New York, USA; May 4, 2022: Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett today called for a full debate at the United Nations and relevant agencies on the challenges to tourism recovery, with a focus on resilience-building through funding for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) that are highly tourism-dependent but weakly resourced.  He noted that the issue of supply chain disruptions in terms of goods and services as well as human capital, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, had made the prospects of an equitable recovery challenging. Minister Bartlett was delivering his keynote address at the United Nations General Assembly Roundtable today under the theme “For People: Leaving No One Behind Through Inclusive Tourism”. It was part of the General Assembly’s High-level Thematic Debate on “Putting Sustainable and Resilient Tourism at the Heart of an Inclusive Recovery” held at the UN Headquarters, New York. The debate was organized in collaboration with the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

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THEOism is a lifestyle that welcomes open conversations where the art of Critical Thinking and democratic debates is the core mission. 

It Is Better To Debate A Question Without Settling It
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Remote working, flexible working, and hybrid working are all here to stay. We've demonstrated that they can work - the task now is to make sure they do.

It's coming up to two years since a global pandemic tore up the traditional model of work, and many of us are still getting used to it.

While some companies have seen employees trickling through their doors again, others continue to spend the week logged in to work from whatever corner of the house offers the most comfort. Meanwhile, the idea of remote, flexible, or 'hybrid' working becoming the norm continues to divide opinion.

Hon. Edmund Bartlett

KINGSTON, Jamaica; December 3, 2021: Tourism Minister, Hon Edmund Bartlett has emphasised that Jamaica is restructuring the tourism industry to ensure that more of the earnings from the sector go to the small and medium tourism enterprises. 

The Minister made the comment yesterday during a Ministerial Debate on Policies to Foster Tourism for Rural Development during the 24th session of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) General Assembly in Madrid, Spain. 

"There are inequities we know to exist in those who are the real providers of tourism experiences and those who are the beneficiaries of the tourism spend. Globally, 80 per cent of tourism is driven by the small and medium players, but only 20 per cent of the returns go to them. We have to rebalance that asymmetry, and I think that the policy that Jamaica has adopted in this regard will go a long way in enabling this rebalancing," said Bartlett. 

He added that research has shown that people travel to experience culture not traditionally found in the resort areas but in rural communities. Therefore the Ministry will be focusing heavily on leveraging community tourism experiences, especially those focusing on the country's rich biodiversity. 

Investing in customer service is a powerful marketing strategy as loyal customers will help you acquire new customers, free of charge, by convincing prospects to interact with your brand. Their positive testimonials will be more effective than any of your current marketing efforts — and cheaper, too!

Most people relate to each shopping experience by having either recommended stores with good experiences or complaints about the ones they didn’t like. Therefore, your customers’ experience should be number one on your list of priorities. Of course, not everything will always go according to plan. However, when there’s an issue, ensure to turn your problems into opportunities and solutions.

In addition to good customer service, you can keep customers happy by providing incentives and getting them to feel invested in your brand. Here is a list of ways to gain some goodwill from the community that keeps you in business.

 Give customers a reason to come back. If you can capture customer data, send an email expressing your gratitude or text along with a coupon. You may also encourage them to return sooner rather than later by making the coupon time bound.

Malik Ambar is credited with the construction of the Janjira fort in the Murud region of present-day india Maharashtra. After its construction in 1567 A.D., the fort was the key to the Siddis resisting various invasion attempts by the Marathas, Mughals and Portuguese to take the fort of Janjaweed.

Malik Ambar (1548 – 13 May 1626) was a Siddi military leader and prime minister of the Ahmadnagar Sultanate in the Deccan region of India. He was, however, born in the Sultanate of Adal, in present-day Ethiopia, in Harar "the city" ORomo.

Harar is the capital of the Hararghe East area and the capital of the Harari region of Ethiopia. The city is located on top of a hill in the eastern extension of Oromia,about five hundred kilometers from the seat of the federal government and the capital of Oromia Addis Ababa, at an altitude of 1885 meters (6184 feet).

