KINGSTON, Jamaica – General Manager of Lifespan Company Limited and Honorary Consul to the Republic of Latvia, Robert Scott, has been re-elected as the Dean of the Consular Corps at their annual general meeting which took place on Wednesday, June 7 at the Spanish Court Hotel.

Scott shared activities in his outgoing Dean’s report that spoke to trade and youth development activities, among others. He highlighted the Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers Association Trade mission where sixteen companies travelled to Jamaica in November to explore trading opportunities with several contracts being signed shortly thereafter.

He reminded the group of the Youth in Agriculture Award presented to three youth farmers during the 2022 Denbigh Agricultural Show as well as the sponsorship of the first-time New Generation Award category in the 2022 Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association Gala Awards.

He congratulated the consuls who had done yeoman service in attending to their citizens during the first wave of the pandemic. “Your respective countries owe you a debt of gratitude,” he said.

He alluded to “big things to come” in his second term. He indicated that their efforts to mitigate human trafficking will be enhanced through technology and a leading information technology firm has started the development work to provide this solution.

Additionally, a committee is being formed with key medical, legal and other professionals to have an organ donor registry established in Jamaica.

“This will be a long-term project but happily there are several professionals in the know who can make this a reality. What is needed is a catalyst to bring this all together. We will be that catalyst. We are in the process of creating a committee and I have appointed a well-known medical professional as co-chair,” Scott said, adding that, “despite the complexity, there is a low-hanging fruit that can be explored soonest.”

Scott also served as the second vice president of the Jamaica Olympic Association and is the treasurer of the Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association, a director of the Honey Bun Foundation and is the Caribbean’s representative on the Marketing Commission of the 2023 Central America and Caribbean Games.

Scott showed appreciation to members of his executive and two special awards were presented.

A Dean’s Award was presented to Christopher Issa, Honorary Consul for Slovakia for his tremendous support to the administration. A Humanitarian Award was presented to Yodit Hylton, Honorary Consul for Ethiopia for her role in organising a donation and shipment of a 40- feet container of food, clothing and household items to Haiti shortly after the earthquake in 2021.

At the Annual General Meeting, the following members were elected to serve as Vice Dean – Yodit Hylton, Honorary consul for Ethiopia Secretary – Alveta Knight, Honorary Consul for Bahamas Treasurer – Indera Persaud, Honorary Consul for Guyana The Directors are Winston Bayley, Honorary Consul for Barbados, Irena Cousins, Honorary Consul General for Poland, Andrew Issa, Honorary Consul for Finland and Norway, Nicole Foga, Honorary Consul for Romania.