Press

Jamaica Government Approves Of Billion-Dollar Plan For Tourism Development

Department of Public Information
Organization of American States
Caribbeean News
Wednesday, September 17, 2003

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC — The Jamaica government has approved a billion dollar plan for the development of the tourism sector over the next seven years. The key targets of the plan, which is geared towards improving economic growth and increasing foreign exchange earnings, will entail an increase in stop-over arrivals from 1.3 million to 2.2 million persons; cruise ship passengers from 908,000 to 2,000,200; visitor expenditure from US$1,333 to US$2,934, Tourism Minister Aloun Ndombet-Assamba said.

It will also seek to increase employment from 75,000 to 130, 000 and increase Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contribution from eight per cent to 15 per cent. Focus will be placed on diversifying the tourism product by moving away from the traditional sun, sand and sea offerings, to expanding attractions in heritage tourism, music and entertainment, retirement, health and sports, Ms.Assamba said.
Ms. Assamba said that a budget of US$1.6 billion has been set to implement programmes, with the private sector expected to contribute US$1.4 billion through the development of hotels and attractions. The first phase of the plan is expected to get under way in time for the start of the winter season on December 15 and will entail the beautification and clean up of resort towns. “Clean-up and beautification projects will achieve quick wins at this point. They will enhance the experience of visitors and locals, consolidate the upturn shown in the market so far, and signal the government’s commitment to the Master Plan,” she added.

She said that as part of the plan, existing craft areas would be revamped while new shopping areas would be constructed. In addition, the development of new attractions will be encouraged. Ms. Assamba noted that though three years behind in the implementation of the strategy, the government was committed to its objectives, and

had put in place a high level inter-ministerial committee chaired by herself to drive the programme. “The strategy will include focusing on leveraging Jamaica’s brand name, targeting top end markets, focusing more on visitor expenditure than on arrival volumes and repositioning Jamaica as a shopping destination,” she stated.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), Dennis Morrison, is estimating a 10 per cent growth in the sector this year. “Conservatively, we expect growth of 10 per cent but we think it will be higher than that,” he said. Morrison noted that since the 1990s, the Government has implemented a number of programmes to spur growth in the sector including the modernisation and expansion of the main airports.

The focus on tourism was part of strategies coming out of the recent Cabinet retreat, where the Government placed emphasis on furthering economic growth by focusing on sector specific programmes.