Cultural Heritage Designations To Give Jamaica Competitiveness Boost

Jamaica’s Global Competitiveness Ranking in the area of tourism is expected to receive a boost from the country’s recent designations in world cultural heritage by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The Blue and John Crow Mountains was inscribed to UNESCO’s prestigious World Heritage List in July, while Kingston has gained membership to the organisation’s Creative Cities Network in the field of music.

Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill, praised both developments as “a positive addition to (Jamaica’s) tourism product.”

He was addressing a recent JIS Think Tank held at the agency’s head office in Kingston.

“Those two designations, certainly, are going to be very beneficial to Kingston. We talk about Kingston being the cultural capital of the Caribbean and now we can speak to it as being a creative capital as well,” Minister McNeill said.

“We are not going to stop there,” he said, noting that Jamaica’s food is “worthy of designation” as well.

The World Competitiveness Report is published annually by the World Economic Forum.

It ranks countries based on their Global Competitiveness Index, which measures the “set of institutions, policies, and factors that set the sustainable current and medium-term levels of economic prosperity.”

Having a World Heritage Site is one specific marker use to measure a country’s competitiveness.