For centuries, Harar has been an important trading centre, connected by trade routes with the rest of Ethiopia, the entire Horn of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula,and, through its ports, the outside world. Harar Jugol, the ancient fortified city, was inscribed on the World Heritage List of HUMANITY in 2006 by Unesco in recognition of its cultural heritage. Due to Harar's long history of involvement during trading periods in the Arabian Peninsula, the Ethiopian government has made it a criminal offence to demolish or interfere with historic sites or facilities in the city. These include stone houses, museums and items thrown away during the war. According to UNESCO, it is "considered the fourth holiest city " in Islam" with 82 mosques, three of which date from the twentieth century, and 102 shrines.

Editor’s Remarks: “Congratulations to Jamaica’s Tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett, Ministry of Tourism and its team for another Big Win for BRAND Jamaica. May God bless our sterling efforts and may the nation continue to excel even during the Pandemic, growing from strength to strength .” Caribnewsroom Team.

Less than a month after topping the World Travel Awards Caribbean & North America 2021 Winners Day in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Jamaica scored big again on Thursday, November 11, at the 2021 Travvy Awards in Miami, Florida.

The country took home the gold for Caribbean’s Best Destination, Best Culinary Destination, Best Tourism Board, and Best Travel Agent Academy Program.

Jamaica also received Silver awards for best Caribbean Wedding Destination and Best Caribbean Honeymoon Destination.

The annual Travvy Awards were held at the Miami Beach Convention Center.

WEB Du Bois

In our series of letters from African journalists, Elizabeth Ohene looks at plans to build a state-of-the-art complex in Ghana to honour the pioneering US black civil rights activist William Edward Burghardt Du Bois.

A cadre of radical African-American intellectuals and artists moved to Ghana after its independence in 1957 and contributed to the invigorating atmosphere of those times.

WEB Du Bois - the famous African-American scholar and black activist - was probably the most high-profile figure among the coterie of African diasporans who came to live here.

The first African American to earn a doctorate from Harvard University in 1895, he fought prejudice and racism in the US, speaking out against lynching and calling for the equality for all citizens.

Benin Bronze Images

On October 7 and 9, the Prime Minister of the State of the African Diaspora will be invited to the Africa-France Summit to deliver a speech on Restitution.

In this area, Dr Louis-Georges Tin and his parties have already accomplished many things: the law passed in France for the benefit of Benin and Senegal, the law passed in Belgium for the benefit of the DRC, and the resolution passed in respect of was the case. European Parliament for restitution and reparation. It is a historic movement, but it is certainly not enough.

ALL African countries should receive ALL their artifacts. This is why the Prime Minister wants the subject to be on the table during the French presidency of the European Union, from January 2022. This is now what he is discussing with the French authorities.

In the meantime, SOAD is launching a major campaign to give more impetus to the Prime Minister. On October 1 and 2, the government organized an international conference on restitution. Specific guests included Chief Fortune Charumbira, Speaker of the African Union Parliament, Co-chair of the Royal Chamber of DICO; the special representative of the President of the African Union, President Félix Tshisekedi; Daagbo Hounon, Supreme Leader of the Vodou Cult; Saliou Mamadou, grandson of the former President of Guinea, Sekou Touré.

The Gleaner - Gareth Davis Sr.

PORT MARIA, ST MARY

Eventually, protection from COVID-19 will have to be a personal responsibility, as the Government cannot continue the containment protocols forever, Prime Minister Andrew Holness has declared.

Anse d'Arlet in Martinique

The world’s largest airline is relaunching another destination in the Caribbean: the French Caribbean island of Martinique, Caribbean Journal has learned.

On Nov. 6, the carrier will resume its nonstop service between Miami International Airport and Fort-de-France’s Aime Cesaire International Airport.

The flights will initially run weekly on Saturdays before increasing to at least thrice weekly, according to American Airlines.

American is operating the service on its Embraer 175 aircraft with 76 seats, the company confirmed. 

Paris, September 15, 2021. September being a good time to speak about education, the State of the African Diaspora (SOAD) is pleased to announce that the SOAD Network of Pan-African Schools is now in existence. It includes more than 720 schools from different countries such as Benin, Burkina Faso, Guadeloupe, Gabon, Ghana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, United Kingdom, United States, Zambia, Zimbabwe, etc.

