KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC -Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett has warned stakeholders that as Jamaica experiences a significant increase in its recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic disorder and poor practices will not be allowed to disrupt the progress being made in the vital tourism industry.
In addition, he has announced that approximately 20,000 new rooms are set to come on stream over the next five to 10 years and that 8,000 hospitality workers are paying into the Tourism Workers Pension Scheme, with over J$550 million (One Jamaica dollar=US$0.008 cents), in contributions to date.
Speaking during Tuesday’s 2023/24 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives, Bartlett said that from January to March this year, Jamaica welcomed a record 1,185,000 visitors, a 94.4 percent increase over the same period last year.
“It’s a good thing, Madame Speaker, that so many more people are entering the tourism space. But it also can be bad if disorder, criminality, and poor practices creep in and disrupt the destination assurance we offer our visitors.”
Bartlett noted that destroying the destination takes one horrible incident “not just for weeks but for years.”
“I think we must ensure that persons entering the space follow the rules and respect the importance of law and order…. I think we have to take a strong position [and] stand up for good law and order in this society.”
Recently, the Tourism Product Development Company Limited (TPDCo) announced that it has moved to stop illegal rafting on the White River in St Ann and has partnered with the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) to terminate the unlawful activity.
The TPDCo is also trying to regularise illegal operators who need assistance to conform to the laws and regulations governing the sector.
Bartlett said that, overall, Jamaica continues to be a safe place for tourists.
“Our record of visitor safety is enviable across the world with a record of 0.1 percent of all the crimes committed [being] against our visitors,” he told legislators, adding that approximately 20,000 new rooms are to come on stream over the next five to 10 years.
He said these additional rooms would be located in all the parishes, benefiting the various communities.
“It’s not just about hotels here now. It’s about creating a whole ecosystem in Paradise, in Westmoreland,” he said, adding that he is also holding discussions with investors from the Dominican Republic.
“They were here some weeks ago, and they want to come now and look at creating a whole village, a tourism village, like the one they have in the Dominican Republic,” he said.
Bartlett told the Parliament that he was also pleased that an estimated 8,000 hospitality workers are paying into the Tourism Workers Pension Scheme, with over $550 million in contributions.
The government has committed over one billion dollars to the scheme, and the final tranche of J$50 million will be paid in the new fiscal year.
Bartlett said that in the next five years, when the first cohort of beneficiaries will come, “that fund would have [reached] well over J$10 billion, and then we begin to see the unfolding of a pool of funds that will be there for investments so that we can have growth”.
The Tourism Workers Pension Scheme was launched in 2022. The scheme is designed to cover all workers in the tourism sector, regardless of their employment status or age. It includes hotel workers, craft vendors, tour operators, red-cap porters, contract carriage operators, and workers at attractions.
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