KINGSTON, Jamaica – Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett is to address the newly expanded Tourism Linkages Council at his ministry in New Kingston on Thursday.

Senior Advisor to the tourism minister, Delano Seiveright, noted that the primary objective of the Tourism Linkages network is to increase the consumption of goods and services that can be competitively sourced locally.

“It also aims to create employment, while generating and retaining more of the country’s foreign exchange earnings,” Seiveright said, adding that the council represents a strong and effective mix of the right industry players.

Bartlett in his recent Sectoral Debate presentation in Parliament said: “All that we do will come to naught if we don’t address the fact that more businesses in Jamaica need to supply the tourism sector and, more specifically, our hotels and attractions with the goods and services that they demand.”

Among the new members of the Council are: CEO of Sandals International, Adam Stewart, who serves as Chairman; Christine Cohen, owner of the Spa Retreat Boutique Hotel in Negril and a Director of the Negril Chamberof Commerce; David Butler CEO of Digicel Jamaica; Kamal Bankay Entertainment Consultant; Mauricio Pulido, CEO, GB Energy Jamaica; and Peter Thompson acting CEO of the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), among several other industry leaders.

The Tourism Linkages Network is supported by a Tourism Linkages Council. The council is made up of public and private sector partners who oversee the coordination and implementation of effective and sustainable strategies which strengthen and facilitate linkages.

Balford Henry