TPDConnect Newsletter January - March 2023

Editor’s Note

This edition of TPDConnect covers the period January to March 2023. It comes at a time when we would have closed our 2022-23 financial year ensuring as many of our deliverables as possible were met. We give a flashback on some of our accomplishments over the period and we celebrate with our team members who have excelled.

In February we staged our TPDCo Youth Expo and Career Fair in Portland …naturally! Against the background of Portland celebrating 300 years as a town, the communications team took to the College of Agriculture Science and Education (CASE) and with the support of many partners, our Destination Manager and our PDCT and VSE teams we hosted over 200 students and teachers from schools in Portland and St Mary. They benefitted from information on a range of linked careers in the sector. Eco-tourism, cultural and heritage tourism, cruise tourism, community tourism and agriculturally linked careers in the sector including drone technology and apiculture. Thanks to our exhibitors and presenters who helped make for a successful staging.

“Out and About” takes us to Falmouth for team building with our craft traders; to Ocho Rios for earthquake simulation and tour guiding; Muschett High School where staff benefitted from customer service awareness training; and we even took time to show off at the Hague Agricultural Show in which our team members made their presence seen and felt.

Don’t miss our personality feature with Daryl WhiteWong recently promoted Visitor Safety & Experience Director who has had his hands full since hitting the ground. Nonetheless he is determined to make a positive impact in this most important imperative of destination assurance.

There are several milestones worthy of mention but there are two I want to highlight. One is the Tourism Education and Training Award from the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), in which TPDCo copped the runner up prize through the instrumentality of Belinda Dowe. Big ups on this achievement.

The other initiative which is most important is the destination assurance tours by the Honourable Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism and technocrats from the Ministry who are visiting resort areas island wide. This forms part of the Minister’s efforts to be on the ground hearing from the people the issues affecting them and having discussions for solutions. It forms part of the wider consultations which are also taking place for the Destination Assurance Framework and Strategy which is being discussed at town hall meetings hosted by the Ministry in order to move the parliamentary bill from a green to a white paper.

As usual we invite your feedback and your contributions. Don’t hesitate to send them to marline.

stephenson@tpdco.org

Enjoy reading and stay focused!

One Love, Marline

From the Executive Office

At the close of the financial year 2022-2023, it is time to reflect on our stewardship. How have we as an organization taken care of Jamaica’s tourism product which we are charged to enhance and develop? What have we done to ensure that the moment of truth is realized by all our visitors; that the visitor experience is safe, seamless, and secure?

It takes well thought out strategies and tactics in an ever-evolving environment. We already have the framework from our parent ministry – guided by the Blue Ocean Strategy. However, what is equally important is our collective efforts and commitment to see us through the implementation process for our projects and programmes.

WHITE RIVER

As part of our efforts to provide destination assurance we recently moved to end illegal rafting on the White River. It was met with mixed reactions especially on social media. I commend the staff who were integrally involved and assure you that this action was a last resort, having made several attempts to dialogue with offending rafters so that the issues of drugs, violence and criminality generally could be cauterized. It was not an attempt to disenfranchise anyone, but to restore order, as is our mandate to do.

DESTINATION ASSURANCE

The Ministry of Tourism has commenced the process of building out the Destination Assurance Framework & Strategy (DAFS) which focuses on attending to the specific needs of our visitors in

order to create visitor satisfaction and increased business. Among those needs, are a safe and hassle-free environment. The DAFS is a “national strategic response to increased international demand for quality tourism experiences,” TPDCo is key to the process and consultations are underway with stakeholders so far, in the Negril and Montego Bay resorts, with Falmouth and Ocho Rios planned for the coming week. This discourse in important as the Minister and the team get valuable feedback from people across the country. It is meant to be open, robust, and frank so that policies and strategies can be developed that will reap long term benefits by ensuring quality at all levels of the tourism value chain.

PUBLIC SECTOR RE-ALIGNMENT

Another area which we are treating with is the disquiet among some staff in relation to the public sector re-alignment and we crave your patience as we work through this challenging time. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and because we value your contributions to the organization and you as individuals, we are working to bring about the best possible outcome. It’s important to keep the communication channel open and so be assured that HR and I have an open door for any further discourse that may be needed.

Let us remind ourselves of the critical role we play in building brand Jamaica and re-double our efforts as we get back into the trenches to deliver along with our partners, a world class tourism product that is inclusive, sustainable and one we can all be proud of.

All the best for this financial New Year 2023 -2024

Mr. Wade Mars Executive Director

DESTINATION ASSURANCE

THE KEY TO TOURISM SUCCESS - BARTLETT

The Ministry of Tourism has begun national public consultations ahead of presenting its Destination Assurance Framework and Strategy (DAFS) to Parliament for approval as a White Paper.

Destination Assurance is seen by Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett as key to the future of Jamaica’s tourism success.

