KINGSTON, Jamaica – Jamaicans are being encouraged to take advantage of funding support provided by the Government of India for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, said that Jamaicans can apply for a share of up to US$1 million that India has made available to the Caribbean for equipment to start and develop businesses.

The Minister was addressing the 75th Indian Republic Day celebration on Sunday, where she hailed the Southeast Asian country for its global South-South initiatives.

Senator Johnson-Smith, in extending well wishes to the Indian people and government, expressed her anticipation for continued collaboration for the mutual development of the nations.

She noted that for nearly 200 years, Indians have been an inextricable part of the local cultural mix, making significant contributions in medicine, politics and business.

She said that Jamaica continues to benefit from Indian outreach in areas such as health, education and training, and sports.

“Last year, 20 Jamaicans were able to travel to India for training under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme. The High Commission, only this month, donated cricket kits worth US$50,000 to the Jamaica Cricket Association for the sustained development of the sport in the island,” she pointed out.

Highlighting assistance in healthcare, the Minister commended India for its Vaccine Maitri Initiative, which has provided COVID-19 vaccines to Jamaica and other countries across the globe.

“The Government of India has also provided significant support to enhance Jamaica’s medical capacity and we recall, with much appreciation, that [Indian] High Commissioner, His Excellency Masakui Rungsung and his team, also organise medical clinics across the island, utilising the cadre of Indian medical experts in Jamaica,” Johnson-Smith pointed out.

Meanwhile, High Commissioner Rungsung, in his address, noted that the staging of 31 medical camps across the island has not only helped to bolster India’s relationship with Jamaica, but is in keeping with his country’s values.

“The ethos of our Indian Republic Constitution teaches us not to wait to have more to become more,” he shared.

The 75th Indian Republic Day celebration, held at India House in Kingston, commemorated the historic Thursday of January 26th 1950, when the Constitution of the world’s largest democracy took effect, integrating all the diverse peoples across the vast sub-continent.

-JIS