Bartlett to seek Maltese support for tourism resilience centre

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett is to hold talks with President of Malta Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, who is also the patron of the Mediterranean Tourism Foundation (MTF).

A statement issued by the Ministry of Tourism said that Bartlett, who left the island on Friday, will be discussing the country’s possible participation and collaboration, in the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre.

“It was a great honour for me to receive an invitation to meet with the President of Malta to discuss sustainable tourism and ways in which they can partner with us in the establishment of our Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre,” Bartlett said.

“I look forward to having fruitful discussions with President Preca and her team, and I am sure this will result in very positive news for our mission of protecting the tourism industry,” said Bartlett.

The centre, which will be housed at the Mona campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI), is being designed to help vulnerable states across the world, to recover quickly from natural disasters.

The statement said that it will specifically target destination preparedness, management and recovery from disruptions and/or crises that threaten economies and livelihoods globally, with real-time data and effective communication.

It said that during his visit to Malta, Bartlett will also meet with his counterpart Dr Konrad Mizzi, Malta’s MTF President Tony Zahra and MTF governors Dr Taleb Rifai, Dr Tijani Haddad and George Micallef. The meeting will allow for the sharing of best practices on tourism policy and sustainable development strategies.

Bartlett is being accompanied by the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, Jennifer Griffith, who will participate in the 109th UNWTO Executive Council meeting in Manama, Bahrain.

“Jamaica has a very critical role to play in this meeting as we are now serving the first year of a two-year term of office in the Executive Council. We will have a discussion on smart tourism and data driven decisions. Additionally, we will discuss the UNWTO’s role in the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre,” said Bartlett.

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