ST JAMES, Jamaica — Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett has tasked the Tourism Linkages Council to complete the tourism demand study by August this year.

“I have charged the chairman of the Tourism Linkages Council, Adam Stewart, to complete a demand study that will facilitate quantitative analysis of the need for manufacturing and other goods and services within the sector,” Bartlett said.

According to his ministry, the study was designed to identify the existing/potential demand in the tourism sector for goods and services across local sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing and entertainment.

The minister, who was speaking at the Ministry of Tourism’s Smart Destination Workshop, added that “We will be going a step further to engage buyers, hoteliers and suppliers from all sectors at a summit in September. The aim of this summit will be to critically analyse and discuss the findings from the study with a view to charting the way forward.”

In his recent address to Parliament, Bartlett emphasised the need to plug the leakages by strengthening the linkages between tourism and other sectors.

“My ministry remains fully committed to changing the production and consumption patterns to facilitate a greater flow of wealth within the sector, especially among our small and medium-sized tourism enterprises,” Bartlett added.

There are opportunities for increased linkages with local suppliers to facilitate import substitution in producing various items. The aim of the Ministry of Tourism is to foster more purchasing of local goods and services which will reduce the imports and help to plug the leakages from importation.