“It is a promise to visitors that assures an authentic, safe and seamless vacation experience, which is respectful to the community and environment,” he stated.

LESSONS TAUGHT BY THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

The strategy is the blueprint that will guide the ministry and our partners to ensure continuous improvement in the delivery and management of quality throughout the tourism value chain.

The first set of consultations took place in Negril, Westmoreland at two meetings on March 23. First, with members of the Negril Destination Assurance Council, tourism stakeholders, and public and private partners at the Boardwalk Village followed by a town hall meeting with members of the public from Hanover and Westmoreland at the Negril Community Centre. Referring to lessons taught by the COVID-19 pandemic, Bartlett said: “We are looking at the holistic approach to tourism and a big part of it is that people travel to enable a high level of happiness and satisfaction. They go to destinations where they feel safe, secure and they have a seamless experience.”

He said approval of the White Paper “will make Jamaica the first country in the world to have a Destination Assurance Policy” and the consultation was towards that objective “because that policy can’t be promulgated without the input of you who are the players”.

“I think the country has to get to the point where we recognise the importance of public order, not just as a security requirement but as a means of enabling a stable and cohesive society where people feel free to move around, to operate without being molested and unduly disturbed by their neighbour.”

Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism

Stressing that they needed to appreciate their role and responsibility in delivering on Jamaica’s brand promise, Bartlett underscored: “We don’t want anyone anywhere in the world to second guess the integrity of the promise that when you come to Jamaica you will have a safe, secure, seamless vacation.”

In that vein, he said public order was critical “because tourism cannot function in chaos and disorder” and everyone had a role to play.

“I think the country has to get to the point where we recognise the importance of public order, not just as a security requirement but as a means of enabling a stable and cohesive society where people feel free to move around, to operate without being molested and unduly disturbed by their neighbour,” declared Bartlett.

He said this was not about tourism but about Jamaicans and their neighbours having a society “in which the rules that govern how we interact are respected and maintained”.

GOVERNMENT TO MODERNISE PROVISIONS OF LEGISLATION

The Destination Assurance Policy will be placing special focus on reducing instances of visitor harassment and poor solid waste management practices. With its promulgation, the Ministry of Tourism through its relevant public bodies intends to launch a programme in each resort area for the re-socialisation and skills upgrading of informal operators in the tourism sector and the formalisation of the activities of persons who are trained and empowered with skills.

The strategic push will be supported by a strong legislative agenda, including amending the Tourist Board Act, the Travel Agency Act and their accompanying regulations.

“In this way, the Government will modernise the provisions of these Acts, strengthen enforcement provisions, and improve our tourism product,” said Bartlett.

SOURCE: OUR TODAY https://our.today/destination-assurance-key-to-tourismsuccess-bartlett-2/

Highlights of the Destination Assurance Tour

OUT AND ABOUT Camp Vereley Training

One Hundred and Twenty five District Constables were trained under TPDCo’s Team Jamaica Team Member Programme for the period January 27th to February 3, 2023 at Camp Verley in

South St. Andrew Constituency

COMMUNITY AMBASSADOR TOURISM TRAINING PROGRAMME

MP Golding was in attendance and lauded TPDCo. on this Community initiative. Presentations were done by Mr. Ricky Pascoe, Ms. Mikisha Silvera and Ms. Belinda Sutherland-Dowe.

Golf View, Mandeville Hotel

OF TOURISM BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLAN WORKSHOP

TPDCo recently completed the second batch of Tourism Business Continuity Plan Workshop in partnership with the TEF. This workshop was conducted during the period February 14 to 17, 2023 at the Golf View hotel in Mandeville. The entities represented were Island Grill (Corporate office), Mandeville Hotel, Bridge Palm Hotel, Ultimate Freedom Bed and Breakfast and Bartley’s All in Wood. The programme was well received and the participants committed to sharing this information with their team members through mini workshops. The workshop was facilitated by Amanda Clarke and Megan Mollison.

Muschett High School

Customers Service Awareness session held for 85 teachers and 11 auxiliary staff

Hague, Falmouth

HAGUE AGRICULTURAL SHOW

Book Review

BY CHERYL TRAILLE-TENNANT

River Sing Me Home

By: Eleanor Shearer Historical Fiction

This is beautiful debut novel is a page-turner. Its a redemptive story of a mother’s journey across the Caribbean to find her stolen children in the aftermath of slavery.

Her story starts at the end....

The master of the Providence plantation in Barbados gathers his slaves and announces the king has decreed an end to slavery. As of the following day, the Emancipation Act of 1834 will come into effect. The cries of joy fall silent when he announces that they are no longer his slaves; they are now his apprentices. No one can leave. They must work for him for another six years. Freedom is just another name for the life they have always lived. So Rachel runs.

