Retention of tourism dollar lowest in the Caribbean

 

The issue was raised during a press conference involving Jamaica’s tourism minister, Edmund Bartlett, Barbados’ tourism minister Ian Gooding-Edghill and Caribbean Tourism Organization’s (CTO), secretary general, Dona Regis-Prosper, at the opening of Caribbean Travel Marketplace 2026 in Antigua and Barbuda yesterday.

 

The three, representing several tourism stakeholders throughout the region, argued for stronger regional collaboration, financing support and policy reform to help Caribbean businesses benefit more directly from tourism.

 

“The Caribbean has reached a critical inflection point, where the region must move from being an “extractive industry” to one that extracts greater value for its own people,” stated Bartlett.

 

“The retention level of the tourism dollar in the Caribbean space is the lowest worldwide,” he added, noting that while tourism accounts for between 40 and 85 per cent of foreign exchange earnings in some Caribbean territories, the region retains only about 15 to 20 cents of every tourism dollar spent.

 

By comparison, he said, countries like India retain roughly 60 per cent, while the Dominican Republic retains about 50 per cent.

 

“There is some asymmetry here. There is a correction that must happen,” Bartlett argued. “It is now time for the region to reap the benefits of tourism.”

 

Bartlett, who has been appointed chairman of a new Caribbean Tourism Organization supply side committee, said the region has already mastered the demand side of tourism, becoming the most tourism-dependent region globally and the world’s leading cruise destination. However, he said ownership of the supply side remains weak.

 

“The supply side must now be owned by the people of the Caribbean so that the wealth of tourism can be retained in the Caribbean,” he stressed.

 

The committee, launched under the Caribbean Tourism Organization’s ‘Reimagine Plan’, is aimed at strengthening regional production, supply chains, logistics, workforce development and investment to better connect local industries to tourism demand.

 

Regis-Prosper said the committee has already adopted formal terms of reference built around eight pillars, including tourism linkages, infrastructure and logistics, digital innovation, financing, workforce development and labour mobility.

 

Bartlett said the committee’s work would focus heavily on helping Caribbean producers scale up.

 

“We are regarded as a region of samples,” he said. “We have wonderful examples, great products, but we need to scale up.”

 

He described tourism as “the most consumption-driven economic activity on planet Earth”, arguing that Caribbean countries must ensure visitors consume more locally made products and services.

 

“My job is to ensure that they consume indigenous material,” Bartlett said of the tourist experience.

 

The tourism minister said the initiative would require three major components — capital, buyers and supportive legislation.

 

“Part of our mission will be to bring capital to industry to enable the capacity for scaling up,” he said, again floating the idea of a regional tourism bank or special purpose financing vehicle to support tourism-related industries.

 

He also pointed to plans for a regional tourism logistics centre that would support packaging, labelling, procurement and export activity across the Caribbean.

 

“What we’re really trying to do is to build an entire tourism economy,” Bartlett said.

 

Meanwhile, Gooding-Edghill said Caribbean governments must deepen tourism linkages to ensure more sectors benefit from tourism growth.

He pointed to Barbados’ tourism linkages council as an example of efforts to connect farmers, manufacturers, transport operators and other service providers directly to the tourism sector.

 

“What this committee will focus on is strengthening tourism linkages,” Gooding-Edghill said, adding that the goal is to expand participation and retain more value from tourism within the Caribbean.

 

Bartlett also signalled that the region may eventually pursue its own Caribbean-owned tourism marketing and digital platforms instead of relying heavily on external systems.

 

“The Caribbean can have its own platforms for marketing,” he said. “That way the dollar will stay also in the region.”

 

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com