Western Jamaica could be on the verge of its biggest economic transformation in decades.
New details emerging from the recent THROP-X investment conference in Negril suggest a combination of major road projects, tourism developments and a proposed international airport could dramatically reshape western Jamaica in the next few years.
Airport Authority officials say the proposed Negril International Airport is being designed as a major international gateway rather than a small regional facility. So if you thought this was gonna be a small, private jet airport like the one in Boscobel, nope!
“It will take bigger aircraft or even bigger than Norman Manley and Sangster. It wouldn’t make sense otherwise.”
-Horace Bryson
Senior Engineer, Airports Authority of Jamaica
The Negril airport is expected to be at least as large as those two.
Bryson also indicated that they’ve identified Little London as the preferred site, and shovels could be in the ground as early as 2027.
Meanwhile, Minister of State in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Delano Seiveright, pointed to several major infrastructure projects already underway that will change the game in Western Jamaica.
“We’re finishing the perimeter highway around Montego Bay. It should be completed by September or October of this year, and it will bring you down to the Long Hill bypass, which is also being expanded into four lanes.”
-Delano Seiveright
Minister of State, Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce
Those projects are expected to improve connectivity across western Jamaica and make travel between key tourism and investment destinations much easier.
According to Richard Wallace, Chairman of the Negril Green Island Area Local Planning Authority, the economic impact could be significant.
“This highway would change that almost overnight because if most of those people hear that the best beach in Jamaica is 35 minutes away, I guarantee you we will have them coming in droves on excursions. And when they go on excursions, they are coming out of an all-inclusive hotel. They’re going into the local community.”
– Richard Wallace
Chairman, Negril Green Island Area Local Planning Authority
Wallace argues that easier access would push more visitors out of all-inclusive resorts and into local communities, benefiting small businesses, vendors, tour operators and attractions throughout the region.
Taken together, these projects could fundamentally change how people move around western Jamaica, how tourists spend their money, and where investors choose to put their capital.
And if the speed at which Drax Hall has developed after the North South highway is anything to go by, the west may be emerging as Jamaica’s next major growth corridor.
And that’s the Bottom Line.
If you were investing in Jamaica right now, what part of the island would you put your money?
