Alando Terrelonge | Government’s strategic partnership with Jamaican Diaspora

The Government of Jamaica (GoJ), the Global Jamaica Diaspora Council (GJDC) and its youth arm, the Global Jamaica Diaspora Youth Council (GJDYC) continue to work as strategic partners. While there are many voices across the diaspora, the GJDC and GJYDC are the mechanisms used to enhance diaspora engagement and implement the National Diaspora Policy, geared at achieving Jamaica’s national development goal, and at the same time, securing the welfare of Jamaicans in the diaspora.

The GoJ’s move to improve its diaspora engagement came to the fore with the January 2020 launch of the 30-member GJDC and its youth arm, the GJDYC, replacing the former Diaspora Advisory Board, which had eight representatives, drawn from the United Kingdom (UK), the United States of America (USA), and Canada.

The councils, representing an expanded and more inclusive global consultative group, comprised members from the UK, the USA, Canada, Europe, the Caribbean and Latin America, Asia, Africa, Australia, and the Middle East. In addition to the new and emerging regions added to the group, the councils also include sector leaders in: agriculture; the arts, sports and culture, citizen security, commerce, development issues, education, environment, health and wellness, and the faith-based community.

In keeping with its mandate, the GJDC and GJDYC consult with the GOJ on a plethora of issues, including education, health, investment, tourism, security, and agriculture, often providing great insight and best practices, which are considered by the GOJ.

ROBUST RELATIONSHIP

The GJDYC comprises second- to fourth-generation Jamaicans – true to the GoJ’s commitment to develop a closer and more robust relationship with young members of the Jamaican Diaspora across the globe. Their voices have been heard and their ideas taken on board, from the Inaugural Online Youth Summit in June 2020, under the theme: “Leading Beyond COVID-19: Industries, Impact and Innovation”, to their active formulation and engagement in panels of the Diaspora Symposium in 2021, to their engagements in the regional conferences staged last year in the UK, the US, Canada, and Europe, where in my capacity as minister of state in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, I was the keynote speaker.

It is also the GoJ, the GJDC, and the GJDYC, legacy partners such as the Victoria Mutual (VM) Group, the GraceKennedy Group, the Jamaica National Group, government ministries and agencies (MDAs), alongside other private-sector partners that are currently engaged in the consultative planning of the 10th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference, slated for Montego Bay, in June 2024.

The Government reiterates its sincere gratitude to the diaspora and all our development partners for their unwavering support. As we approach the 10th iteration of the conference, we anticipate that it will continue to provide an inclusive platform for enhancing and propelling development, with special attention to and regard for critical sectors of Jamaican life, especially health and education. The Government is conscious of the significant tasks ahead and recognises the necessity of ongoing and inclusive collaboration with all Jamaicans to fulfil its commitment to growth and development.

As we thank the diaspora for their commitment and support, I must also note that the Government continues to fulfil its promise for the delivery of important services to the diaspora. In that regard, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, with its diplomatic missions and consular posts, offers a range of services. These include facilitating applications for passports, citizenship, police certificates, Letters of No Objection, Certificates of No Impediments, settlement of estates, and payment of pensions to retired Jamaican public servants overseas, as well as the issuing of Jamaican visas.

EXPRESSED CONFIDENCE

Jamaicans worldwide have expressed their confidence in the Government and its calculated approach to economic growth and fiscal responsibility, which has resulted in unprecedented socio-economic progress for Jamaica and its citizens. To that end, the diaspora has continued to praise the Government for achievements, including our historic low unemployment rate of 4.5 per cent; the lowering of the national debt to 77 per cent of GDP; the 10 consecutive quarters of economic growth; the 22 per cent reduction of dangerous crime, with murder being reduced by seven per cent, as a result of both the increased focus and expenditure on improving crime fighting capabilities and enhancing human capital in the security sector; our improvements in policing our borders, thanks to bilateral and multilateral partnerships; the infrastructural development of our motorways and highways, in addition to the booming construction industry.

The massive return to the island of thousands of Jamaicans to celebrate the Christmas holidays, the increased diaspora direct investments and philanthropic missions across Jamaica, added to the approximately seven per cent increase in remittances sent home from Jamaican family overseas in 2023 further signal the goodwill and energy that exist between Jamaica and its diaspora. As such, it is undeniable that Jamaica and its diaspora are at an unprecedented stage of engagement, with mutual benefits gained from this strategic and symbiotic relationship.

Jamaicans across the diaspora have, indeed, expressed hope and are excited by the stabilising economy and currency, bolstered direct and indirect local- and foreign-investor confidence, which have made Jamaica the ideal destination and poster child for trade and investment – a fact recognised by our key bilateral and multilateral partners, including the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations, and the World Bank. As such, the vast majority of our diaspora are opposed to any attempt to disrupt Jamaica’s growth trajectory and nation-building. Jamaicans in other parts of the world have also expressed the view that one region, or one individual, does not speak for the entire diaspora, which exceeds three million people. They have advised that the diaspora will continue to work with the GOJ as strategic partners to foster greater engagement and empowerment for all Jamaicans.

We welcome this approach as we all play our part in advancing the welfare of all Jamaicans in keeping with the Vision 2030 National Development Goals of leaving no one behind as Jamaica becomes the place to live, raise families, and do business.

I also take the opportunity to share that the Jamaica Diaspora Engagement Model, a portal that seeks to put diaspora investors and investment opportunities in the same space, at the same time putting diasporas together on the same platform, should be launched at the 10th Biennial Conference.

Alando Terrelonge is minister of state in Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.