KINGSTON, Jamaica— Jamaica’s economy needs to grow at seven per cent per annum for the next 10 to 15 years if the country is to achieve an average per capita wage of US$20,000 as is the case in other Caribbean islands.

This is according to Opposition Spokesman on Investment, Trade and Global Logistics, Anthony Hylton. He made the observation this week during his contribution to the Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives.

Jamaica’s current per capita wage is US$7,000.

Hylton said the level of growth needed was necessary for the country to “transition from a low wage, low tech, low growth economy to one which achieves high levels of inclusive and sustainable growth and development that can meet the needs and aspirations of our people.”

That position was previously stated by Opposition Leader Mark Golding and the Shadow Minister for Finance, Julian Robinson during the Budget Debate in March.

Hylton repeated that position in his sectoral presentation.

“I concur! [with Golding and Robinson]. The finance minister (Dr Nigel Clarke) in an apparent response to the low growth concerns adverted to the increase in Jamaica’s GDP to US$7,000, which when juxtaposed against the US$20,000 per capita income of Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago and Guyana serves only to highlight the complexities of the growth and development challenges faced by Jamaica’s economy, for which solutions have yet to be proffered by the government,” Hylton said.

He asserted that Jamaica’s GDP per capita does not show the wealth and income inequality gap experienced by the average Jamaican household.

“Neither does this increase to US$7,000 without more, addresses the nature nor the scope of the challenges facing Jamaica to move its GDP from US$7,000 to US$ 20,000, requiring an average real GDP growth of seven per cent each year, for the next 10 to 15 years”.

According to Hylton, the minister’s own projection for growth over the next three years averages around 2.2 per cent. He said this was “too low to provide the resilience necessary to absorb the likely shocks to the country’s economy from the myriad sources of pandemics, conflicts, geopolitical and climate events on the horizon”.

Hylton told the House that with only six years remaining for Jamaica to meet its Vision 2030 and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, there is increased urgency to put corrective strategies, policies, plans and programmes in place to even come close to achieving the targeted level of inclusive growth and development envisaged by the existing framework of UN-agreed initiatives and our own national consensus -Vision 2030.