The contradiction of rising crime and increasing tourist arrivals in the Caribbean will be up for discussion this week during a special lecture at at the University of the West Indies (UWI).

Dr. Derrick Deslandes, lecturer in the Department of Management Studies at the UWI, will present his piece, entitled 'Rising Crime and Increasing Tourist Arrivals in the Caribbean: Understanding and Managing the Contradiction', at the Undercroft of the Senate Building, UWI, Mona campus, on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.

More than 3,000,000 visitors travelled to Jamaica in 2006, representing a 15.3 per cent increase over 2005 arrivals. This record. breaking figure, may have excited, as well as surprised many, given the perceived levels of criminal activity on the island.

Timely subject

The 2007 American Friends of Jamaica (AFJ)/Cobb Family lecture series will examine this contradiction in the Caribbean.

"The subject of this lecture could not be more timely. Jamaica depends heavily on the revenue from tourist arrivals and there is a delicate balance between their choice of destination and the crime in any country," said Ambassador Glen Holden, chairman of the AFJ.

He continued: "Over the past few years, crime reduction has been a priority of many Caribbean nations. It is an urgent one for which solutions have to be found."

Facilitating talent

The lecture series is made possible by an endowment from the Cobb Family Foundation in partnership with AFJ. The purpose of the lecture series is to provide a public forum for a talented UWI researcher - selected by his peers - to present his academic findings on an important topic relating to Jamaica's future. Former U.S. Ambassador to Jamaica, Sue Cobb, who delivered last year's inaugural lecture, will be in attendance.

Since its inception in 1982, the American Friends of Jamaica has donated almost $11 million to Jamaican charities' focus in the areas of education, health care and economic development. In 2006, 15 grants were awarded to organisations such as the Ministry of Education, the Jamaica Society for the Blind and Hanover charities.