the keynote address at the Tourism Outlook Seminar, at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Montego Bay, St. James, yesterday (Feb. 11), said that the strategy was already paying off, with the industry recording a 3.4 per cent growth at the end of January, over the same period last year.
Hon. Edmund Bartlett (file photo)
“In the face of the economic downturn, we went ahead with an aggressive marketing approach, increasing our advertising budget by some US$3 million in order to be able to buy better and to buy more, thereby saturating the areas in our originating markets. We were on some 30 channels in the United States including CNN … because the access to destination Jamaica had to be secured,” Minister Bartlett said.
Stating that securing airlift was an important part of the strategy, he said that arrangements were forged with partners such as American Airlines “so as to ensure that Jamaica, as a destination, was kept connected with the markets of the world”.
“We therefore secured over a million seats for the winter season from all the destinations across the world,” he boasted.
Arrivals from Canada, the Minister informed, continue to grow exponentially against the world trend, increasing by some 24 per cent, with a record 230,000 Canadian visitors coming to Jamaica last year, up from 183,000 in 2007. “So far for the year, they continue to lead the way in terms of arrivals,” Mr. Bartlett said.
In the meantime, he indicated that focus was being placed on non-traditional markets such South East Asia, Brazil, Mexico and Columbia, as part of a market diversification initiative. “We are going to be driving the Southern American region because Jamaica is equidistant between the North and the South and geographically, we are so well positioned to be able to benefit from those areas,” the Minister stated, noting that “India, Brazil, China and Russia remain for us emerging market possibilities that we have to keep driving at.”
Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, in a written statement distributed at the seminar, said that the growth in the tourism sector, while marginal, was encouraging.
“Despite the challenges that prevail, I am heartened by the country’s tourism arrival figures for January 2009. While experiencing only a minimal 3.4 per cent increase over a similar period last year, it is an encouraging sign, amidst the decline that is taking place in some of our regional counterparts and other countries in the world,” he stated.
He said that the JTB must receive credit for the performance, as the agency has consistently kept Brand Jamaica in the spotlight and at the forefront of the international market, through strong market promotion and diversification.
The Prime Minister further expressed confidence that the seminar would create the kind of environment that would facilitate the exchange of ideas and experiences, which would lead to the formulation of plans and policies to steer the sector forward.
The second annual Tourism Outlook Seminar, was organised by the Ministry of Tourism in collaboration with the JTB. The event brought together tourism interests from international, regional and local organisations to address various issues relevant to advancing the industry.
