Jamaican Government Backs Reggae And Dancehall Music With $10 Million Investment

Dancehall will soon receive a big boost from the Jamaican government as it was recently confirmed that they will give $10 million to initiate and build up the art form.

The Jamaican government made the move after recognizing dancehall as a major cultural product that can also assist with attracting tourists and creating an even more sustainable tourism structure.

The official announcement was made by the tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett, at last week’s Reggae Month 2020, at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston.
‘Tourism Reggae Product’, will be the designated name for the project which will feature multiple daily reggae events mainly in resort areas. The initiative is a collaborative effort between the Tourism Ministry and the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport.

Bartlett is quoted as saying: “They aren’t coming for an event today and then next week, another event, and then next month, another event. They want to have reggae events like they do with the tango in Buenos Aires [Argentina] or at the Tropicana in Cuba… three, four times a day. So, this product will be available to our visitors 24/7.”
He explained that the initiative was also to help Jamaica reinvent its tourism industry by targeting visitors who are into the genre. He delivered even more good news for those in the industry when he shared that the Tourism Ministry’s Entertainment Network, will help provide low-interest loans to investors through Jamaica’s Export-Import Bank.

He hoped that this would also help boost the building out of the Reggae product.
“Entertainment represents, perhaps, the strongest element of consumption within the visitor’s patterns; and next to food, music and entertainment is the very next point for which large consumption expenditure is related,” he said.

Bartlett also encouraged young people to join the journey and explained that in the next ten years the amount of visitors to the island is expected to double.

“So, we are looking for partners now… young enterprising people who can walk the road with us over the next 10 years, because my job, as your Minister, is to carve and create a new path for the development and reimagining of our industry for the next decade and beyond,” Mr. Bartlett said.

Reggae Month 2020, which will feature 29 days of live reggae music activities on the island and in the Jamaican diaspora, will be celebrated next February under the theme ‘Come ketch de Riddim’.