Originally Posted by
Rob
******* This is a heavy read, but I think necessary *******
The latest strategy of the Jamaican Government regarding tourism is their Jamaica Cares Plan. It is not just travel insurance, but a full service way of managing unfortunate problems that a tourist might encounter. It is a med-evac, emergency care, hospitalization and Covid coverage. From the time you board your flight to the moment you arrive back home, it is an "end to end" service.
There have been thousands of hours put in designing the Covid Resilient Corridor concept. Creating Covid protocols, approving properties for their Covid protocols, altering the protocols to meet the ever changing risks Covid poses and setting up and streamlining the Travel Authorization process. And more hours in negotiations to create the Jamaica Care Travel Package costing the government time and money to accomplish these nearly impossible goals.
I have read remarks mainly from people claiming to have the true interest of the Jamaican people at heart. They want to discourage visitors because they might bring Covid down with them. Since Covid is already on the island and in what is called "community spread", this is very disingenuous.
Jamaica wants and needs visitors to visit our sunny shores! The Government would not have gone through everything it has if this was not necessary. Four hundred thousand people are employed in the tourism sector. Most of them have families to take care of and feed. Being unemployed means no wages. No wages means no food. No food means starvation. Starvation means death.
Living here on daily basis, seeing and feeling first hand the struggles that Jamaicans are going through is something I thought I would never see. The Ministry of Health has set up mental health hotlines because being unemployed and not being able to provide for your family puts an enormous strain on your mental well being. I am seeing the toll it is taking on my friends. I am hearing things I never thought I would.
Covid is already here and everyone has the chance to catch it. Catching it is not an automatic death sentence, The vast majority survive and many with no symptoms at all. Being out of work, not being able to provide for your family leads to starvation, which is a death sentence. And Jamaica does not have the ability at present to grow enough food to feed the entire population.
If the safety of the country relied on closing the borders, the government would do it again. But they know it is not. The cure cannot be worse than the illness, Holness has said this many times.
So please forgive the naysayers for they know not what they speak of about this issue. Anyone able to see the whole picture knows the government is doing the best for Jamaica.
So come on down and be welcomed wholeheartedly and allow us to see more Visitors Visiting! We need you now more than ever and want you to be safe, secure and have an incredible time in our tropical home!
