Following a high-level meeting in Kingston on February 3, Jamaica and Sierra Leone have renewed their partnership, which will focus on youth leadership, cultural reconnection, and institutional resilience. Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, and Nabeela Tunis, Sierra Leone’s Minister of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, discussed coordinated plans for Global Tourism Resilience Day, as well as a broader cultural and capacity-building program aimed at strengthening ties between the Caribbean and West Africa.
The ministers met at Jamaica’s Ministry of Tourism in New Kingston to coordinate preparations for Global Tourism Resilience Day on February 17, 2026, and to advance shared initiatives aimed at strengthening both countries’ tourism sectors. Jamaica, which led the successful campaign to have February 17 recognised by the United Nations as Global Tourism Resilience Day in 2023, will host the first international observance outside of the island in Nairobi, Kenya. Bartlett stated that multiple nations would hold parallel events, and Sierra Leone was confirmed as one of the countries contributing to the global celebration.
Sierra Leone will commemorate the occasion with a youth-focused seminar at the University of Sierra Leone, as part of the country’s overall declaration that 2026 will be the Year of Culture and Creativity. Minister Tunis stated that the seminar will provide a platform for students and young people to define what resilience means to them and shape future global conversations about cultural identity, sustainability, and crisis preparedness. “Young people are not products of the crisis; they are builders of our future,” she said, adding that at least 300 people are expected to attend and that the initiative is intended to serve as the foundation for a long-term youth engagement platform.
The meeting in Kingston emphasised reconnecting with shared heritage and leveraging cultural connections for practical cooperation. “This visit is not only about bilateral relations, but also about reconnecting with the roots of our own diaspora,” Minister Bartlett stated, framing the discussions as a reconnection between Africa and the Caribbean that draws on common history while pursuing forward-looking collaboration. Both ministers emphasised tourism as a driver of economic transformation, job creation, and social development.
Bartlett also used the occasion to highlight Jamaica’s leadership in resilience advocacy, citing the country’s role in establishing Global Tourism Resilience Day at the United Nations. He outlined plans for increased regional engagement and institutional growth, including a significant move to establish the GTRCMC’s first West African satellite in Freetown. That satellite is set to be launched during Bartlett’s appearance at the One Nation Reggae Festival in November 2026. The new hub will broaden the GTRCMC’s work in resilience building, crisis management, and capacity development throughout West Africa.
The GTRCMC’s Executive Director, Lloyd Waller, welcomed Sierra Leone into its global “ecosystem of tourism resilience.” Waller described the Centre’s broad mandate as including climate resilience, entrepreneurship, wildlife tourism, heritage preservation, geopolitics, and emerging cyber threats, emphasising tourism’s role as a development pathway that attracts investment and creates jobs. He also revealed that the 2026 Global Tourism Resilience Day will be the first-ever 24-hour global event, moving from the Middle East to Africa, Europe, the Caribbean, and North America, with the entire program streamed live around the world.
Sierra Leone’s plans go beyond the February observance. Minister Tunis reaffirmed her country’s commitment to long-term legacy projects, including land set aside for a Jamaican Cultural Village in Sierra Leone, an initiative aimed at strengthening cultural ties and promoting mutual tourism development. Tunis also expressed support for Jamaica in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa, praising the country’s recovery efforts and resilience.
The meetings in Kingston complement Jamaica’s own youth engagement efforts. Ahead of Global Tourism Resilience Day, Jamaica will host a Youth & Career Expo on February 13 that is co-organised by the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDC) and the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF). The expo will supplement Sierra Leone’s university seminar and reinforce the consensus that engaging young people is critical to developing resilient tourism sectors.
Both ministers emphasised the importance of resilience as part of tourism policy. Bartlett emphasised the sector’s critical role in Jamaica’s economy, citing how tourism has surpassed the sugar industry in transforming coastal towns like Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, and Negril into major commercial hubs. “Because its vulnerabilities are known, its resilience must be celebrated,” he said, emphasising the importance of continued investment in preparedness and capacity.
Overall, the announcements indicate a strengthening of Africa-Caribbean tourism cooperation, with a particular emphasis on youth empowerment, cultural reconnection, and institutional capacity. The planned GTRCMC satellite in Freetown, the youth-focused events hosted by both countries around Global Tourism Resilience Day, and longer-term cultural projects such as the Jamaican Cultural Village all point to an emerging framework for cross-regional shared capacity, crisis preparedness, and tourism-driven development.
