KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Ministry of Tourism, through its Tourism Linkages Network, will host its highly anticipated annual speed networking event on Wednesday, using a virtual format to connect local suppliers directly with key buyers in the tourism sector.

The ministry said the event, which was scheduled for its sixth staging on March 12 last year, was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it said the organisers will be facilitating the event this year using a virtual platform, as participants will engage each other via the event’s website: www.tlnspeednetworking.com.

“I am pleased that after a one-year pandemic-induced hiatus, this important tourism linkages event is back on the calendar, albeit in a virtual format. If past successes are anything to go by, this year’s business networking mixer will be both productive and profitable for all participants,” Tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett said.

“Of the 110 suppliers who participated in Speed Networking 2019, the 40 per cent that responded to requests for information, reported receiving contracts valued at some $49.5 million,” he added.

The ministry noted that the speed networking event facilitates a series of 15-minute pre-scheduled meetings between senior representatives of local supplier companies and senior representatives of tourism entities such as hotels, restaurants and attractions.

“Speed Networking is just one of the many successful linkages initiatives ensuring that a significant amount of the products utilised in the tourism sector are either grown or manufactured right here in Jamaica. In this way, tourism is driving positive change by creating employment and injecting revenue into our communities, while providing new economic opportunities for local businesses,” the minister said.

The event is led by the Tourism Linkages Network, which is a division of the Tourism Enhancement Fund, in collaboration with the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association; Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association; Jamaica Promotions Corporation; Rural Agricultural Development Authority and the Jamaica Business Development Corporation.

“Undertakings, such as speed networking provide resilience, hope and optimism for the future of our tourism sector and the businesses that support it, even in the face of current disruptions,” Bartlett added.