Removal of Jamaica From CDC Level Four Risk Assessment A Positive Development – Minister Bartlett

• Jamaica has been removed by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from its level-four “Avoid Travel to this Destination” risk assessment, which is a very positive development for our tourism sector. 
• The Minister of Tourism commended the health authorities and the people of Jamaica for working to bring down the rates of COVID-19 infections and hospitalisations, which augurs well for Jamaica’s risk assessment rankings. He noted that beyond that, the Resilient Corridor remains a very safe space for visitors and workers alike with comparatively high vaccination rates and extremely low infection rates. 
• Jamaica is now ranked at level three, which urges US travelers to be fully vaccinated before travelling. Despite CDC risk assessments, Americans by and large continue to travel to destinations they want to visit. 
• Bartlett said there is no room for complacency. Jamaica will continue to follow and be guided by international standards relating to the COVID-19 protocols, ensuring that its economy and tourism sector can get back to normal as quickly as possible. 
• This development will certainly complement the efforts being made to boost tourist arrivals including the increase in air traffic by airline companies such as Frontier. It will also aid in the overall recovery of the tourism sector and the wider economy. Currently, Jamaica is projected to welcome 1.57Mn and 3.2Mn tourists in 2021 and 2022, respectively and will be “well on its way to recovery” in 2023 with an anticipated 3.7 million visitor arrivals and inflows of US$3.7 billion.

(Source: JIS News & NCBCM Research)