The enormous value of tourism to the Jamaican economy is beyond question.

Earnings in 2023 were estimated to be in the region of US$4.3 billion, a 17.8 per cent increase on 2022 and a 17.2 per cent increase from 2019, prior to the catastrophic COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2023, Jamaica welcomed 4.1 million visitors, a 25.5 per cent increase over 2022 which, of course, came in the wake of the pandemic.

The industry provides direct employment for approximately 175,000 Jamaicans, while 354,000 benefit from indirect employment.

And despite worrying adverse travel advisories, Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett was reported by online outlet Loop News as telling his listeners at the Sandals and Beaches Resorts’ Jamaica Love promotion in October that Jamaica was set to welcome 4.3 million visitors in 2024.

The minister reportedly estimated that earnings for the year would be in the region of US$4.5 billion.

Such figures underline the importance of maintaining stability in the industry which, for decades, has been a literal lifesaver. That’s why bumps such as recent reports of labour unrest in the industry must be addressed by all stakeholders with the greatest urgency.

Also, promotional efforts such as the Sandals and Beaches Resorts’ Jamaica Love, which brought 1,000 travel professionals for a first-hand view of Jamaica’s highly attractive product, are critical to counter negatives that are bound to hit occasionally.

We note word from Mr Jeremy Jones, Sandals Resorts International’s corporate director, resort operations, Jamaica, that: “We’re starting to see immediate results from [the Jamaica Love promotion]…” which will be carried through to the end of the traditional winter tourist season early next year.

Mr Jones says the one-week Jamaica Love programme took overseas travel professionals across the island, exposing them to the best of what Jamaica has to offer.

And Mr Adam Stewart, executive chairman of Sandals Resorts International, as well as this newspaper, reminds us that Jamaica’s “magnificent culture, the sounds of reggae music through the valleys, to our craft vendors and street food, the rhythm of Jamaica simply hits harder than other parts of the world…”

But no matter how attractive the product may be, promotion is always essential if benefits and earnings are to be maximised. Invariably, as marketers will readily testify, promotional benefits outweigh costs.

That need for continuous promotion is especially evident in an industry as fickle as tourism, where even in the best of times stuff can suddenly go wrong, as was shown in Jamaica’s case by negative travel advisories, and other eventualities including natural disasters, such as Hurricane Beryl in early July.

That need for constant promotion of the Jamaica brand is one reason this newspaper was extremely annoyed by the decision of the Government to decline hosting rights to the ICC T20 Cricket World Cup earlier this year because of an approximately $450-million price tag.

That was a bad error, in our view, resulting in a missed, golden opportunity to promote Jamaica in all its glory.

Our leaders should be on guard to ensure that such mistakes are not repeated.

In the words of Mr Bartlett: “We have to be nimble, adaptive, and responsive to ensure that the growth we had after COVID isn’t erased by the deluge of disruptions that came with the recovery.”

That’s the gospel truth.