Caribbean News
JAMAICA: 20,000 New Rooms for Tourism Sector
#Kingston, April 21, 2023 – Approximately 20,000 new rooms are set to come on stream over the next five to 10 years, says Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett.
Mr. Bartlett provided an update on the investment projects while opening the 2023/24 Sectoral Debate in House of Representatives, on April 18.
The Minister pointed out that these additional rooms will be located in all the parishes.
The projects for the parish of St. Ann include Palm Beach Villas, more than 100 rooms; Secrets Resorts, 700 rooms; Bahia Principe, 2,500 rooms as well as more than 900 rooms from the Sandals brand.
For the parish of Trelawny: Harmony Cove, 1,000 rooms; Planet Hollywood, 650 rooms; RIU Aquarelle, 753 rooms and Excellence Oyster Bay, 50 rooms.
The Minister reported that RIU Aquarelle is scheduled for completion early next year.
He informed that the projects for the parish of St. James include Unico, Hard Rock Hotel and Casino and associated resort developments, 2,000 rooms; Vista Ambassadors, 433 and Dreams Resort, 280 rooms.
Mr. Bartlett informed that the parish of Hanover will see 4,000 new rooms in the next three years. These include Princess Resort, more than 2,000 rooms; Grand Palladium, Negril, 950 rooms; Viva Wyndham, Negril, 1,000 rooms. He said the figure has not been finalised for Sandals Negril.
The Minister argued that the Paradise Park facility will be a “game changer” for the parish of Westmoreland.
“It’s not just about hotels here now, it’s about creating a whole ecosystem in Paradise, in Westmoreland,” he said.
The Minister said the projects for the Kingston Metropolitan Area will include Hilton New Kingston, 300 rooms. He informed that the ROK Hotel, with 168 rooms, has already been opened.
Mr. Bartlett noted that 200 rooms will be built at Dragon Bay in Portland and that a local investor has committed to building 1,000 rooms in St. Thomas.
“In addition, I am talking with some investors from the Dominican Republic. They were here some weeks ago and they want to come now and look at creating a whole village, a tourism village, like the one they have in the Dominican Republic,” he said.
Contact: Chris Patterson
Release: JIS
KINGSTON, April 29 (JIS):
Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Senator the Hon. Matthew Samuda, says the outcome of discussions arising from the Jamaica National Stakeholder Consultation on Climate Services and the 1st National Climate Forum (NCF-1) will assist in guiding the Government’s planning for climate change.
This, he points out, is important for climate mitigation as well as building Jamaica’s resilience.
“We look forward to the discussions that will, no doubt, take place. We look forward to the basis of planning for the Government to streamline its investments to ensure you have the tools that you need to better advise us, that the WRA (Water Resources Authority) has the tools to digitise its monitoring network, and that all of the agencies that touch our planning mechanisms have the tools. But we need to know what we are facing, and we’re guided by your expertise,” Minister Samuda said.
He was addressing the opening ceremony for the Jamaica National Stakeholder Consultation on Climate Services and the 1st National Climate Forum (NCF-1) at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in New Kingston on Monday (April 29).
Senator Samuda said given the fact that the climate has changed and continues to do so, investments in and collaborations on building Jamaica’s predictive and scientific capacity must be prioritised.
“Ultimately, we need to be able to assess our current climatic realities if we are to better plan, if we’re to insist and ensure that our infrastructure meets the needs that we need it to. I’m very happy that this event is happening… because this is a critical issue.
“Jamaica, last year, faced its worst and most severe drought… and this year, we’re already seeing the impacts of not quite as severe a drought but, certainly, a drought with severe impacts, especially in the western part of the country,” he said.
Principal Director, Meteorological Service of Jamaica, Evan Thompson, explained that the forum aims to, among other things, establish a collaboration platform for climate services providers and users to understand risks and opportunities of past, present and future climate developments, as well as improve inter-agency coordination of policies, plans and programmes.
Among the other presenters were Ambassador, European Union to Jamaica, Her Excellency Marianne Van Steen; Chief Scientist/Climatologist, Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology, Adrian Trotman; and Head, Regional Climate Prediction Services, World Meteorological Organization, Wilfran Moufouma-Okia.
The Meteorological Service of Jamaica hosted the Jamaica National Stakeholder Consultation on Climate Services and the 1st National Climate Forum (NCF-1) in partnership with the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology and the World Meteorological Organization.
The National Stakeholder Consultation is a governance mechanism that guides how different sectors or actors work together to create products that contribute to adaptation and resilience-building. It seeks to create a road map for the development and implementation of climate services to inform decision-making.
NCF-1 aims to bridge the gap between climate providers and users. It increases the use of science-based information in decision-making and operations with the aim of generating and delivering co-produced and co-designed products and services.
CONTACT: CHRIS PATTERSON
-
TCI News1 week agoExperience Turks and Caicos and Ministry of Tourism explore development of Cruise industry at Seatrade Global Cruise Conference
-
Latin America and Caribbean6 days agoRegional SDGs Update
-
Crime7 days agoFollowing Court ruling, US Embassy Doubles Down on Warning: DO NOT TRAVEL TO TCI WITH GUNS, AMMO
-
Bahamas News7 days agoEnvironment State-Minister updates ‘Our Ocean’ forum on The Bahamas as SIDS leader in sustainable tourism
-
Caribbean News1 week agoU.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS SHINES AS A PREMIER DESTINATION AT THE 2024 SEATRADE CRUISE GLOBAL CONFERENCE
-
Bahamas News5 days agoPacesetting Cohort of Eleuthera Residents Graduate from Leading Light Programme
-
Caribbean News7 days agoRBC appoints new Head of Caribbean Banking
-
Bahamas News6 days agoNassau Cruise Port Donates Nearly $2 Million Towards Food Security