Negril Chamber urges infrastructure revamp to match tourism boost

The Negril Chamber of Commerce (NCC) has appealed to the Government to improve the Westmoreland town’s infrastructure, which it said has not been developed to accommodate ongoing expansion.

Negril has been on an upward trajectory as a growing tourism district, with an 11.5 per cent increase in visitorship between January and October last year and in 2018.

During its annual gala dinner last month, NCC President Richard Wallace said that with much development under way, including a 2,036-room hotel to be built in Green Island, room additions being made on several properties, and the recent opening of a shopping plaza, the chamber feared Negril would soon outgrow its current infrastructure.

GOV’T INTERVENTION

Wallace, in his address, asked for the government’s immediate intervention.

“We want to ensure that adequate water supply, sewage disposal, homes for persons being employed to these resorts, schools, healthcare and public transportation are being considered.

While there are different views from various stakeholders as to how each wants Negril to evolve, the general consensus is that we welcome growth and sustainable development, which can only be facilitated by proper infrastructural support,” said Wallace.

According to statistics from the Jamaica Tourist Board, the number of hotel room nights sold in Negril grew by 17.1 per cent between 2017 and 2018, with 467,671 tourists visiting the town for seven nights on average in 2018. Additionally, Negril employs 23.9 per cent or provides 12,027 direct jobs in the tourism sector, which is more than Ocho Rios and just below Montego Bay.

“Negril needs to get her fair share of the revenue she generates [to be] reinvested into the town’s infrastructural network. I guarantee that Negril will provide an exceptional return on that investment for the Jamaican people. I am appealing to the local leadership of Negril, the members of parliament, mayors, councillors, heads of government agencies; let us work together to build Negril to realise her true potential as one of the best tourist resorts in the world,” Wallace said.

As Negril heads towards another rapid growth spurt with more hotels, jobs and visitors coming to the town, the NCC is calling for the government to take quick action and has agreed to lend its support and cooperation.