THE Tourism Master Plan to which Jamaica’s future tourism prospects are pinned and development of the proposed Port Royal/Portmore Ferry service, are among key projects that are likely to attract support from Belgium, the foreign ministry announced last evening.

Technical teams from Jamaica and Belgium will meet in the near future to follow up on proposals for co-operation in a number of areas covering transportation, tourism, road improvement and trade negotiations, the foreign ministry said in a news release issued after wide-ranging talks between the two sides.

After a breakfast meeting yesterday morning at the upscale Strawberry Hill Resort near Irish Town, St Andrew, Jamaica’s foreign minister, K D Knight, and visiting Belgian deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs, H E Louis Michel, agreed to strengthen the growing ties between Kingston and Brussels.

Among the areas that will be explored for assistance from Belgium are: funding of the Tourism Master Plan, with specific reference to Heritage Tourism; the Port Royal/Portmore Ferry Project; the proposed Half-Way-Tree Transportation Hub; and Belgium will also provide technical assistance to Jamaica in the area of trade negotiations, the release said.

Jamaica has received technical assistance from the Government of Belgium over the years, including financial assistance for the provision of buses for Kingston. The Belgian Government financed transportation depots at Lyndhurst Road in Kingston and Spanish Town. The Commerzbank of Belgium has also loaned the Port Authority of Jamaica approximately US$27.2 million to assist in upgrading work at Port Bustamante.

The foreign ministry said Knight had also received the assurance of support at the European Union from the deputy prime minister for the efforts of Jamaica, the Caribbean Community (Caricom), and the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) grouping to protect the interests of banana and sugar cane farmers.

Minister Knight, speaking on behalf of the developing world, had outlined challenges being faced by sugar brought by Australia, Thailand and Brazil to the European regime, mentioning the negative effect these challenges, if successful, could have on sugar prices.

The minister also referred to difficulties being faced by Caribbean banana producers which could have “dire consequences” for the economies of Jamaica and these countries if these difficulties were not satisfactorily resolved.

The meeting also agreed to consider supporting Jamaica’s and Belgium’s efforts to seek upcoming candidatures for a number of United Nations-related bodies.

Both foreign ministers described the morning’s talks as “frank and excellent”, welcoming the opportunity to deepen relations between their countries.

Jamaica was represented in the talks by Transport and Works Minister Robert Pickersgill, minister of state in the finance and planning ministry, Senator Deika Morrison, as well as senior officials from the ministries of foreign affairs and foreign trade; science, commerce and technology; industry and tourism; and the Port Authority of Jamaica.

Michel was supported by Belgian ambassador to Jamaica, Baudouin Vanderhulst who is resident in Caracas; honorary consul of Jamaica in Belgium, Jacques Nyssen; honorary consul of Belgium in Jamaica, Robert Cartade; and officials of the Belgian foreign ministry.

The Belgian deputy prime minister, who arrived in the island on Friday night, yesterday toured the Jamaica Urban Transit Company Spanish Town Depot and the Bernard Lodge Sugar Estate. Today, he will tour Port Royal Heritage Sites before departing.