“The resilience of our tourism sector was truly tested with the recent passage of Hurricane Beryl, which impacted Jamaica as a Category 4 storm,” said Minister Bartlett. “Southern coastal areas, especially in Clarendon, Manchester, and St. Elizabeth, were most severely impacted. However, the tourism industry overall did not experience any major fallout,” he added.
Nevertheless, the tourism minister noted that despite isolated reports of property damage in areas such as Lover’s Leap, Treasure Beach, and other tourism communities, the swift and effective response mitigated further losses.
“Many of our small and medium players in the industry suffered immensely at the hands of Hurricane Beryl.”
Bartlett continued: “In an effort to rebuild livelihoods and support the recovery of the Jamaican people, the Ministry of Tourism is advising that two million dollars ($2,000,000.00) of the Spruce Up allocation is permitted for use towards relief efforts in the hardest hit constituencies. One million dollars ($1,000,000.00) of the allocation can be used in other less impacted constituencies. These efforts can include both goods and services geared towards alleviating the effects for those most affected.”
The $4 million allocated to each of the 63 constituencies through the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) ‘Spruce Up Pon De Corner’ program is typically used for tourism-oriented projects.
Minister Bartlett also credited Prime Minister Andrew Holness and other members of the Government for their swift and comprehensive recovery program. He commended tourism partners and representatives of the Ministry of Tourism and its public bodies, including members of the Tourism Emergency Operations Centre (TEOC) team, for their tireless work in mitigating the impact of Beryl and facilitating a speedy recovery.
“I want to express my deepest gratitude to our tourism workers, many of whom went above and beyond the call of duty, working tirelessly during the storm to ensure the safety of our visitors, often at great personal sacrifice,” Bartlett added.