Jamaica plans to have its first integrated resort casino open to the public by the start of 2020, even though neither of the approved projects appears to be making much headway.

On Friday, Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett gave a speech at a business seminar at the Sandals Montego Bay resort, during which he confirmed that the island’s first major casino operation – the identity of which went unspecified – expects to be up and running by the time the calendar flips over to 2020.

However, Bartlett insisted that the government didn’t see Jamaica “ever becoming a casino destination but rather a destination in which casino gaming is available.” Bartlett said the government’s observation of “some of the attendant negatives” of gaming in other jurisdictions had dampened its appeal somewhat.

Bartlett insisted that the government wouldn’t issue any licenses for standalone casino operations and that any resort operator licensed to operate gaming on the island shouldn’t expect its casino to provide over one-fifth of resort revenue.