$6 billion saved in tourism workers’ pension scheme—Bartlett

ST JAMES, Jamaica—More than 6 billion has already been saved under the tourism workers' pension scheme, an initiative that was launched by the Ministry of Tourism in 2022.Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett made the disclosure on Thursday while addressing the reopening of the Eclipse at Half Moon in Rose Hall, St James, noting that the fund continues to grow steadily as more workers join.“We have established a pension programme, the first of its kind in the world, and in two and a half years you have already saved over 6 billion in the pension fund,” Bartlett disclosed.He added that the fund is projected to reach 10 billion by 2027.The Government had initially committed over 1 billion to seed the scheme.Bartlett also announced that 2 billion will be drawn from the fund to establish a health maintenance organisation (HMO), aimed at delivering accessible healthcare to workers in the sector.“We are going to take 2 billion from the fund to create the seeding money for that health facility and to create a health scheme for every worker in the tourism industry,” he stated.He explained that the initiative forms part of a broader strategy to strengthen social protection, combining retirement benefits with continuous healthcare support.“In addition, we are going to look at the laws and how to amend them to allow for a portion of your contribution to go directly to that fund, so that fund continues to accrete as it is managed, and you will be able to have social security on the path of retirement on the one hand, and social security on the path of healthcare on a constant basis on the other hand,” Bartlett said.Turning to housing, Bartlett underscored the Government’s commitment to improving living conditions for tourism workers.