MONTEGO BAY, St James — Discussions on the importance of comprehensive cybersecurity measures in the tourism sector are expected to be among the highlights of the third staging of the Global Tourism Resilience Conference to be held at the Princess Grand Hotel in Hanover from February 17-19.

The conference, which will be hosted by Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC), University of the West Indies and the Ministry of Tourism, will also be a celebration of Global Tourism Resilience Day on February 17.

Speaking Wednesday during a press briefing to provide an overview of what is to come during the conference, Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett made the point that, within the context of what is happening globally, the sector is susceptible to cybercrimes. There is a need, he said, “to be able to manipulate cybersecurity arrangements for the protection and security of visitors from across the globe”.

“We have had impact from cyber activity. Even late last year we had a cyber-incident which impacted the aviation sector and impacted air seats to Jamaica. So it’s not a matter of whether it will happen. It’s a reality that is happening. We saw attack on database to a number of our large tourism partners. Marriot had a major incident a year or so ago, and it continues,” the tourism minister said.

He also pointed to identity theft as a big issue in the sector, and gave an assurance that the conference will provide tools, data and information that will assist in mitigation, management and recovery from cyber-incidents.

“We have to be constantly building capacity to manage these disruptions, as I call them, but more so to anticipate them,” Bartlett said.

“It’s an exciting and important moment, I think, for tourism in the region because I think this is the first major conference that will be focusing on cybersecurity as part of the threats for tourism sustainability,” he said.

Professor Lloyd Waller, executive director of the GTRCMC, also explained why the topics planned for the event are important.

“We at GTRCMC recognise the challenges associated with cybersecurity, clearly evidenced by several different destructions in both the United States and Europe in the last three months. Based on that recognition, and the challenges associated with cybersecurity, cybercrimes, cyber-terrorism, we recognise that it is an important aspect of the tourism space going forward, especially for small island developing states. And that will be a major feature in our discussions,” he said.

“As a matter of fact, GTRCMC felt tourism security resilience, including cybersecurity, is one of the thematic areas that we focus on, specifically our European offices. But we are bringing it here in Jamaica because we do recognise that it will be a problem in Jamaica, especially with the introduction of quantum computing technology. The technology now has the ability to move over a thousand times faster than the current technology. So it is a threat and certainly something that we have to raise awareness about as it relates to the level of the threat and the solutions that are available to be able to mitigate whatever threat it may have to the tourism sectors around the world,” Waller added.

The tourism minister conceded that Caribbean nations are not digitally equipped to address the technological challenges, including cyber threats, and stressed the need for more investments in cyber sciences within the sector.

“We just have to prepare and build capacity. This conference is going to go a long way in helping to bring that consciousness to the fore, but more so to show the specific areas that we can engage to build that capacity,” he explained.

“We are conscious that the future is going to be driven largely by our ability to have greater knowledge of these technological advances but more so to be able to manipulate them well and to enable them to benefit us in a very positive way,” Bartlett added.

According to Professor Waller, another key feature of the conference will be a ministerial round-table discussion where a recently completed study by the World Bank on the future of tourism, with elements that look on the incorporation of digital technology will be presented.

“We will be presenting the findings to the ministers that will be there, which will be several ministers from around the world,” Waller disclosed.

The objective of the three-day conference, which is to be held under the theme ‘Building Tourism Resilience through digital transformation’, is to underscore the transformative power of digital technology in bolstering the resilience and sustainable of the global tourism industry.

The event will bring together tourism partners from across the globe to gather, exchange ideas, experiences, and visions for building a more sustainable and resilient tourism industry worldwide.