The Destination Resilience Award by the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) was granted to Jamaica for its efforts in recovering from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and for its initiatives to strengthen tourism resilience.
Jamaica was awarded the Destination Resilience Award for its efforts to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). In addition, the island was recognized for its collaborative and partnership approach.
“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,” CHTA President Nicola Madden-Greig said.
Jamaica established a recovery task force with its Ministry of Tourism at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic allowed the country to reopen to international tourists in June 2020, and the borders have remained open since then.
Jamaican Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett accepted the award on behalf of the country, stating that the health and safety measures taken to control the spread of the virus have contributed to the long-term revitalization of tourism.
“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,” Bartlett said. “From the minds and hard work of the team, Jamaica was first out of the blocks on the road to recovery.
In the previous month, Jamaica reported its most successful winter tourism season in history, indicating a promising outlook for the travel industry’s continued growth in the coming years.
Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett said that the country welcomed 1.18 million visitors between January and March 2023, marking an increase of 94.4% compared to the same period in 2022, during the commencement of Jamaica’s Sectoral Debate in Parliament.