Rejuvenating Jamaican Tourism - Research Paper Example

REJUVENATING JAMAICAN TOURISM Introduction In the Greater Antilles, Jamaica is the 4th largest island. It covers a length of 145 kilometers, width of 80 kilometers and a total area of 10,990 square kilometers. Jamaica lies along Caribbean Sea, which is south of Cuba and also west of Hispaniola. During the time of Spanish possession called Santiago, it came under the rule of Great Britain in 1665, and was named as Jamaica. It achieved independence in 1962. Kingston is the largest city in the country with 937,700 people. Politically, the country is a commonwealth realm headed by Queen Elizabeth II. It has a monarchy system of government. It has an ideal climate for agriculture and tourism industries. In 1940s, the country discovered bauxite and the government shifted from banana and sugar export to mining. People in Jamaica share a combination of culture from Spanish and Taino. They use English as their official language thought many people use a local language called Patois. Section A: Internal and External Assessment of Tourism in Jamaica In the Greater Antilles, Jamaica leads in the tourism industry. The government depends most from the tourism industry. The industry provides about 50 % of the country’s foreign exchange. It provides about a fourth of the total jobs offered in Jamaica. Tourism industry helps in boosting the economy and creation of job opportunities to the youth. Tourism activities are carried in the northern coast island, which includes communities like Ocho Rios, Montego Bay and Port Antonio. Other places with tourism activities include western tip islands. The country has many airports and airlines, which help in transportation of tourist. According to Clarke (2009) the government also helps in development of the industry. Each finance year, the minister for tourism gets same funds to manage the industry. The government has worked to ensure success of the tourism industry because it contributes a lot in the government revenue. The fame gained through Olympic and music has made Jamaica attract more international visitors. Tourism Demand and Market in Jamaica Tourism has been on high demand in Jamaica. The famous musician, “Bob Marley” and the Olympic sprinter, “Usain Bolt” promoted the image of Jamaica world wide. Many people, tour in Jamaica to witness the Olympic champions and famous musicians. The level of visitors has been on the increase from 2000 to 2012. Tourism income increased to 53 % from 2000 to 2005. Tourism net earning doubled from 2000 to 2005 reaching $ 437 million. The rate increased from 2005 to 2010. Tourism industry will earn 1 billion in 2012. According to Black (2011) the demand for tourism does not decrease like other industries, which do not have a consistence growth. In 2000, the hotel occupation rose from 41 % to 65 %, and this has risen up to 90 % this year. Consecutively, the industry has grown for the last five years. In 2008, the industry had a total income of about 500 million, in 2009 it rose to 570, in 2010, it rose again to 700, 2011 it rose to 850 and in 2012 the income will reach 1 billion. The graph below represents Jamaica’s income from the tourism industry. The market of tourism has been promoted by many factors ranging from environmental, social and political. Tourism is promoted by people form other countries and the citizens of Jamaica. Citizens from different counties visit beaches and other places preserved by government for tourism purposes. People from other countries visit the cities in order to have a look of the geographical features. They also visit in order to see the famous Jamaican sprinters who always win in the Olympic Games. According to Dove (2010) music industry has attracted many people who visit the areas. The international visitors contribute more to the income than the local tourist. It is estimated that about 70 % revenue from the industry is generated by international tourists from foreign countries. The remaining 30 % comes from the local tourist or the individual from the country. The pie chart represents the percentage contribution of the revenues from international and local tourists. Most of the people visiting the country spend at least 24 hours. The existence of talented musicians and sprinters has made many people, and airlines to use Jamaica as a landing zone. They pass through Jamaica when travelling to other countries like America and Canada. Each year, many people visit the country with a purpose of tourism. According to Bowen (2009) in 2008, the country had 2,234, 700 visitors, in 2009 had about 2,300,000 visitors, in 2010 about 2,400,000, in 2011 about 2,450,000 and 2012 about 2,500,000 visitors. The graph below represents the number of visitors who visited Jamaica from 2008 to 2012. Government Involvement in the Tourism Industry Tourism industry contributes to 50 % of the economy of Jamaica, and this makes the government invest and take care of tourism