Jamaican Gov’t To Host Concert On Int’l Reggae Day As Entertainment Sector Reopens

The word that has been on many Jamaicans’ lips since the country’s Prime Minister announced a structured reopening of the entertainment sector on Tuesday is outside.

After months of strict lockdown measures shuttered the industry, severely impacting stakeholders, Prime Minister Andrew Holness said the Jamaican Government would lead by example by hosting a concert on July 1 — the day the new measures are to take effect.

“To signal the reopening of the entertainment sector as well as to demonstrate how a large event could be hosted with the proper protocols, the Government will be organizing a concert on July 1, 2021, at the Port Royal Cruise Terminal,” Holness said while speaking in Parliament on Tuesday.

What a way to kick off “returning” outside!

The prime minister said the concert would be a “fitting way” to recognize and celebrate International Reggae Day, adding that the Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment, and Sport will provide more details.

International Reggae Day is held annually on July 1 to celebrate Jamaica’s music culture.

During his presentation in Parliament, Holness also said the crisis in the entertainment sector created by the coronavirus pandemic presents an opportunity to reset the industry.

“The entertainment, culture and creative industries represent a key part of our competitive advantage and are vital to our economic recovery and long-term growth prospects. The industry has the potential to emerge from the crisis stronger and better than before,” Holness said.

According to the Prime Minister, the Government wants the industry to achieve its full potential but, this potential is inhibited because a large sector of the industry is informal and unregulated.

“Entertainment is business, and we must begin to treat it as a legitimate economic enterprise,” he insisted.

Holness said, too, that the Government needs to also look at how legislation and policy can be used to incentivize the reset of the entertainment industry.

“I have tasked the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation and the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service to commence discussions on how we can support the industry to realize growth and employment. The entertainment, culture and creative industries must become an important item on the national development agenda,” the Prime Minister said.