Govt. Encouraging
Partnerships between Jamaicans here and Abroad (JIS)
Monday, June 21, 2004
Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister, K.D. Knight, has said
that the government was encouraging partnerships between Jamaicans
at home and abroad, in the effort to move the country out of the
category of a developing country and on the path of being a developed
state.
"We believe that you are an integral part of that process,"
he told the overseas nationals, who attended the inaugural two-day
Diaspora Conference, held from June 16-17 at the Jamaica Conference
Centre in downtown Kingston.
He noted that being small was not a deterrent to achieving this
goal as Singapore, which is smaller than Jamaica, had become one
of the world's most prosperous countries with a highly developed
and successful free market economy. "With the kinds of expertise
that exist in Jamaica and the Diaspora, this is not a dream but
a realizable vision and one that is realizable in our lifetime,"
the Minister emphasized.
Turning to the trade agenda, Minister Knight informed that Jamaica
was involved in talks for the establishment of the Free Trade Area
of the Americas (FTAA); CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME);
African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP)/European Union (EU) negotiations,
while CARICOM/Canada talks would begin soon. He stressed that Jamaica's
participation in these trade arrangements was very important, as
"they provide a wider market space for all
of us."
"There is the opportunity for you to be in joint ventures
with local companies, provide investment capital, human resources
and technological skills for enterprises to be competitive in this
market environment," he told the participants.
The Minister pointed out that while there were challenges, "the
opportunities are there and it is for us to ensure that we are competitive,
so that we can penetrate those markets that exist".
Mr. Knight also called on Jamaicans overseas to get involved in
the political process in the jurisdictions in which they lived,
to lobby for changes in trade laws to benefit small economies, such
as Jamaica's. "Your involvement in the political process can
put the kind of pressure on the political representatives there,
so that they understand the importance of not marginalizing economies
like ours," he said.
"We want to move you away from simply being those persons
who are looked at to send remittance to Jamaica. We want you to
be a part of the productive capacity and enterprises within the
country. We want you to own Jamaica. This land is yours and you
must own it," he added.
|
