Jamaican Government planning for new protocols to reopen cruise industry

The Ministry of Health & Wellness along with the Port Authority of Jamaica have been working together to work jointly on the protocols and measures that would make the safe resumption of cruise operations to the island possible. Prime Minister Andrew Holness stated.

PM Holness said that they were expecting to had cruise shipping return to Jamaica very soon with strict protocols that might enable persons who had their livelihoods interrupted by the pandemic to have some hope and, at the same time, with the changes of the protocols, ensure that no life would be lost because of complacency and carelessness.

According to some reports, the tourism sector has been badly impacted due to the closure since March 2020. Due to this, many stakeholders and individuals who were earning their livelihoods from cruise shipping were also affected.

PM Holness said that Those would be the challenges they face, but they could not continue to handle the pandemic by always shutting down. Shutting down had serious financial implications and increased the financial risk to agencies and statutory bodies like the Port Authority.

PM Holness said, “The Government is taking a long-term strategic view and thinking as to how this will be done, but there has to be a pivot in the management of the pandemic. While a lot has been achieved, there is much more that needs to be done, particularly within the context of (having) a stronger and faster recovery from the pandemic.”

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister said that despite the pandemic, investments had been made to strengthen the country’s tourism product offerings further.

Prime Minister of Jamaica Andrew Holness assures the country’s citizens that the Government in present times has no plans to make the COVID-19 vaccination mandatory.

PM Andrew Holness said that they had discussed on the matter in Cabinet, the Government has no plans about nor has inclined to mandate any vaccines. They do not believe that is something that would meet the constitutional test.

PM Said that the Government’s main objective is to make vaccines available to every citizen of the country instead of making them mandatory. The statement was given during a virtual press conference on Monday (April 9)