infrastructures. The government allocates funds to the industry. According to Jay (2009) the infrastructures are maintained and repaired yearly by the government officials. The government ensures tourism industry gets support from other industries like transport, security and education. The government provides enough security to the people visiting the country. Security starts from the airports to the visiting areas. The government has ensured that the beaches and other tourism infrastructures are maintained. The government has ensured that universities and colleges offers courses related to tourism and hospitality industry. The government promotes tourism education to ensure that, the industry does not get short of professionals. The government provides employment to graduates to ensure that other people are encouraged to pursue the same courses. The government also works to ensure the transport sectors, enables tourist to move from one region to another effectively. It ensures airlines are maintained and are safe for travel all the time. The roads are repaired by use of government funds. According to Travelmole (2012) the government has appointed minister for tourism who ensures progress and reports problems to the central government. It provides payment for the senior officials in the industry. Generally, the government works to harmonize all industries in the country to ensure that they promote and ensure tourism growth. Primary and secondary attractions and accessibility The country has a warm climate, scenic beauty, white sand beaches and warm people who attract more tourists. People visit the country in order to see the beaches and spend some time enjoying. Many people go to spend their holidays in Jamaican sand beaches. According to Carter (2011) the Spanish ventures modern incarnation and this provide tipping point of the Jamaican tourism industry. There a number of groups of hotels establishing new hotels in the region. The groups RIU, Iberostar, Fiesta and Fuertes have added more than 6,000 hotels in Jamaica. The increased number of hotels ensures enough accommodation for people visiting the Island. The Abertis group changed the MBJ airport to an international class. Spanish health care is also adding more new health care facilities to ensure that the visitors get enough medical services. The map below show key tourism attractions and accessibility in Jamaica The Jamaican people warmth has also promoted tourism. People’s cultural practices are liked by many people in the whole world. The trend of Rastafarian is encouraged by many people, and this makes many people have an interest of visiting Jamaica. The success in Olympic Games has created a new image to the people in other country. According to Dee (2010) states that he success also in the music industry with same musicians like Bob Marley has made Jamaica be known world wide. Jamaican people are welcoming and treat visitors with respect. When tourist a treated with the respect, they visit the country again. The warmth of the people has made Jamaica win against his competitors in the Caribbean region. Competitors Report Jamaica has been facing tourism competition form other countries like Cuba and Dominic Republic. Though Jamaica is the leading country in tourism in Caribbean region has been facing challenges which make tourist to visit other countries. In 2000, Cuba had a total of 307,000 Canadian stopovers. Cuba provides stopover for more people travelling to places with warm weather. Jamaica has been leading in provision of stopovers as compared to other competitors. The country also has more visitors than the neighboring countries. For example, Jamaica had 1,560,212 stopovers in 2009 as compared to Cuba with 560,040 and Dominic republic with 470,980. Jamaica leads due to availability of infrastructures and favorable weather conditions. According to Black (2011) states that the issue of insecurity in Jamaica makes the competitors to attract more visitors than Jamaica. In case of insecurity in the region, visitors opt to go to go Cuba or Dominic Republic. SWOT Analysis of the Industry The industry has strengths which ensure progress. Involvement of the government in the industry has ensured enough funds for operations and development. Availability of enough transport and communication systems also ensures success of the industry. The industry has employed many people who provide services. The universities and colleges in the region offer courses related to the industry, and this means that the industry can not run out of professional employees. According to World Bank (2004) availability of infrastructures and favorable climate also promote the industry. Despite the strengths, the industry also has a weakness. High crime rate makes people avoid touring in the regions. Many people think that the place has many thieves, and they can have their properties stolen. The legalization of marijuana has made some people develop a negative attitude towards the