Different Pan-African schools exist in the world, but they are not very connected and operate in silos. That is why, for SOAD, it was necessary to create a real network. Thus, all over the world, Pan-African teachers will be able to share good practices, documents, contents, handbooks, exercises, and all kinds of educational resources: they will not have to reinvent the wheel every day.

Dr Tin, Prime Minister of SOAD made the following statement:

“As far as I can see, more and more Africans on the continent and in the diaspora are concerned about the quality of the education provided to their children, and oftentimes, ignoring who we are and where we are coming from. The curriculum of these schools brings a kind of alienation to our young children. This is the reason why it is so crucial to create a whole network of Pan-African schools. ”

The Caribbean countries of Barbados, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have gathered 3,500 kg of medical supplies to be sent to the largest country in the Caribbean, Cuba.

The news was announced this Friday by the regional integration bank on its Twitter account, where it acknowledged the role of the four English-speaking Caribbean nations in organizing the much-needed medical aid to the Cuban people in coordination with Conviasa.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Cuba has sent international medical brigades to every country in the Caribbean to help the island nations confront and control the deadly virus; now, with Cuba facing one of its sharpest outbreaks in the 18 months since the novel coronavirus reached the nation's shores, it will humbly receive the donations from its brother nations through an international air bridges established through the ALBA regional integration mechanism.

Due to the United States' economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed against Cuba for more than sixty years, the largest of the Antilles had struggled to obtain crucial medical, food and sanitary inputs to meet the growing needs of the population. The generous donation from its Caribbean bretheren adds to those originating over the past months from numerous countries worldwide, such as Nicaragua, Russia, Italy, Japan and Bolivia.

Havana, Sep 3 (Prensa Latina) Cuba will present its three anti-Covid-19 vaccines to the World Health Organization (WHO) next week to begin the international recognition process, international media reported Thursday.

According to statements by the Pan American and World Health Organization (PAHO / WHO) Representative for Cuba José Moya, specialists from Havana, Geneva and Washington will have the opportunity to attend virtually the event, in order to share information, coordinate documentation and set up schedules.

'It is a good news,' Moya told AP agency and stressed that a working team will be created to review the results of the clinical trials, production processes and quality of Cuban vaccines.

He indicated that a working meeting was held on Thursday at the request of Cuba to initiate the mechanism with PAHO/WHO representation and directors of the Business Group of the Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Industries of Cuba (BioCubaFarma), the Finlay Vaccine Institute ( IFV) and the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB).

In the aftermath of the Marcus Garvey Day (August 17), which is now on the State of the African Diaspora (SOAD) official calendar, we would like to thank Ambassador Sharon Parris-Chambers, who organized the event, which was a great success.

The day was marked by many highlights such as the panel discussion on women in the Back to Africa movement, the panel discussion on the Exodus Alliance, the alliance working to return to Africa, the documentary by RJ Mahdi and the presentation of the latest issue of the Label Diplomatique, the Pan-African magazine, which will also publish the panel presentations.

Musical interludes animated the meeting. Furthermore, as commemoration should not be a substitute for action, but rather a springboard for action, several concrete announcements were made, such as the trips to Africa organized by Lady Yaa, the Minister of Tourism of the State of the African Diaspora, trips that are naturally in line with the “Back to Africa” vision championed by Marcus Garvey.

But the highlight of the day was undoubtedly the message delivered by Dr. Julius Garvey, son of Marcus Garvey, and an Ambassador-at-Large of the State of the Diaspora.

The State of the African Diaspora expresses its gratitude to His Excellency, Chief Charumbira, President of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) of the African Union (AU), who has accepted to have a representation of Marcus Garvey in Ethiopia and in South Africa, Headquarters of the AU and of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP).

