Building Tourism Resilience is Critical – Minister

  • Building tourism resilience is critical to ensuring the sector’s sustainability and its contribution to economies, says Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett.
  • Chairing the Fifth Special Meeting of the Inter-American Committee on Tourism (CITUR), Mr. Bartlett warned that despite tourism being one of the most significant contributors to global output, providing jobs, incomes and livelihoods for millions of people, the sector remains susceptible to external shocks and crises. These include natural disasters, economic downturns, and pandemics.
  • “As the sector continues its recovery, it is important that we acknowledge the importance of putting people first, investing in people and developing the right skills as crucial elements of building tourism resilience over time. It is essential to train and educate the workforce to be adaptable to changing circumstances such as new technologies and evolving customer preferences,” he said.
  • It is also important that tourism also prioritises the creation of a workforce that reflects the communities it serves to deliver both an enhanced product, as well as to accrue more benefits to a broader range of stakeholders in the tourism value chain.
  • He emphasised that a resilient tourism product must operate in a way that protects the environment and supports local communities, including small and medium-sized tourism enterprises, while at the same time ensuring economic viability.
  • “As a region, we have to position ourselves to take advantage of emerging technologies and to better use the available science and data to inform decision-making, particularly in relation to building tourism resilience,” Mr. Bartlett added.
  • Tourism accounts for about 34% of the economic output in Jamaica and 31% of employment in Jamaica. Tourism’s contribution to GDP and employment is much higher for some Caribbean neighbours and as such it is imperative that the region not only grow the product but also ensures that growth takes into consideration the economic, social and environmental issues as well. 

(Source: JIS)