WE expect that within the next few days the country will get a better idea of the full impact that this year’s staging of Reggae Sumfest had on the economy. Based on the feedback so far, we suspect it has been significant.

Our view has its foundation in the large number of patrons, including foreigners, who turned up at the festival venue each night — as evident from the press coverage of the event — as well as the comments by Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) officials published in yesterday’s edition of this newspaper.

“Every hotel was completely sold out for the festival. I mean, hotels, villas, Airbnbs,” said an upbeat Ms Kerry Ann Quallo Casserly, the JHTA second vice-president who also chairs JHTA’s Montego Bay Chapter.

“Transportation companies, craft vendors, vendors of all kinds; all the major bars, restaurants, attractions — everyone really felt the impact. We can agree this was a record-breaking crowd, especially from the Friday night… It was quite fruitful. The economy of Montego Bay benefited tremendously,” she added.

Her assessment was supported by Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett who observed that hotels from Ocho Rios to Negril, as well as street vendors and artisans, benefited from the event.

That is music to our ears as it proves a point we have been making in this space for years about the immediate and long-term economic value of major events to a country.

Statista, the global data and business intelligence platform, has projected that entertainment events globally will see a compound annual growth rate of 8.53 per cent for the period 2022-2029, resulting in a projected market volume of US$61.74 billion by 2029.

In the area of sporting events, Statista projects revenue of US$117.90 billion this year and an annual growth rate of 3.98 per cent for the period 2025-2029, resulting in a projected market volume of US$137.82 billion by 2029.

These are not numbers to sneeze at, and, as we have often argued, Jamaica can capture significant chunks of these markets given our stellar history in entertainment and sports on the world stage.

Anyone who doubts this should reflect on the economic impact that Carnival, the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys’ and Girls’ Athletics Championships, as well as Grand Slam Track had on this country earlier this year.

We share Ms Quallo Casserly’s hope that many more events, properly promoted and managed, will be staged across Jamaica. She is spot on in her analysis that, “having a powerful brand in terms of an event can really pull visitors [and] can really give an uptick in [visitor] arrivals to the destination”.

The fact, also, that the island is experiencing a significant decrease in crime, we believe, is contributing to the success of the events staged here and as such we again extend kudos to the authorities while urging the political parties to keep their campaigns violence-free.

We reiterate that what is urgently required for Jamaica to earn even more from these growing markets is substantial investment in facilities and equipment. The planned upgrade of the National Stadium and improvements to Sabina Park are excellent first steps. We will also need world-class maintenance of infrastructure; organisation; heavy, consistent marketing; and, just as important, the will to get it all done.

It’s not beyond us.