country. Marijuana is associated with gung and people think that the country is for gung. The Rastafarian culture also has made a number of people to develop negative altitude. Many people’s culture does not allow Rastafarian, and they associated raster with gung. The opportunities in the industry include availability of infrastructures, which can be used to promote the industry. The fame gained through Olympic victory can be used to attract more people. According to NIC (2012) the success and emergency of famous musicians also creates opportunity for enlargement of the industry. In terms of threat, the industry can face insecurity or terrorist attacks. Misuse of funds and corruption can lead to collapsing of the industry. Section B: Media Analysis of Jamaica within North America and British Markets from January 2012. In North America and Britain region, Jamaica use BBC and CNN to advertise and inform people about the operation and strategies applied in the tourism industry. According to Carter (2011) those two Medias are world wide channels. They transmit in many countries of the world. They transmit news with transparency and accuracy. Jamaica has promoted the industry through media marketing. BBC and CNN provide news, breaking news and news highlights for every new event happening in the whole world. The ability for those two Medias to transmit world news has assisted capturing a large number of audiences. Jamaica’s new events and activities are shown in the television, website and radios. The two Medias have improved tourism industry. They sent news through televisions signals, Facebook, radio and websites. They produce high quality pictures which attract many viewers. Impact of BBC and CNN The two media group has brought up positive and negative impacts to the tourism industry in Jamaica. BCC and CNNN provide news about the ware bouts of Jamaica. They also transmit news about the success of the Jamaican sprinters. The two Medias have also been advertising the famous musician like Bob Marley. The reggae music fame in Jamaica has been brought about by BCC and CNN. Those two Medias advertise the occasions and events of the musicians. According to Black (2011) the advertisement has made people across the world to gain interest with Jamaica. Many people visit the country for entertainment. The two media help in the proper use of the tourism funds. They analyze the income and expenses gained through tourism. They also trigger campaigns for proper use of tourism funds. For example, since January 2012 to date, BBC has been bringing about discussion about unfair distribution of tourism income. This help in the creation of awareness to the organizations concerned with the allocation of funds. It is estimated that from last year to this year the income will raise with 2.4 % due to BCC and CNN contribution. On the other hand, there same news transmitted through BBC and CNN which discourage visitors from touring in Jamaica. According to BBC News (2012) BCC and CNN regularly bring news about Jamaica’s government fighting gung. This makes people avoid visiting the country due to insecurity. They also bring news of unfavorable weather and political tension. All those create a negative image to the country. This scares visitors willing to visit the country. BBC and CNN have led to success of the tourism industry despite those few negative factors. Section C: Strategies Jamaica needs to reform the social, economical and political structures in order to have consistent growth of the tourism industry. There are many reforms, which need to be made in the industry. This will include change in marketing strategies. The government and other organizations seeking to promote tourism should create new products and develop the existing. The change of the marketing strategies will increase the demand and ensure continuity of the industry. According to Cliff (2009) argues that government policies reforms should take place in order to encourage more investors who will develop the industry. The government utilities should also be used in the right way. New Marketing Strategies Marketing is the key to success of every business organizations. The strategies used in marketing determine the progress of an organization or industry in a competitive market. Currently, the government of Jamaica uses media services to advertise the tourism products. The hotels and beaches are advertised through social media. This creates awareness of existence to members of the public. According to Jay (2009) government ability to use world Medias like BBC and CNN has created awareness of progress in the tourist industry. This makes many people to visit the country to witness the progress. Other people visit the country in order to be taught the strategies to apply for success. According to Kempo (2010) many foreign students have joined Jamaican universities to get the best working and professional knowledge in the tourism industry. The applied marketing strategies