Minister Edmund Bartlett cops RJRGLEANER Hospitality Jamaica Pioneer Award
RECOGNISED FOR his wide-ranging expertise and accomplishments in the political arena, Edmund Bartlett has given over 40 years of service to Jamaica, working both in the Senate and in the House of Representatives.
Bartlett was first appointed minister of tourism in 2007, serving until December 2011. Before this appointment, he already had a solid track record of service as an outstanding legislator in central government in both Chambers of Parliament. While serving in the shadow Cabinet following his first stint as tourism minister, Bartlett travelled the world forging alliances with strategic partners for global initiatives. He returned to the helm of the Ministry of Tourism following his party’s victory in Jamaica’s February 2016 general election.
As one of the world’s leading tourism ministers, Bartlett has represented Jamaica regionally and internationally. He served as chairman of the Board of Affiliate Members of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), and vice-chairman of the UNWTO Executive Council, as well as vice-chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO). He is presently the chair of the Regional Commission of the Americas (CAM) since being appointed in May 2019, and the founder and co-chair of the Global Tourism and Resilience Crisis Management (GTRCM) Centre at The University of the West Indies, Mona.
A WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE
He is the first to serve on the executive of both the public- and private-sector arms of this prestigious organisation. This wealth of experience has made him a muchsought-after speaker at tourism-related forums.
Minister Bartlett is an ardent proponent of public-private partnerships, which he considers essential to the sustainable development of the tourism industry. These alliances span the various sectors, locally and internationally, that make up tourism, including transportation, agriculture and manufacturing. Some of these partnerships have taken the form of foreign direct investment, particularly in the area of accommodation.
Tourism has been positioned by him as a catalyst for economic growth and the transformation of communities. He has established five networks (gastronomy, shopping, health and wellness, sports and entertainment, and knowledge) to fuel growth and initiated the Tourism Linkages Network within the ministry to strengthen sustainable linkages between tourism and other sectors of the economy.
The region has also benefited from his innovative thinking, as he views other Caribbean and Latin American destinations not as Jamaica’s competitors, but as partners that can use their combined tourism offerings to attract more visitors to experience multi-destination tourism. He has taken bold steps to have this facilitated under a special memoranda of understanding between nations in the region.
Minister Bartlett has copped numerous awards. He was awarded Minister of the Year Worldwide by the Pacific Area Travel Writers Association in March 2018 and Caribbean Tourism Minister of the Year at the Caribbean Travel Awards 2017.
Most recently, he received the International Institute for Peace through Tourism Champions in Challenge Award at the International Travel Crisis Management Summit in London in November 2018, and last month, he was bestowed the 2019 Pioneer Award by the RJRGLEANER Hospitality Jamaica.