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<span style='font-family: Comic Sans MS'>This is what I was writing about a couple of weeks ago. Tourism #'s are dow down down. EVEN WITH the cricket, they're down. I could tell even while I was there and being in different parts of the island and the tourist towns for long stretches.
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Wed Apr 4, 2007
Tourism Minister changes forecast for tourist arrivals
Tourism Minister Aloun Assamba brought dismal news to the Standing Committee of Parliament Wednesday in contrast to the joyous news late last year when the country recorded it highest number of visitor arrivals.
She was forced to release data which show a decrease in tourist arrivals in the first quarter of 2007.
The Minister also admitted that this has forced her Ministry to review its projections for the remainder of the year.
Mrs. Assamba was at pains to play down the effects of the downturn, which is most significant in the US market, describing it as a slight decline.
She revealed that figures for January reflected a minus 2.4 percentage downturn in January and minus four percentage points in February.
Making reference to preliminary figures, Opposition spokesman on Tourism Edmund Bartlett queried whether March is looking like minus six percentage point downturn.
However, Mrs. Assamba declined to comment.
When pressed, the Minister was at pains to stress that the situation was not dismal.
“It is in relation to what it was last year. May I put that into perspective because you know figures are a thing you can use for all kinds of things. Let me say this generally speaking our average rate of increase in stop over arrivals are in between six to seven per cent per annum last year we had 15 per cent per annum,” said Mrs. Assamba.
“So when you are comparing a minus four per cent for that period it is a minus four per cent over 15 per cent in one year,”
Mrs. Assamba argued that neighbouring markets are also down.
“US Virgin Islands was down by 7.8 per cent, the Bahamas was down by eight per cent, Barbados was down by four per cent, St. Lucia is down by 13 per cent,” said Mrs. Assamba.
Asked by Mr. Bartlett to review the effect of the new US Visa regime, Mrs. Assamba conceded that this has partly contributed to the downturn.
Late last year, Mrs. Assamba maintained that the US Visa regime would have had a minimal impact on tourist arrivals to Jamaica.
In response to another question from the Opposition, Mrs. Assamba said more attention will have to be paid to the UK and other markets.
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______________
Wed Apr 4, 2007
Tourism Minister changes forecast for tourist arrivals
Tourism Minister Aloun Assamba brought dismal news to the Standing Committee of Parliament Wednesday in contrast to the joyous news late last year when the country recorded it highest number of visitor arrivals.
She was forced to release data which show a decrease in tourist arrivals in the first quarter of 2007.
The Minister also admitted that this has forced her Ministry to review its projections for the remainder of the year.
Mrs. Assamba was at pains to play down the effects of the downturn, which is most significant in the US market, describing it as a slight decline.
She revealed that figures for January reflected a minus 2.4 percentage downturn in January and minus four percentage points in February.
Making reference to preliminary figures, Opposition spokesman on Tourism Edmund Bartlett queried whether March is looking like minus six percentage point downturn.
However, Mrs. Assamba declined to comment.
When pressed, the Minister was at pains to stress that the situation was not dismal.
“It is in relation to what it was last year. May I put that into perspective because you know figures are a thing you can use for all kinds of things. Let me say this generally speaking our average rate of increase in stop over arrivals are in between six to seven per cent per annum last year we had 15 per cent per annum,” said Mrs. Assamba.
“So when you are comparing a minus four per cent for that period it is a minus four per cent over 15 per cent in one year,”
Mrs. Assamba argued that neighbouring markets are also down.
“US Virgin Islands was down by 7.8 per cent, the Bahamas was down by eight per cent, Barbados was down by four per cent, St. Lucia is down by 13 per cent,” said Mrs. Assamba.
Asked by Mr. Bartlett to review the effect of the new US Visa regime, Mrs. Assamba conceded that this has partly contributed to the downturn.
Late last year, Mrs. Assamba maintained that the US Visa regime would have had a minimal impact on tourist arrivals to Jamaica.
In response to another question from the Opposition, Mrs. Assamba said more attention will have to be paid to the UK and other markets.
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