As a matter of fact, the campaign was initiated by Dr Julius Garvey, Marcus Garvey’s son, a few months ago. Being an ambassador at large of the State of the African Diaspora (SOAD), Dr Garvey asked Dr Tin, Prime Minister of SOAD, to also support this initiative. During the Marcus Garvey Day, celebrated on August 17th, Dr Tin officially endorsed the campaign, and the day after, wrote to Chief Charumbira, who is also the co-chair of the Royal Chamber of SOAD.

Chief Charumbira’s answer to Dr Tin was very quick and very positive. First of all, he paid a tribute to the Pan-African spirit delivered by the great Marcus Garvey. Indeed, Marcus Garvey is great not only for his vision that created the movement  “Back to Africa”, but also for his capacity to mobilise. His organisation had more than 6 millions members in more than 40 countries, in Africa and in the Diaspora. It was the biggest black organisation ever.

Chief Charumbira made it very clear : "Please count me and Pan-African Parliament as having accepted the posting both at AU and PAP of the portrait of Marcus Garvey."

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica. Thursday, August 5th, 2021- Sistas of D Ankh & Ma’at Sisterhood Circle celebrates their one-year anniversary with a special program titled “Drums of Alkebulan” via Zoom on August 8, 2021 between 1pm-3pm via Zoom Link - Https://us02Web.zoom.us/j/388417079. MEETING ID: 389 841 7079.  No password necessary.

The public are invited to attend. The event showcases special performances by: Abijah, Don Dada (South African Artiste’s premier performance of the Dawn Penn hit song and cover “You Don’t Love Me -No No No”), Danny Petersen, Nana Yahmin Ensemble featuring Jiwe on flute, Mbuta Mwalimu and Recorded session of Jam Africa Ensemble (Sagatala).

The Sisterhood Circle focuses on four (4) areas of personal development: Physical Wellbeing, Family/Parenting, Spirituality (inclusive of Sacred Feminine/Masculine) and Community Economics Development. Their mission is “each one, teach one, reach one” and their overall vision is “we walk together to go far,” hence allowing for differences to be settled in love, in truth and reciprocity in MA’AT.

Sistas of D Ankh, founded by Hazel Yahmin Williams-Vaz stated “The sessions have been absolutely wonderful, learning has been abundant and we have been consistently reassured about we, ourselves and I, not to mention moving forward, we hope others can join to assist in the Community Development Process”.  She also stated “It is about accountability and responsibility; therefore, broken people can never heal a community without knowing me, myself and I”.

The death of respected academic Runoko Rashidi was announced late last night by his friends and family. He passed away while on a research trip to Egypt on 2 August. Messages of love, support and remembrance are pouring in for the historian online. We take a look at his incredible life and academic career.

Who is Runoko Rashidi?

Runoko Rashidi described himself as a scholar, historian, author and a lecturer. Born in 1954, the historian was about 67 years old when he passed away.

He held frequent seminars about African History, Pan-Africanism, and focused his work specifically on the global African presence, which details the movement of Africans outside Africa before and after enslavement.

Maureen Tamuno, Nigerian High Commissioner meets Min. Ed Bartlett

KINGSTON, Jamaica; July 28, 2021: Tourism Minister Hon. Edmund Bartlett and newly appointed Nigerian High Commissioner to Jamaica, Maureen Tamuno, share a special COVID-19 greeting as she paid a courtesy call on the Minister, on July 27, 2021. During the session, Minister Bartlett emphasized that Africa is the new frontier for tourism, as his ministry is actively working to strengthen ties between Jamaica and the continent of Africa. The Minister and High Commissioner discussed increasing air connectivity between Jamaica and Nigeria and the establishment of a satellite Centre for the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC) based in Jamaica. 

This discussion comes on the heels of a recent visit to Kenya, where Minister Bartlett, who is also Co-Chair of the GTRCMC and Kenya's Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife, and Chairman of the GTRCMC – Eastern Africa, Najib Balala signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will pave the way for the two centres to work together to develop policy and conduct relevant research on destination preparedness, management, and recovery.

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Corporate Communications Division
Ministry of Tourism
64 Knutsford Boulevard
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Telephone: 876-920-4924

By: LALAINE C. DELMENDO | January 27, 2021

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