The Ministry of Tourism is to set up a new task force to spearhead the post COVID19 recovery of the industry.
Tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett, is calling on tourism stakeholders to prepare for the recovery period once the pandemic passes.
COVID19 has hit the tourism industry worldwide particularly hard, costing the global market billions.
In Jamaica, thousands have already been laid off and hotels temporarily closed due to the fall off in visitor arrivals.
Minister Bartlett says the task force will seek out new opportunities as part of the new reality created by the pandemic.
However, the Minister says despite the major blow suffered from COVID19 the medium to long term survival of the industry remains optimistic.
Meanwhile, Minister Bartlett says those depending on the soon to be established Tourism Workers’ Pension Scheme need not be worried
He says the process of setting up the scheme is still in train.
He also says the government is attempting to ensure it meets the April 9 deadline to roll out the stimulus package developed by the Holness administration to mitigate the COVID-19 economic fallout.
In the meantime, Minister Bartlett says while the sector is dormant, tourism workers will participate in capacity-building initiatives to further enrich the industry when it reopens for business.
Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism.
