KINGSTON, Jamaica — With several Diaspora members in town for the inaugural staging of the Jamaica Christian Diaspora Conference from October 15-16 in Montego Bay, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, has since met with key youth leaders from the United Kingdom at the ministry’s offices in New Kingston.

The minister applauded the efforts of Nathaniel Peat, Chairman of Jamaicans Inspired UK (JamInUK) and Tanesha Westcarr, newly elected Future Leader UK representative on the Diaspora Advisory Board, to forge new connections between second, third and fourth generation Diaspora members and Jamaica.

“Some young people do not feel connected to the word ‘Diaspora’, thinking it applies to their parents and grandparents. We need them to understand that they don’t need to “apply” to be a member of the Diaspora. They are already a part of the movement through their blood connection, so the ministry’s vision is to expand that engagement,” the minister said.

Peat updated the minister on a recently signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between JamInUK and the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC), to execute the first phase of their Parish Ambassador Programme.

The programme will link Diaspora youth to community development projects in the parish of their heritage, to foster stronger ties to their birthright and to promote capacity building and investment in Jamaica.

Westcarr, who spoke of a similar project involving parish councils in Jamaica and the local government in the UK, presented minister Johnson Smith with a copy of the suggestions, submitted to the CARICOM Review Commission by a compilation of Diaspora youth leaders in the UK, in response to the Commission’s request for public consultations. This, she emphasised, demonstrates the interest of the youth in Jamaican affairs.