WITH the recent success of the September 30-October 1 Soca + Festival, players in the entertainment fraternity believe Jamaica can be developed into a destination for similar events.

Currently, Jamaica hosts three major festivals – Reggae Sumfest, Rebel Salute and Dream Weekend. All are held in rural tourist areas in Montego Bay, Plantation Cove and Negril, respectively.

Ron Burke of Dream Entertainment, promoters of Dream Weekend, sees even greater potential.

“Dream Weekend, for example, is going into its 15th year, and the bulk of those persons who attend every year are from all over the world. Whether we want to say we are or not a destination, we are pretty much in that space — and Dream has been one of those festivals that’s global that has contributed to that,” he opined in an interview with the Jamaica Observer.

“However I will say had we, as a country, taken advantage of it? No. Destination Jamaica is important; we are maybe in the top ten destinations for tourism in the world,” Burke added. “There are a lot of factors outside of event tourism. There’s health tourism, we have our food and our culture. Of course, the easiest one to maximise is events.”

Burke believes that the various stakeholders should come together to capitalise on the potential advantages of Jamaica as a location for festivals.

“It is now [for] us as festival organisers and the Government to sit down, and come together, and figure out how to further maximise what is organically happening already and capitalise on it. We market the beaches, the food and, to a lesser extent, the music but really and truly, just look at the website of the Jamaica Tourist Board [JTB] — nobody markets our events but us the promoters. It’s something we need to push.”

Two of Burke’s colleagues – Strictly 2K’s Marketing Director Ibrahim Konteh and Soca Therapy’s Roy Pinnock — weighed in.

“We can be a destination for festivals. Successive Administrations have spoken about this and our entertainment zones, but we’re not seeing any full execution of this being done. But it’s unfortunate, because when you think of several genres that came from Jamaica, some countries in Europe are more recognised for their reggae festivals than us. We can and should be the destination for festivals, again, based on the music genres we’ve created and so many other genres that have spanned Jamaican music,” said Konteh.

Pinnock believes Jamaica’s geographical location makes it an ideal festival hub.

“Yes, Jamaica can indeed evolve into a premier festival destination. We possess several key advantages, including our ideal geographical location, favourable weather conditions, a wide range of accommodation options, a pool of technical expertise, and abundant resources. This is evident from the successful large-scale stage shows and concerts that have taken place here over the years,” he said.

Ultimately, any major entertainment event needs backing from the Government. Culture Minister Olivia “Babsy'” Grange told the Jamaica Observer that her ministry has been working to develop a festival economy.

“Jamaica has been a destination for festivals for at least 40 years. Our country has hosted and continues to host mega events including Reggae Sumfest, Reggae Sunsplash, Jamaica World Music Festival (featuring some of the world’s biggest stars), Jamaica Jazz and Blues (which also attracted some of the world’s best acts), Jamaica Festival, the Curry or Food and Drink festivals, among others that contribute to our local economy,” she explained.

“My ministry is working on facilitating the continued growth and development of the festival economy. Of the 189 entertainment-related events sponsored by the ministry between 2018 and 2022, a little less than half were music, major festivals, carnivals, two theatrical performances, and the like. So yes, the economy benefits from events of all types, whether they are major festivals or small, community-based round robins. The pandemic proved the importance of entertainment generally. It is a key driver of economic activity in our country,” said Grange in an emailed response.

She reinforced the support her ministry provides to event organisers including Reggae Sumfest, Rebel Salute, Reggae Month activities, festival and carnival.

Event curator, music producer and artiste manager Romaine “Luigi Society” Brown pointed to the importance of suitable venues if a festival boom is to take place.

“Yes, the country can develop further into a destination for festivals because it already is. I say ‘further’ because Sumfest, Rebel Salute and a few others are already annual festivals that have a huge influx of overseas patronage. However, the industry could benefit greatly with investments, developing current popular venues like Jamworld, or adding new venues so that the use of places like the National Stadium football field can be avoided. In my view, the stadium should be used for the sole purpose it was built for — sporting activities,” said Brown.