Jamaica has strengthened its position on the global tourism landscape, moving up four places in the World Economic Forum’s Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2026, from 82nd to 78th among 110 economies evaluated. The index was produced in collaboration with Zurich Insurance Group.
Speaking at the Tourism Awareness Week’s AI Youth Forum at Sandals Dunns River, Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, welcomed the development, noting that the improved ranking reflects the country’s continued efforts to strengthen the competitiveness, resilience and sustainability of Jamaica’s tourism sector.
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“Moving from No. 82 to No. 78 is not just four places; it is validation. For ten years I have watched this Index: No. 76 in 2015, No. 69 in 2017, our best, No. 76 in 2019, No. 82 in 2024, now No. 78 in 2026. The old index measured what we built: airports and hotel rooms. The new Beyond Tourism index measures what we survived: people, resilience, and retention. Jamaica built that,” said the Minister.
Jamaica recorded the largest rank improvement of any economy in the Americas and is the only one in the region to climb four places. The country’s score rose 2.3% over the 2024 edition, and it now stands two places higher than in 2019. The TTDI measures the conditions that enable sustainable and resilient tourism development, such as infrastructure, connectivity, digital readiness, safety and security, and natural and cultural resources. It does not measure visitor arrivals or tourism earnings.
“This movement in the global competitiveness rankings is an important indicator that Jamaica is moving in the right direction. To rise four places in a highly competitive global tourism environment demonstrates that the investments we are making in our people, infrastructure, visitor experience, connectivity, resilience and destination development are producing measurable progress,” said Minister Bartlett.
He added that Jamaica’s tourism strategy is increasingly focused not only on attracting more visitors, but on ensuring that the destination remains competitive, resilient and relevant in a rapidly changing international marketplace.
“Tourism competitiveness today is about much more than sun, sea and sand. It is about the quality of our human capital, the strength of our infrastructure, our ability to innovate, our digital readiness, sustainability, connectivity and the overall value proposition that we offer to visitors,” the Minister said.
The four-place improvement comes as Jamaica continues to pursue a strategic transformation of its tourism sector under its Tourism 3.0 framework, which places greater emphasis on innovation, human capital development, resilience, sustainability and creating stronger linkages between tourism and the wider Jamaican economy.
The Ministry of Tourism and its public bodies will continue to use international competitiveness indicators to inform policy, strengthen destination management and guide investments aimed at ensuring Jamaica remains competitive in the global tourism marketplace.
The Tourism Action Club’s Youth Forum, which formed part of the Tourism Awareness Week activities, brought 250 high school students from across Jamaica to explore how AI and digital technologies are transforming tourism, under the theme “AI and Digital Technologies: The Power of Curiosity”.