Away from Providence, she begins a desperate search to find her children--the five who survived birth and were sold. Are any of them still alive? Rachel has to know. The grueling, dangerous journey takes her from Barbados then, by river, deep into the forest of British Guiana and finally across the sea to Trinidad. She is driven on by the certainty that a mother cannot be truly free without knowing what has become of her children, even if the answer is more than she can bear. These are the stories of Mary Grace, Micah, Thomas Augustus, Cherry Jane and Mercy. But above all this is the story of Rachel and the extraordinary lengths to which a mother will go to find her children...and her freedom.

Duke Street, Kingston

COMMUNITY AMBASSADORS TOURISM TRAINING SESSION

A Thank You Plaque was awarded to the Tourism Team comprising of Mikisha Silvera, Belinda Sutherland-Dowe, Ricky Pascoe, Sharee Duhaney and Teddisha McIntosh from Inspectorate and Professional Standards Oversight Bureau (IPROB) at Duke Street in Kingston for the co-ordination and delivery of the Training Programme. The Inspectorate and Professional Standards Oversight Bureau is an Agency of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) established to investigate misconduct to the public of the JCF.

Portland

TPDCO STORYBOARDS - PDCT DEPARTMENT

Social Media Campaign

Ocho Rios, Jamaica

EARTHQUAKE SIMULATION

TPDCo participated recently in earthquake simulation exercise at the Ocho Rios Anglican Church Hall. The exercise was done by Mrs. Anna Tucker Abrahams from ODPEM with support from the Parish Disaster Coordinator from the St. Ann Muncipal Corporation. There were 40 participants drawn primarily from the Tourism sector.

Falmouth, Trelawny

TEAM BUILDING WORKSHOP

Representatives from the Montego Bay Training Unit recently conducted a Team Building Workshop for the Seaboard Street Craft Traders in Falmouth, Trelawny.

CASE , Portland

TPDCo YOUTH EXPO AND CAREER FAIR

DELECTABLE DIARY

DINING WITH DAMION @ UNCORKED TOO

Contributed by: Damion Anglin | TPDCo, Kingston

Jamaica’s capital city, Kingston is no stranger to its fair share of amazing dining experiencing with mouth-watering cuisines and libation; and every time you blink, a new sport emerges. Knowing this, I do my best to try as many spots as time and resources will allow.

Most recently I visited “Uncorked Too” located in the Super Valu Towne Centre along Constant Spring Road. As the restaurant is located in a plaza, depending on when you decide to visit the restaurant, parking may or may not be an issue.

Known widely as a wine, cheese and bistro spot, Uncorked Too’s inner aesthetics will have you feeling as though you are dining in the fancy wine cellars of your rich uncle’s estate. There is a rustic yet elegant feel to the entire space. The restaurant itself isn’t massive but you do have the option to dine outdoors in limited seating while most of the tables are located indoors. The indoor layout does position most tables rather closely so I’m pretty sure whoever you are seated next to will hear your entire conversation, as you will theirs; but there is also an elevated deck for what seems to be private or secluded dining.

The employees are very pleasant and also very attentive to your table throughout your entire dining experience, which is always worth mentioning as customer service tends to be a sore point for many spots in Jamaica.

The menu choices and names are very much giving “Upper Saint Andrew” with dishes that would confuse anyone as to what you’re actually consuming; luckily each item comes with a description of the meal’s construct which is helpful in deciding what to have. Like most standard menus you choose from appetizers, salads and pasta, sandwiches, burgers and your entrée. And of course, because it is a wine and cheese bistro, the wine options are endless, but you can also choose from other spirits, cocktails and juices.

Now let’s get to my favourite part; the FOOD!

For my appetizer I chose the chicken Sriracha Glazed Poppers which was basically a mountain of crispy popcorn chicken, but ten times better, that was coated in an amazing but spicy sauce; which I absolutely loved. It was both scrumptious to look at, and to taste. For my main dish I chose the BBQ Pull Up Pork which was like shredded pork placed in small cocoa breads and positioned to look like tacos that were topped with coleslaw. They were definitely a mouthful and also quite filling. My companions on this trip had the Chicken BLT Burger which was larger than I think any of them anticipated for a sandwich. I did snag a bite and it was *chef’s kiss*. The chicken was juicy and the other ingredients all blended nicely. The meal presentations were also very well conceptualized and nicely executed.

For this trip I didn’t have any alcohol but I washed both meals down with a nice refreshing glass of lemonade which the waiter had naturally made for me; that was definitely a customer service win for me!

All in all, I would definitely recommend having lunch or an early dinner at Uncorked Too!

Ambiance: 3.5/5

Food: 4/5

Service: 5/5

DARYL WHYTE-WONG

Contributed by: Monique Murray TPDco, Montego Bay

We have observed centuries of men who came to serve and lead. Men whose true passion lies in the rigmarole of I came, saw, and I have conquered. However, there are those whose solitary dream is to be greater, achieve more and to make a positive change in whatever capacity they are called to serve. Men like Mr. Daryl WhyteWong, a former pupil of Manchester High School, whose childhood was spent navigating between rural St. Ann and Manchester.

