Jamaica's Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett to be honored as global icon in Africa

Jamaica's Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett, is set to receive the prestigious PYNE Awards Africa 2026 honor, recognizing him as a global tourism icon. The awards ceremony, scheduled for September 24–26, 2026, in Maputo, Mozambique, will celebrate leaders driving innovation, youth empowerment, economic transformation, and resilience across Africa, the Caribbean, and the Diaspora.

This recognition highlights Minister Bartlett's pioneering role in elevating tourism resilience from a local priority to a global development agenda. His efforts have significantly advanced partnerships between Africa, the Caribbean, and the wider Global South. The Jamaica Tourist Board noted that this honor firmly places Jamaica's tourism leadership on the international stage.

Among Bartlett's landmark achievements is the establishment of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre in Jamaica. This center serves as an international platform dedicated to helping tourism destinations anticipate, prepare for, and recover from various disruptions, including climate change, pandemics, and geopolitical shocks. Furthermore, he was instrumental in the United Nations' designation of February 17 as Global Tourism Resilience Day, solidifying resilience as a core component of international tourism discourse.

Bartlett expressed that the recognition from Africa is deeply significant, affirming that resilience is a shared concern between the Caribbean and Africa. He highlighted the common challenges faced, such as climate threats and economic vulnerabilities, emphasizing the need for collaborative solutions. The PYNE Awards Africa also underscore the growing relevance of Jamaica's tourism resilience model for emerging destinations across Africa and the Global South, as they seek to enhance competitiveness, attract investment, and create opportunities for communities and young people.

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This recognition from Africa, in the beautiful nation of Mozambique, is deeply significant. It affirms that resilience is a shared language between the Caribbean and Africa. From Maputo to Montego Bay, we face many of the same climate threats, economic vulnerabilities and development challenges, and we must build solutions together.