are not enough though they have led to success. The government and other organizations supporting the industry should consider changing the strategies. Use of bill board in the city will encourage people to visit more parts in the cities. The government should increase the number of bill boards at the airports. According to Dee (2010) the people arriving at the ports will get information from the boards. They will know the places they can spend their nights and holidays. The bill boards will also encourage people visiting for business purposes to change and visit more places as a result of exploration. According to Fonda (2009) Excessive use of social media in marketing will promote the industry. The government and other organization working to promote the industry should consider using Facebook, Google, tweeter and other social media which have many users. Currently, Facebook has billion users and advertisements through it, mean millions of people will get the message. Message from social media and other internet services will reach more people across the world. The government should allocate more funds to promote the industry through marketing. New Generating Market According to Dee (2010) tourism industry generates a lot of income. This income can be used in development and creation of new markets. Tourism works together with the hospitality industry. Hotels, restaurants, clubs and airports work to ensure effectiveness of the industry. The government should ensure development and creation of many opportunities in the hospitality industry. Increasing the number of hotels across the beaches and within the airports will motivate the tourist. People can not visit places with few accommodations and the establishment of hotels will provide enough accommodation to the visitors. The government and private sectors should establish more international airports, which will act as bases for international flight. People taking flight from Jamaica will see the physical features and favorable warm climate. The government should give private investors opportunity to invest in the country. The investors will establish hotels. The investors will promote international trade, which will attract more people. Creation of new tourism opportunities will increase the market. The government and private organizations should establish new tourism products. Jamaica has not invested much on wild life and game reserves. This is a significant tourism attraction product in many countries. The government and private organizations should preserve animal parks. They should import the big five animals (Elephant, Lion, Rhino, Leopard) from the countries which keep them. They should also consider investing in oceans and seas. According to Jay (2009) large fish should be kept in the sea, and this can attract a large number of people. They should also preserve and rehabilitate old historical buildings. Many people will visit the city in order to see the historical buildings. Many countries have increased tourism income through rehabilitation of historical buildings. Products and Resource Development The country has many tourism resources and products. The products need development and rehabilitation to attract more people. Some of the products have worn out. The products should match the technology. The government and individuals working in the industry should ensure that the technology in use is updated. Use of outdated technology can discourage many people from visiting the country. In the airports, they should ensure that there are sufficient machines for screen people for security purposes. According to Harriot (2007) manual security screening done in some of the airports in Jamaica should be abolished. The government should ensure that each airport whether owned by private organizations or government has installed the automatic security screening devices. According to Black (2011) the use of dogs in screening also discourages same people from visiting Jamaica. Some religion like Muslim does not like dogs. This means the use of dogs in the airport will make many Muslims avoid visiting the country. The government and security agencies should handle this issue with concern. They should introduce new technological devices. According to Black (2011) working manually in airports and other places discourages visitors from using Jamaican services. Long queues discourage people from investing in a country. Jamaica should introduce new technology in the tourism industry. People should apply services online. They should pay using MasterCard and other online payment services in order to avoid queues. Beaches should be rehabilitated and maintained. The government should allocate more funds to maintain tourism infrastructures. Tourism industry should ensure that it employs the professionals to provide services in the industry. Employment of people without public relationship skills will lead to collapsing of the industry due to poor services. Government