Whyte-Wong’s work history could be dated back to a time where tradition was the helm of a family. “Well it was a tradition for the males of the family to begin working in the grocery store at the age of ten…I guess they were trying to teach us discipline and how to manage money.” This long-lived tradition was the foundation on which a disciplined and ambitious man formed. A true embodiment of “age is just a number”, his visceral taste for hard work toiling in his grandfather’s grocery store, Vernon & Company Limited, gave way to him serving in several capacities as a bank manager, car sales representative and administrative assistant to two former executive directors at the Tourism Product Development Company Limited.

With a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics specializing in Banking & Finance he joined TPDCo as admin assistant and WhyteWong was later hired as the youngest appointed Destination Manager for Portland at the age of twenty-eight. Four years and a master’s degree in General Management from the University of the West Indies, later he ventured into his current post as the Director of the Visitor Safety & Experience department (VSE).

Stemming from his tenure as Destination Manager, he showcased his extensive knowledge of his new position and department creating no doubt as to why he was selected as the best candidate for the job. “Visitor safety has to do with the police deployment, anti-harassment methods, sensitization sessions that we do…and visitor experience has to do with what I have done as a destination manager…age doesn’t matter; your knowledge base is important, and how you function as a manager.”

In regards to his strategies to highlight the importance of the VSE in the tourism sector, he assertively shared that under his management, twenty-five District Constables recently graduated and were awaiting deployment. Also, a communications group was created for Security Managers in each resort area to facilitate real time information sharing. Furthermore, increasing the relationship with the police through the Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Branch (PSTEB) was noted as vital to the success of the VSE.

As for his vision for the VSE department, he shared that “I see VSE becoming more relevant in the psyche of our stakeholders (internally and externally), in the psyche of TPDCo…I see VSE taking its place as the number one department in this company.”

In the end, this father of two and an all-around family man revealed his sole purpose for remaining grounded in all his accomplishments. “I have my north star and growing up my north star was making my mother proud. (So) whatever I do Keran Wong is a part of that… and for me the people I surround myself with are the people I grew up with.” Thus with the support of his family and friends, the road to becoming the “greatest manager ever” seems to be paved with many possibilities. For we have seen centuries of men who came to serve and lead; those whose solitary dream is to be great in whatever capacity they are called to serve. Mr. Daryl Whyte-Wong, the epitome of knowledge, valor and most importantly integrity.

Goal Oriented and Tenacious

CTO TOURISM EDUCATION AND TRAINING AWARD

TPDConnect congratulates Belinda Dowe of the Training department on her first runner up submission for the Carribbean Tourism Organization’s Training Award. Belinda was encouraged by former Community Tourism Manager Larisa to utilize her expertise as a Professional Trainer and write a paper providing a brief description of a training programme that could be considered for a Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Award by outlining the programmes’ contribution to capacity building and transfer of industry skills through training and educational opportunities, career advancement, and employee retention initiatives to increase the knowledge and awareness of people visiting Jamaica. It should also demonstrate contribution to knowledge exchange forums for education and awareness, and partnership engagement for education and training.

This Award recognizes efforts contributing to tourism work force development. Destinations and Businesses should illustrate new and innovative tourism education, training and/or awareness programs developed and implemented to support capacity-building, enhance the skills and competencies and increase the knowledge/awareness of tourism workers, visitors and/or community members. They should also illustrate how they have integrated technological solutions and/or Information Communication Technologies (ICT’s) in training delivery.

HR CORNER

Montego Bay

AFRICAN THEMED SOCIAL

VALENTINES DAY SOCIAL

Farewell

Ovel Brown

Financial Controller

Sherika Grant Information Officer - Mobay

Georgeia Robinson Director, Corporate Services

Ricardo Robinson

Business Analyst

Dave Walker Dispatcher

Jessica WIlliams

Data Entry Clerk

Jounell Mills

Client Relations Representative

New Hires

Shanae Montaque

Technical Officer/Draughtsman

Faithlyn Coke -Scott

Administrative Assistant

Product Quality

Promotions

Ocho Rios

Kissani Laing

Product Quality Officer

Amanda McleggonAdministrative Assistant

Sherika Jennings Brooks Information Officer

Khary Brown

Watersports Officer

Desmond Saunders

Community Tourism Manager

Shadonia Brooks

Accounting Clerk

Montego Bay

JAMAICA DAY 2023

Kingston

RETRO DAY 2023

OLD SKOOL SOCIAL

LIVE: APRIL 18, 2023

Honourable Godfrey Glengoffe Dyer, OJ, CD, JP