Richard Pandohie was yesterday elected as the new president of the Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association (JMEA) at the annual general meeting held at its downtown office in Kingston.

Pandohie takes over the reins of the association from Metry Seaga, who served in the post of president for the last four years.

During these same four years, Pandohie also served the organisation in the capacity of deputy president. Pandohie is currently the chief executive officer and managing director of the Seprod Group.

In an interview with the Jamaica Observer’s Caribbean Business Report, the new JMEA president expressed gratitude for his election to the post saying he is “looking to work assiduously from this privileged position in continuing to provide quality service to the members of the JMEA, which is an organisation that I am very passionate about”.

He noted that his first order of business is to maintain and secure partnerships.

“I want to make sure that balanced and symbiotic partnerships are formed with institutions such as the Bureau of Standard, Customs, the Ministry of Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade.

“It is through the forging and renewal of these partnerships, I believe that the association will be given leverage to create an enabling environment for manufacturers and exporters so as to reduce the cost of doing business,” the newly appointed JMEA president stated emphatically.

In ensuring that the association remains effective, Pandohie also highlighted that as a part of his strategy going forward, “large focus will be placed on manufacturers and exporters in order to understand their concerns and to articulate these concerns properly, so that the association will be better able to negotiate positions that will be mutually beneficial for its members and the country”.

He stressed the fact that the JMEA is about continuity, hence his leadership will carry on and build on policies that already exist while exploring new ones.

Pandohie noted specifically that the association is going to ensure that the procurement policy, which was recently passed by Government, is fully implemented. Paying special attention to MSMEs, which he emphasised as a big area of focus for the JMEA, the new president says he wants to ensure that funds are available and competitively priced.

“We have to do everything possible to reduce the cost of doing business and to ensure that the environment is one that is equitable,” he offered.

As to the JMEA itself, Pandohie was very clear and he asserted: “The association is still far away from where it needs to be and is currently playing catch up with the rest of the world. I am of the view that the manufacturing sector is pivotal in driving economic growth, raising living standards and building the middle class.”

He will lead the JMEA’s board as president with the accompaniment of several other elected officials in the capacities of deputy president, treasurer, and eight directors rounding off the new JMEA administration.