A few months ago we had pointed to the tourism industry’s successful management of the novel coronavirus pandemic and suggested that the Government adopt the strategy used by the sector on a national scale.

We make the point again as we are not convinced that the Administration has fully grasped the value and effectiveness of the resilient corridor which has proven to be a disciplined, focused, protocol-based, and data-driven blueprint for safe reopening of the tourism sector.

It is worth repeating that what the tourism industry has done for Jamaica in clearing a pathway for reopening safely from COVID-19 is no mere nine-day wonder.

Memories tend to be short, but we have not forgotten the extent of the collaboration, the agility and the depth of the approach to craft a safe reopening plan, utilising technical and medical advice from local and global companies.

This, as we pointed out before, began almost as soon as Jamaica was shut down in late March last year when the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) assembled a team drawing from its wide stakeholder groups involving Government, hotels, attractions, and all their component parts and linkages.

By April 23, 2020 the team had a first draft on its way to creating the Resilient Corridor. That was fine-tuned by the tourism and health ministries and sent to the Cabinet, which subsequently signed off on May 10, 2020.

The sense of conviction, collaboration, and determination of the tourism leaders made it possible for the Government to give the go-head for the industry to reopen in mid-June 2020. That, we hold, was a saviour as the economy — which, as we all know, relies heavily on tourism earnings — was tanking.

Indeed, within a month of the reopening Jamaica welcomed more than 810,000 visitors and, by August 15 this year, the number of visitors spiralled to one million.

No one, therefore, can challenge the success of the Resilient Corridor. It is the only space in Jamaica where there is 100 per cent testing of visitors and has a positivity rate of infections of well below one per cent.

One of the factors contributing to that reality is that 95 per cent of Jamaica’s hotels and attractions are in open air spaces which are not conducive to spread of the virus, as fresh air disperses and dilutes the virus, and also helps to evaporate the liquid droplets in which it is carried.

The Government has repeatedly stated its commitment to keeping the wheels of the economy turning while protecting lives. If it is truly serious about that it needs to adapt the training, regulation, compliance, and enforcement mechanisms of the Resilient Corridor, tweaking them as necessary for the wider country.

It is the only path that we have seen to date of total compliance that actually works. Add to that the fact that the corridor allows the country and workers in the tourism industry to earn with minimal risk of spread of the virus and what you have is an opportunity for Jamaica and its people to survive this crisis and emerge stronger.