Jamaica is the recipient of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s (CHTA’s) Destination Resilience Award for its tourism resilience-building programs and COVID-19 pandemic recovery initiatives. 

The announcement was made on 10 May at CHTA's Travel Marketplace currently taking place in Bridgetown, Barbados. 

 

A news release by the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) notes that the Caribbean Destination Resilience Award recognizes destinations with a deliberate focus on resilience as indicated by their commitments to address some or all of the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO’s) 17 sustainable development goals.

Special emphasis is placed on highlighting destinations that prioritize a collaborative and partnership-focused approach, engaging public and private sector stakeholders in innovative, needs-driven strategies.     

Commenting on the achievement, Jamaica's Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett said, “This award is for my entire tourism team and all our private and public sector partners who immediately saw the need to keep the lifeblood of the country open.

From the minds and hard work of the team, Jamaica was first out of the blocks on the road to recovery.”   

 

Jamaica steered the Caribbean tourism industry with effective resilience programs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. One of these notable initiatives was COVID-19 Recovery Taskforce which facilitated public and private sector partnerships to keep the local tourism sector open. 

The strength of the COVID-19 Recovery Taskforce was proven when Jamaica reopened its borders in June 2020 and never closed since.

 

Additionally, Jamaica has been recognized by the World Travel and Tourism Council for the robust health and safety protocols implemented to help mitigate the spread of the disease.

With the creation of Resilient Corridors, Jamaica was able to resume tourism activities safely and seamlessly as these designated areas had a strong COVID-19 infrastructure in place.

 

Sharing in the moment, the President of the CHTA, Nicola Madden-Greig said, "It is a pleasure to recognize my home country with this destination resilience award as it validates the countless hours and effort that went into the recovery through our public and private sector partners to ensure the survival of tourism."

 

In the meantime, Director of Tourism, Donovan White commented, “It was no easy feat to reopen our borders in such a short space of time and this award highlights the importance of partnerships in a crisis."

“We’re truly grateful and deeply honored to receive this distinction.”