Donnie Dawson, deputy director of tourism - sales for the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), has announced the appointment of Philip Rose as district manager with responsibility for south-western and western states.

Rose, who will be based in Dallas, brings to the region more than 16 years of experience in the tourism industry. He joined the board in 1998 and most recently was sales manager, based in Chicago, responsible for the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota and South Dakota. In the eight years since he took up his position in Chicago, visitor arrival growth increased by an average of 4.5 per cent.

"Philip Rose is one of the bright, young minds that the Jamaica Tourist Board has on the ground in the United States. We are confident that by promoting him to this new position, we will be placing a strong component into the engine that drives our sales from the west and south west. With the full backing of the JTB, we fully expect Philip to excel, and combined with his tremendous sales and marketing experience, we are certain that he will be a key factor in increasing visitors to Jamaica from those regions," Dawson stated.

earned several certificates

Prior to his term with the JTB, Rose ran a private destination marketing enterprise in Jamaica for three years, working with tour operators, travel agents, journalists and festival organisers. He earned several business management and marketing certificates from DePaul University in Chicago, and studied tourism management and Italian at N. Garrone Tourism School in Rome, Italy.

The new district manager has a long history of community involvement and is a founding member of Caribbean Kids Coalition, a non-profit organisation dedicated to improving the lives of poor children throughout the Caribbean. He is also a member of the Chicago Chamber of Commerce, the Caribbean Tourism Organisation and the AFS Intercultural Exchange programmes.

The Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), founded in 1955, is Jamaica's national tourism agency based in the capital city of Kingston. The board was declared the Caribbean's leading tourist and convention bureau by the World Travel Awards (WTA) for 2006, while Jamaica has earned the WTA's vote as the World's Leading Cruise Destination, the Caribbean's Leading Destination and the Caribbean's Leading Cruise Destination.