HANOVER, Jamaica – Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, says Jamaica must prepare to take advantage of the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution that is unfolding globally.

“Jamaica must not be a spectator… the truth is that, historically, we have been spectators to world-shaping global transformations that have happened through the fourth industrial revolution.  We have missed all of them as a country, but now we are in quite a good position, I believe, to take advantage of the benefits of artificial intelligence, not to fear it,” he said.

The prime minister, who was addressing a round-table session during day two of the Global Tourism Resilience Conference at the Princess Grand Hotel in Hanover on Tuesday, said that AI should not be viewed as a replacement for jobs, but for how it can be used as a tool to improve productivity.

“That is what we are trying to do in Jamaica, to build all the digital infrastructure to allow us to continue with business, to continue to serve the needs of economies, not just ours but globally, even when there are global shocks,” he pointed out.

Speaking on the conference theme, ‘Building Tourism Resilience Through Digital Transformation’, Holness underscored the importance of diversifying the island’s economy to make it more resilient.

“You cannot rely on four or five industries to carry through the storms that will hit your shores, whether they be geopolitical or natural. So, I like the ideas being discussed in this theme of resilience, which is, you know, how can the digital revolution, digitalisation, the integration of technology… help in building resilience,” he said.

“For Jamaica, we are inherently a service-based economy, which is quite a good position to be in, because we should be positioning ourselves to take advantage of the integration of technology to provide services, not just here but globally,” Holness outlined.

For his part, Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett, informed that some 21 countries were represented at the conference.

He also underscored the importance of resilience discussions at the conference, noting that “it’s not just for academic rigor, but it’s to drive substantial policy guidelines and a substantial conversion of ideas and knowledge into material goods, services and policy framework that enable the strengthening and building of capacity for resilience in our destinations”.

The conference concluded on February 19.

–         JIS

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