Tourism raking in more foreign exchange
OCHO RIOS, St Ann – Tourism earnings for the first nine months of 2006 grew by a quarter over the corresponding period last year, the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) has revealed.
According to the JTB, gross foreign exchange earnings reached US$1.4 billion for the period January to September 2006, an increase of 24.6 per cent above the same period in 2005.
The figure reflects both an increase in visitor arrivals and visitor spending.
In light of the positive trend in the tourism industry, Tourism Minister Aloun Assamba has predicted that a record-breaking three million tourists will visit Jamaica this year.
“So far this year, God has continued to smile on us as we continue to break tourist arrival figures,” Assamba said at a forum on human trafficking in Ocho Rios on Friday.
If the trend continues, she said, “by December 31, we will hit the three million visitor mark”.
Stopover arrivals grew by 17.2 per cent to reach 1.3 million, exceeding the target set by the JTB by 6.4 per cent. Cruise ship arrivals also grew considerably, moving up 15 per cent this year to record 950,329 visitors.
July 2006 recorded an all-time high of 180,000 stopover arrivals.
“The JTB is extremely pleased at the increased visitor arrival figures and the growth in foreign exchange earnings,” interim director of tourism Donald Dawson said in a news release.
“These impressive figures are due to a number of factors such as new room inventory, increased airlift, the hard work of our partners in the marketplace and aggressive promotional initiatives, including sales blitz and heightened public relations activities implemented by the JTB in collaboration with the private sector,” Dawson said.
The news comes just after Jamaica won the World Travel Award for being the Caribbean and the world’s leading cruise ship destination, with Ocho Rios pier being the busiest port.