KINGSTON, Jamaica – Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith says her ministry continues to advocate for special visas, such as Touring Visas for entertainers, to be accommodated by the European market.

According to Johnson Smith, under the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union (EU), the ministry continues to be engaged in bilateral meetings where the matter is raised.

She provided the update during the Standing Finance Committee’s review of the 2023/24 Estimates of Expenditure in the House of Representatives, on Wednesday.

The minister pointed out that the EU is working to facilitate a simplified online application process for visas for the general public.

“We hear that, and we welcome that, but we are still advocating for accommodation by these special visas [such as] the Touring Visas that we had been promised from 2019 and have not manifested,” Johnson Smith said.

She further added that the ministry is “building advocates in partner countries to take our [Jamaica’s] side on these issues when they are among their EU partners”.

The minister is also expected to visit the Home Affairs Commission of the EU in Brussels to discuss further matters under the EPA this year.