KINGSTON, Jamaica — Finance Minister Audley Shaw today disclosed that as at the end of December 2017, the Government of Jamaica has successfully met all the quantitative performance criteria and indicative targets agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under the current Precautionary Stand-By Arrangement.

Shaw who was making his opening presentation in the 2018 Budget Debate in Parliament said passing these tests is important and necessary, but it is also insufficient.

“It is our focus and priority to ensure that we also pass the even more important test set by the people of Jamaica – I call it the People’s Test,” he added.

Shaw defined the People’s Test as “the test for a more prosperous society that the people can see, feel, and touch which includes a growing economy with high levels of investment, safer communities, higher standards of living, more and better job opportunities, improved roads and infrastructure – particularly in our rural areas, a lower tax burden, a stable exchange rate, increased opportunities for personal and professional advancement, and meaningful access to affordable housing as well as high-quality education and healthcare.”