Gov’t Pushes Ahead with Artisan Villages

The Ministry of Tourism is pushing ahead with plans to construct artisan villages in resort areas across the island.

Portfolio Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says the first facility will be built in Ocho Rios, with others to be established in Montego Bay, Falmouth, Port Antonio, and Negril over the next five years.

The Minister, who unveiled the design for the Ocho Rios artisan village to tourism stakeholders during a tour of the resort area recently, said the venues will be “one stop shops” for authentic Jamaican food, music, heritage and craft.

He said they will showcase the best of the island, while enhancing interaction between visitors and locals.

The facilities, the Minister noted, will provide an avenue for Jamaican artists and craftsmen to expose and express their creativity, while limiting the volume of imported craft items that are being sold in the industry.

“Frankly, it is embarrassing to see so many goods in our craft markets which are not made in Jamaica,” the Minister lamented.

“I was recently in Africa and I remember having one of the artists in the craft village inscribing my name on a piece of art. It was something to behold. When something as creative as that is done, then it can draw business to the craft village and assist with the tourism marketing,” he pointed out.

Mr. Bartlett said the Ministry is looking to streamline and regulate the craft sector to ensure that the genuine traders, who have been in the business for many years and have invested a lot of time and money, can reap the benefits.

He informed that the craft traders will also be assisted with putting together videos and promotional material, which will be used to market the industry in hotels and aboard cruise ships.