Policies/Strategies The government issues policies, which affect the industry either positively or negatively. Elimination of policies affecting the industry negatively will lead to success and development of the industry. The tax policy has affected the industry greatly. Tourism industry earns the government about 50 % of foreign exchanges. This makes it the leading industry in Jamaica rated with tax contribution. According to Brown (2009) argues that the government should reduce the tax rate imposed to the industry. A lot of money gained from the industry is used to pay the taxes instead of rehabilitating and maintaining the infrastructures. The high tax rate makes the industry charge a lot of money to the tourist. This discourages people interested in visiting the country. This makes them spend their holidays in other countries with lower charges. Reduction or abolition of taxes to the industry will lead to the increased number of visitors. Local people will also spend their time in beaches due to low charges. Other policies, which need reforms, include security policies. Many people in the region have been complaining about police harassments. The government should make sure that the police protect the visitors and not harassing them or charging them extra fee to provide escort services. Many visitors and locals are arrested during night hours and released after paying some fee. This discourages the visitors because they do not have the freedom to walk during night hours. Health policies should also be considers. Some people have air borne diseases, and they can be a risk factor to the Jamaican health. The government should ensure that the civilians are protected against transmittable diseases. According to Clarke (2009) the government should also make sure that the visitors spending many days are medically examined. This practice will ensure people safety as well as tourism promotion. Others Potentials and Strength which need Reform According to Dove (2010) the government should train more sprinters and encourage more civilians to engage in the music industry. The musicians should be paid by the government, and this will act as a motivation strategy to ensure that they do not give up their talents. The sprinters and other athletes should also be motivated to explore their talents. The shinning of the talented stars will make the country famous and attract more tourist and investors. All those reforms discussed will ensure that the industry generates more income. The strategies will also ensure success and avoid collapsing of the industry. Many countries do not have tourism industry due to insecurity, but application of those strategies will ensure success and continuity of the industry in Jamaica. Bibliography Angela Black, 2011. Jamaica. McGraw-Hill Press, New York. 24- 120. Antony Harriott, 2007. Understanding Tourism in Jamaica. Rutledge, Boston. 70-157 BBC News 2012. Jamaica Cerebration. Viewed on 20th August, 2012 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/search/news/history_of_jamaica, Vol 5 pp. 4-8. Chandana Jay, 2009. Tourism and Hospitality in Jamaica. McGraw-Hill Press, New York. 34-109 CNN News 2012. Jamaica after Violence. Viewed on 13th September, 2012 from http://edition.cnn.com/search/?query=Jamaica+tourism&x=32&y=12&primaryType=mixed&sortBy=relevance&intl=true, Vol 3 pp. 4-17 CNN News 2012. Jamaican Capital. Viewed on 23rd July, 2012 from http://edition.cnn.com/search/?query=Jamaica+tourism&x=32&y=12&primaryType=mixed&sortBy=relevance&intl=true, Vol 6 pp. 5-9. David Bowen, 2009. Tourist Behavior. California University Press, California. 135-160. Frank Fonda, 2009. History of Jamaican Tourist. Green Lion Publisher, London. 151-170. Freedom House. Jamaica. Viewed on November 2012 from http://www.freedomhouse.org/search/jamaica%20tourism, Vol 2.3 pp. 4-9. Jackie Clarke, 2009. Tourist Behavior. California University Press, California, 20-80. Joan Dove, 2010. Expanding Craft Tourism in Jamaica. McGraw-Hill Press, Boston, 59-150. Kamala Kempo. Tourism. Green Lion Publisher, London, 60-137. Lorn Dee, 2010. Tourism Attraction in Jamaica. Academic publisher, New York, 70-90. National Intelligence Council 2012. IC policies and Reports. Viewed on April, 2012 from http://www.dni.gov/index.php/intelligence-community/ic-policies-reports/ic-policies National Intelligence Council 2012. Detainees in Cuba. Viewed on July, 2012 from http://www.dni.gov/index.php/intelligence-community/ic-policies-reports/ic-policies Stephen Cliff, 2009. Tourism, Culture and Sex in Jamaica. Green Lions Publisher, London, 70-156. Sean Sheebab, 2011. Jamaica. McGraw-Hill Press: New York, 30-43. Simon Carter, 2011. Tourism, Culture and Sex in Jamaica. Green Lions Publisher, London, 24-80. Travelmole 2012. Jamaica Ready for Bolt Effect. Viewed on 10th August, 2012 from http://www.travelmole.com/news_feature.php?news_id=2002647 Vol 5 pp 2-7. World Bank. 2004. Growth in Jamaica. McGraw-Hill Press, New York. 59-121. Read More