FORMER Jamaican Prime Minister P J Patterson today begins a series of town hall meetings in big Jamaican communities in New York and Florida, United States and Toronto, Canada, a day after Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Chairman Robert Montague yesterday wrapped up a three-day Diaspora tour to shore up party support in New York.

But Patterson’s tour is sponsored by remittance service giants Western Union and GraceKennedy Money Services and will run from May 4 to 8, 2015 under the theme “The Caribbean Diaspora — Borderless Possibilities”. The meetings will also be addressed by GraceKennedy Chief Executive Officer Don Wehby and Western Union’s vice-president and general manager for the Caribbean, Seaas Mason.

“The forums are very important to us, as they provide an excellent opportunity to engage the Caribbean Diaspora,” said Michelle Allen, the chief executive officer of GraceKennedy Money. She added that the town hall meetings were not just about networking and getting feedback from their customers, but to encourage their participation in “the discussions about issues that are critical to their home countries”.

Allen said the initiative would recognise the valuable contribution of the Diaspora and explore ways to continue the development and promotion of the Caribbean, while improving the quality of lives for those who live within the region.

Among the topics for this year’s forums are ‘Corporate Social responsibility — changing lives and cultivating generations through educational investment, and the two companies are expected to share information on their own commitment to education and support of the Diaspora.

GraceKennedy and Western Union handle billions of dollars in remittances to the Caribbean yearly, with Jamaica counting remittances as its biggest foreign exchange earner.

Montague makes way for Patterson, following a series of meetings from May 1, organised by a New York-based think-tank called The Proud Jamaica Foundation, comprising the Diaspora and supporters of the JLP.

General secretary of the organisation, Sherry Southe said that Montague outlined the JLP’s plans and vision to develop and move Jamaica forward through a schedule, including a town hall meeting, a business leaders’ forum, a fundraising dinner and a church service during the visit. The visit was also used as a drive by the party to increase its membership in the Diaspora, Southe said.

Members of the New York branch of G2K, the young professional arm of the JLP, participated in the series of events.