EDITORIAL - How the Gov't might support festivals

We are unsurprised by the reported unease of Tourism Minister Wykeham McNeill that the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) may have pumped US$450,000 (J$40 million) in the recently held and, by all accounts, hugely successful Jamaica Jazz & Blues Festival.

Rather, we would be astonished if the cash was offered on Dr McNeill's watch without a demand for specific deliverables, or return to the Government by the organisers of the event, Art of Music Productions (AMP), particularly if it were a commercial success.

After all, the absence of any such undertaking was a contentious issue for Dr McNeill while his party was in Opposition. Indeed, as chairman of Parliament's Public Administration and Appropriations Committee, where the issue was ventilated, Dr McNeill had insisted that AMP's profit and loss account for the festival be used to help determine if, and how much, taxpayers should contribute to the venture.

Positives for tourism

Of course, we, like most Jamaicans, appreciate that while a commercial venture, the Jamaica Jazz & Blues Festival is good for Jamaica's broader tourism business. It helps to generate both domestic and international interest in the country and spurs business in the accommodation and food sectors on the island's north coast.

The value of this cannot be discounted, especially in the context of Minister McNeill's report this week in the nine months up to January, when the festival was held, Jamaica's stopover arrivals declined by 0.8 per cent, when compared to the corresponding period in 2010-11.

Nonetheless, the festival remains a business, albeit an expensive undertaking, from which those who invest in it expect to turn a profit. It is in this context that the promoters tap the JTB for sponsorship.

What is not clear with regard to this year's show is at what point the Tourist Board approved an initial US$200,000 to AMP and then an additional $250,000 - before or after Dr McNeill's assumption of the job. We assume it might have been before. Nor do we know whether any of the criteria he had set out for support were met and, assuming the show was profitable, if taxpayers will get back any of their money.

Attach some strings

First, we believe that ventures such as this, even though commercial in nature, may be worthy of some government support because of their potentially positive impact on tourism. While the potential rewards are great, they can be expensive and risky. Moreover, they require substantial upfront cash.

However, we do not believe that support by the Government should be entirely free, or without obligation on the part of the entrepreneur. That is why we have sympathy for Minister McNeill, especially in the context of Jamaica's difficult fiscal situation.

What we suggest for the future, therefore, is that beyond, say US$50,000, the JTB, and other government agencies, treat their support of festivals like Jazz & Blues as equity investment, perhaps as preference shares. The Government would be entitled to a return, on the basis of the prefs, if the event is profitable. That would mean, of course, that the audited accounts of the venture would have to be open.

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