Tourism boost set for Falmouth

[Assasin]

you spending your time blaming tourism, blame the lack of planning by government. Blame the lack of planning and infrastructure by government. Blame the fact they borrow to spend on interest payment instead of social programs and salary. Blame the fact that they crash the manufacturing and agricultural sectors. Blame the fact that they under educate our people. Blame the fact that they fail to develop towns like Mobay and provide proper housing instead of encouraging squatting and scamming. Blame the fact that government fail to provide a orderly society and provided dons instead of proper political rep.

These are not the ills of tourism, Barbados, Virgin Island and the Bahamas along with others have thriving tourism industry and little or no crime. Take tourism out of Mobay and the crime will be worst. I see you encouraging BPO but you know what? Tourism currently is the highest paying sector in Jamaica as we know it. When Banks, Government and others start paying higher, when higher paying industry come on stream it will cause tourism to raise the pay of their workers. The fact is in Jamaica wages is far from competitive because we have too many unemployed so it is easy to find these workers plus government policies which allow others to come in.

Again stop blaming tourism for our ills, and look into ourselves as a country. You been doing it for too long with your regular rants.

[Assasin]

By the way Portland have the lowest crime rate in Jamaica and it is considered a tourist destination. What we don't have is the squatting problem and we don't have dons, even you would have to change your name if you try to become a resident. Even when we have no police cars and police a "bum" drive to go investigate crime and lack of government support.

[HL]

...........................................yuh tek it fi joke.......

[Don1]

Yes RDoc. We've seen this Plantation type tourism Jamaica operates for 6 decades now. No secrets are there...for critical thinkers. But the propaganda surrounding the industry misleads many

They lock up the tourists in all-inclusive warehouses. Meaning that virtually ALL the money is spent on the property plus that which is spent at the all-inclusive attractions.

A very small % of the tourist dollar is spent in the local communities. The security problem is a big factor of course. But even so...if the hotel owners are raking in virtually all the tourist money...there's no way they would want to change that model. They love that all-inclusive plantation business

So mostly all the locals are left with are jobs as maids, cleaners, nannies, butlers, waiters, kitchen staff, gardeners, taxi drivers, hustlers, rent-a-dreads & roadside trinket sellers

Those are the biggest categories of jobs in that sector.

Nothing is wrong with honest work of any type. However if the country's so-called "leading industry" has that economic & employment profile obviously that's not leading to 21st century success

It's not complicated

[Don1]

I realize that you are infatuated with this industry as well as the current minister, Bartlett. So it's personal for you...I get that. Hush

I don't "blame" the industry. I deconstruct it and examine it as a system.

It's a good industry to generate FX...although ~70% goes right back out on foreign purchases to supporter the foreigners in the style they demand. It also supports about 100K direct jobs - mostly low skill - low wage occupations.

You state that tourism is the "highest paying sector". Please provide the data source for this statement. Of course this is rubbish....but prove your case with data.

Tourism is an important industry for JA and should continue & grow. However as long as this primarily low-skill/low-wage industry is the "leading" sector in the Jamaican economy the country will never be the success it could be

In the 21st century success is determined by which countries best develop their HUMAN CAPITAL - i.e. knowledge, skill & competence in critical sectors

It's past time for Jamaicans to get excited about and focus on educating its people for the key development challenges of the era we're in...

Instead they ooh & aah about warehouses renting rooms to foreigners...while Black people pamper them

Stuck in the 1950s & 1960s mi seh

[Sir X]

From 1950 dat a start.

[Assasin]

Can you name 1 higher paying large scale industry in Jamaica?

Certainly not bank, certainly not government, certainly not BPO.

The fact is you fail to address any of the points and your "observation is not based on any data whatsoever.

[Don1]

You made the claim not I. Kindly provide the data source for the allegation.

Thanks in advance

[Don1]

On another note Sass. Jamaica is in an economically depressed state. Wages on a whole are low - compared with our peer nations. This is not only true in tourism but in all sectors. that is the macro problem which needs to be addressed.

The above reflects Jamaica's relatively low GDP. The development question before Jamaica is -
"How do we speed up growth & development in the 21st century environment which is increasingly dominated by technology?"

There is only one great answer to that question - And it is not having tourism continuing as our "leading industry" - say by 2035 as a planning horizon

If Jamaica pursues the current sub-optimal course - by 2035 we'll just have a version of our current poverty & economic backwardness

This is the Knowledge Age where technology rules. That means it's time to PRIORITIZE developing our human capital with proficiency in knowledge-based applications

Unfortunately Jamaicans seem to be comfortable being backward - preferring to leave the knowledge ting to Whites & Asians who're smarter than us in their view - Such things are too difficult for us Black folks and "tek too long" as some put it.

Noice self-confidence Anyway enuff of this internet yappin for me for the time being - nuff works to perform yahnow

[Rockman]

You have a faaaar better command of the English language than I do, hence my input is simply to keep you sharp on this rare occasion.
For me, it is either "on the whole" or "as a whole".
Mr Miller(StGC English teacher)hammered that into our juvenile minds.

[Jangle]

Noting that Falmouth has the potential to be right up there with the 'New Orleans' and 'Miami Beaches' of the world, the Jamaican Government is going full speed with massive infrastructural work throughout the Trelawny capital.

Coming against the backdrop of Falmouth already having the biggest and most ambiance-friendly port in the Caribbean, ground was broken last Friday for the Hampden Wharf Development - a mega infrastructure project that will certainly reposition the town as one of the Caribbean's premier cruise destinations.

For Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, the potential goes even further.

According to him, the town will not only soon become the "region's tourism Mecca, but Falmouth will also have a central role to play" in the Ministry of Tourism's growth strategy as "we seek to attract five million visitors and generate US$5 billion in tourism earnings by 2021.
http://hospitalityjamaica.com/news1.html

[Assasin]

I remember when Falmouth was seen as a waste of money.

Let us see how good they can go and the work they do. I still feel Port Royal offers a different feel to tourism that is not there but is wanted. It ca'n't be too full but selling the wicked city and the earth quake has a real value. First ship is 2019,

[Sir X]

Falmouth as the Mecca of tourism...clueless,that's Kgn!

[Assasin]

Kingston tourism different from Falmouth. Falmouth have the chance of bringing in more in numbers than Kingston, Trelawny has more lands and beach than Kingston.

Kingston without a doubt can be the cultural mecca but Falmouth can be major development. The two is different but good that we can talk about it. I say go for the growth.

[Sir X]

Agreed with all what you said except the numbers,even today Falmouths numbers pale in comparison to kgn,as it will be in the future.

The minister like you,has it backwards thus clueless,until Falmouth has an international airport talk to me,look at NY !


And stop regurgitate fawwt bout tourism is different in kgn than other parts of the islan that is a given,the question is where in the islan will be the Mecca.