Jamaica climbs four places in global tourism development index

Jamaica has moved from 82nd to 78th among 110 economies in the World Economic Forum’s Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2026, recording the largest rank improvement in the Americas, according to the country’s Ministry of Tourism.

The country’s score rose 2.3 per cent over the 2024 edition of the index, which was produced in collaboration with Zurich Insurance Group.

The TTDI measures conditions that support sustainable and resilient tourism development, including infrastructure, connectivity, digital readiness, safety and security and natural and cultural resources. 

It does not measure visitor arrivals or tourism earnings.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett discussed the results at the Tourism Awareness Week AI Youth Forum at Sandals Dunn's River on Sept. 30.

“Moving from 82nd to 78th is not just four places — it is validation. For ten years I have watched this Index: 76th in 2015, 69th in 2017 — our best — 76th in 2019, 82nd in 2024, now 78th 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 Bartlett.

According to the ministry, Jamaica was the only economy in the Americas to climb four places.

“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 Bartlett.

He added that Jamaica’s tourism strategy focuses on attracting visitors while strengthening the destination’s competitiveness and resilience.

“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,” he said.

The country’s Tourism 3.0 framework emphasizes innovation, human capital development, resilience, sustainability and stronger links between tourism and the wider Jamaican economy.

The ministry and its public bodies plan to continue using international competitiveness indicators to inform policy, destination management and investment decisions.

The Tourism Action Club’s Youth Forum brought together 250 high school students from across Jamaica to explore how AI and digital technologies are changing tourism. 

It formed part of Tourism Awareness Week under the theme ‘AI and Digital Technologies: The Power of Curiosity’.

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