Jamaica Welcomed 4.31 Million Visitors in 2018: Bartlett

Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett, is reporting that Jamaica welcomed a record 4.31 million visitors in 2018.

“This represents the second year in a row that Jamaica has had more than 4.3 million visitors in a single year,” he said at a press briefing held at his New Kingston offices on Tuesday (January 8).

He noted that the country saw an 8.6 per cent increase in earnings from US$3 billion in 2017 to US$3.3 billion last year.

Minister Bartlett said that the growth in earnings places the country on track to achieve the target set by the Administration of generating $5 billion in revenue from tourism by 2021.

He said the projections are that by the end of the winter season, the country would have earned an additional US$1 billion in tourism revenue since 2016.

“This is a powerful performance because what it means is that we would’ve earned US$1 billion in three years when it took us 40 years to earn the first billion and 17 years to earn the second billion,” he pointed out.

In the meantime, Minister Bartlett informed that there is more than US$1 billion in circulation across Jamaica coming directly from tourism.

“Tourism is growing at a phenomenal rate. The impact of this is seen in the growth of the small and medium enterprises across Jamaica. The dollar is being retained because more and more of our people are supplying against the demands of the industry,” he said.