JTB Act Being Reviewed – Min. Bartlett

The Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) Act is being reviewed to, among other things, redefine resort areas and who is regarded as a tourist.

“We are now at the point where it’s before Cabinet, and we expect approval shortly for instructions to be given to the Chief Parliamentary Counsel (CPC) for drafting of the final legislations,” Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, told JIS News in a recent interview.

He said that in redefining resort areas, the term “prescribed areas” will be removed, as the entire island is now considered a resort.

“Airbnb has shown us that tourists are now everywhere, and people are benefiting from this activity. Attractions are emerging all over, new experiences are coming out almost every day and that is what we are about,” said Minister Bartlett.

He noted that having more experiences in a destination makes it more attractive to visitors, ultimately increasing the expenditure and allowing for a greater portion of the tourism dollar to stay in the country.

The Tourism Minister said the revision of the Act will also redefine who a tourist is, embracing domestic tourists.

“This is very important because I think part of the reason that there is an ambivalence towards tourism in Jamaica is that people feel that tourist is about international guests – people with foreign passports only, but you (citizens) are also tourists. You leave from Montego Bay to Kingston and you stay overnight in a hotel somewhere, you are a guest. And so, you have to be accorded the same kind of privileges and opportunities as anybody else,” said Minister Bartlett.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Tourism will observe Tourism Awareness Week from September 24 to 30 under the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s theme for World Tourism Day (September 27) – ‘Tourism and Green Investments’.

The theme highlights the need to focus on investing in people, planet and prosperity.