Jamaica’s Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett has been acknowledged with the Global Tourism Resilience Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th Global Tourism Resilience Day 2026, held at the Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi on February 17, 2026.
The prestigious award recognizes Minister Bartlett’s pioneering leadership in developing global tourism resilience frameworks and advancing crisis preparedness and recovery efforts worldwide.
His visionary work has helped position resilience as a central pillar of sustainable tourism development, ensuring that destinations are better equipped to withstand and recover from disruptions including natural disasters, pandemics, economic shocks, and other global crises.
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Over the years, Minister Bartlett has championed international collaboration, policy innovation, and capacity-building initiatives designed to safeguard tourism – one of the world’s most vital economic sectors. His efforts have strengthened partnerships among governments, private sector stakeholders, and global institutions, promoting strategies that support recovery, sustainability, and inclusive growth across many tourism-dependent economies.
In accepting the award, Minister Bartlett reaffirmed his commitment to fostering resilient tourism systems that empower communities, protect livelihoods, and drive long-term economic stability. He emphasized the importance of “continued global cooperation to build adaptive frameworks capable of responding to emerging challenges in an increasingly interconnected world.”
“Tourism Resilience Day matters because it creates a global rhythm – the drumbeat that calls tourism to readiness. Resilience produces continuity, faster recovery, and confidence. However, we must name the threats if we are to move from crisis to transformation. Digital threats include misinformation, disinformation, and fake news.” – Hon. Edmund Bartlet, OJ, CD, Ministry of Jamaica
This award is testament to the enduring and vigorous work that we have been doing through the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre in Jamaica. I thank all our public and private partners who understand the importance a resilient tourism industry,” the Minister added.
The Global Tourism Resilience Lifetime Achievement Award is conferred upon leaders whose contributions have had a transformative and lasting impact on the global tourism industry.
For more information about Jamaica and the GTRCMC go to www.visitjamaica.com and www.gtrcmc.org