Tourism Minister calls for greater collaboration

KINGSTON — Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, has underscored the need for greater collaboration among tourism-dependent nations in the Caribbean, to develop regional capabilities to safeguard earnings which the industry generates for their economies.

Speaking at the opening of a two-week Caribbean Canadian Emerging Leaders’ Dialogue, at the Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) training centre, in St. Andrew, on June 6,

Mr. Bartlett noted that tourism is the fastest growing industry globally, which generated some US$944 billion in earnings last year from spending by 985 million people who travelled globally.

The Minister said based on this development, the industry is projected to earn some US$1.5 trillion from expenditure by approximately 1.6 billion people, expected to be travelling globally by 2030. “All of this, of course, means that some 1.8 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP) will be consumed by tourism and tourism activities,” he said.

Noting that the Caribbean is regarded as the most tourism-dependent region globally, Mr. Bartlett said the industry accounts for approximately 47 per cent of the total earnings generated, while creating some 1.6 million direct and indirect jobs. “It is felt that somewhere in the region of one in every nine jobs that are around in the region are directly related to tourism,” he added.

The Minister informed that locally, the sector accounts for seven per cent of the national GDP, employing some 86,000 persons directly.  He added that for the first time, the industry earned some US$2 billion in 2010, describing this as “very significant."

While noting that tourism is a generator of foreign exchange, Mr. Bartlett said the sector is also a major user of the earnings. In this regard, he argued that the extent to which Jamaica and other regional states are able to supply on the demand of visitors, and tap into the value chain, will determine how much of the earnings is retained in the economy.

Against this background, Mr. Bartlett said maximising this potential requires stakeholders determining and establishing the key competitive elements, and generating significant investments to realise those areas of demand.

To this end, the Tourism Minister said a Competitiveness Task Force, chaired by veteran hotelier and Chairman, Caribbean Hotel and Tourist Association (CHTA), Josef Forstmeyer, has been established and mandated to examine all these area of enablement, which the industry requires, in order to make it competitive globally.

Additionally, an economic impact study is being undertaken by a team, headed by former State Minister in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, Don Wehby, which has been directed to create a body of information that will determine what demands exist for the various goods and services.

“So, within the next six months, Jamaica will have that capability, first of all, with all the requirements, in terms of the competitiveness that we require; and secondly, a body of empirical data which will guide us, in terms of dealing with the supply side,”  the Minister said.

“We have been able to grow the industry over the years consistently. Where we have not been able to do as well is on the supply side. So, let us look beyond today…look beyond what the current challenges are, and look to a future where there can be greater collaboration,” he urged.

The Caribbean Canadian Emerging Leaders’ Dialogue brings together some 120 future leaders from Canada and the Caribbean, to participate in a two-week leadership development conference.

By DOUGLAS McINTOSH, JIS Reporter