FEBRUARY 19, 2024

President’s Day

Happy President’s Day! To everyone celebrating in the United States, we wish you a day full of optimism, reflection, and safe festivities. As this day honors the legacy of leadership and unity, let us pray for our current and future leaders to utilize wisdom in guiding the country toward socioeconomic development, peace and security. Enjoy the holiday! 

CTO bats for tourism resilience

CTO Chairman Kenneth Bryan (right) greets UN Tourism Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili in Montego Bay.

Chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Kenneth Bryan, engaged in important talks last week with Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General of UN Tourism (formerly UNWTO), at the second Global Tourism Resilience Conference in Montego Bay, Jamaica. 

The two leaders discussed investments in education, training and marketing opportunities during a vibrant conversation. 

“This conference embodies our collective determination to both foresee and adapt to the industry’s challenges,” remarked Chairman Bryan, who also is the Minister of Tourism and Ports in the Cayman Islands.

CTO Secretary-General and CEO Dona Regis-Prosper also attended the meeting and engaged in productive discussions with stakeholders.

On Saturday, conference attendees celebrated the second Global Tourism Resilience Day, an official United Nations celebration. The day aims to emphasize the need to foster resilient tourism development to deal with shocks, taking into account the vulnerability of the tourism sector to emergencies. “Here’s to resilience, recovery, and a brighter future for tourism,” Pololikashvili stated.

CHTA Marketplace registration now open

CHTA President Nicola Madden-Greig (right) and Robin Russell, President of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association, are gearing up for Caribbean Travel Marketplace.

Registration is now open for the 42nd annual Caribbean Travel Marketplace, produced by the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA), taking place from May 20-23, 2024, at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in Jamaica. 

This premier event serves as a vital platform for connecting suppliers of Caribbean travel products and services with global buyers, facilitating networking, collaboration, and the showcasing of the Caribbean’s diverse hospitality and tourism offerings. 

The event will feature the third annual Caribbean Travel Forum on May 20, focusing on the business of Caribbean tourism with discussions on multi-destination marketing, intra-Caribbean travel, air connectivity and sustainability. The CHTA Awards lunch will recognize the Destination Resilience Award winner. 

A new addition this year is the Marketplace Responsible Tourism Dayon May 23, aimed at promoting sustainable tourism development and community engagement in Jamaica. 

Learn more at chtamarketplace.com.

Quotable Caribbean

“Next year we’ll be having ‘We Gatherin’ 2025’. It’s an opportunity for all Barbadians in the diaspora globally to come back to Barbados and experience what we have. There will be several activities planned on a monthly basis in different parishes and we anticipate that that will go very well. And that is why we are also adding new nonstop services from our key markets to ensure we have the airlift … not only for members of the diaspora, but also (for) other visitors who we want to attract in their numbers to come home and celebrate with us.” – Ian Gooding-Edghill, Minister of Tourism and International Transport, Barbados

PR Tips: Safeguarding your brand

In today’s digital era, the most significant asset of a brand is its reputation. 

With social media and online reviews, public perception can change in an instant. Effective reputation management is essential for businesses of all sizes.

Proactive communication is critical to protecting your brand’s reputation. Engage consistently with target audiences through social media, news releases, and community events to address potential issues.

Honesty about your brand’s values, products, and practices is crucial. Own up to mistakes and take swift action to resolve issues, demonstrating authenticity and accountability that resonate with consumers.

Monitoring conversations about brands across social media and online platforms is vital. But despite our best efforts, crises may arise. A crisis management plan outlining clear protocols for addressing different situations, is a must. 

Safeguarding a brand’s reputation demands a proactive and multifaceted PR approach. Brands must invest in their protection for the long term.

Digital Digest: Jamaica Minister says digital is key to resilience

Senator Dr. Dana Morris Dixon in Jamaica last week

In an address at the Global Tourism Resilience Conference in Jamaica last week, Senator Dr. Dana Morris Dixon, Jamaica’s Minister for Digital Transformation and Skills Development, shed light on the intersections of technology, cybersecurity, training and resilience within the tourism sector. 

Dr. Morris Dixon underscored the urgency and necessity of embedding resilience and technology across every facet of the tourism supply chain, highlighting the vulnerability of the sector to various threats, including cyber-attacks.

“Your entity is under attack as we speak by cyber criminals, I can guarantee you that,” Dr. Morris Dixon stated, emphasizing the relentless attempts by cybercriminals to infiltrate both private businesses and government entities within the tourism industry. She pointed out that such attacks can cause not only immediate damage but can also severely tarnish reputations and diminish trust among customers.

In her short but insightful address, the Minister also discussed the proactive measures being undertaken in Jamaica to stay abreast of technological developments. She mentioned the importance of green construction technology, the integration of robotics and agricultureto improve food security, and AI learning in educational and training initiatives. “We have to be leaders in the development of the technology around tourism,” she asserted.

Dr. Morris Dixon believes resilience and technology ought to be embedded in every element of the tourism supply chain, from social media and hotel management systems to building a more robust cyber framework and digitizing the immigration process. “We’re incorporating digital in everything that we do,” she noted.

Medical Moment

World Kidney Day takes place on March 14, 2024.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is estimated to affect more than 850 million people worldwide and resulted in over 3.1 million deaths in 2019. 

Currently, kidney disease ranks as the 8th leading cause of death, and if left unaddressed, it is projected to be the 5th leading cause of years of life lost by 2040.

Achieving optimal kidney care requires identifying gaps in early diagnosis, universal health care or insurance coverage, awareness among health care workers, medication cost, and accessibility.

Recommended strategies include:

• Health policies that holistically integrate kidney care into existing health programs, funding for kidney care, and the dissemination of kidney health knowledge to the public and the health care workforce

• Health care delivery that is patient-centered and identifies solutions to kidney care barriers



• Health care professionals in primary care and kidney specialists require enhanced training. Education on appropriate CKD screening and adherence to clinical practice guidelines and recommendations are key to implementing effective and safe treatment strategies.

Empowering patients and communities by raising awareness about risk factors, including diabetes, hypertension and obesity; enhancing health literacy about healthy lifestyle choices and self-care; and promoting long-term adherence to treatment strategies can bring significant benefits, especially when initiated early and consistently maintained.