INDIA has been a “trusted partner” in Jamaica’s development journey and it is ready to share expertise in areas, including digital public infrastructure, biofuel, innovation, and health with the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday.

Modi spoke with the press after holding discussions with his Jamaican counterpart, Andrew Holness, who is leading a delegation on an official visit to India.

The Jamaican prime minister, meanwhile, expressed his country’s desire to strengthen cooperation with India in a number of sectors, including science, technology, engineering, mathematics, education, digitalisation, security, and energy. “India positions itself as the knowledge capital of the world. We recognise the remarkable strides made by your Government in STEM education and digitalisation. We look forward to learning from India as a beacon of technological advancement,” Holness said.

Modi said he and Holness also discussed regional and global issues and agreed that all tensions and disputes should be resolved through talks and that both sides will continue to work towards ensuring global peace and security.

In the defence sphere, Modi said that they will move forward with imparting training and capacity-building of Jamaica’s armed forces. He also identified organised crime, drug trafficking, and terrorism as common challenges facing both nations.

Modi also announced that the road in front of the Jamaica High Commission in New Delhi has been named Jamaica Marg.

Modi further expressed optimism that relations between the two countries will grow faster than Usain Bolt. “As cricket-loving countries, sports play a very strong and important role in our relations. The people of India have a special affection for cricketers. We also discussed deepening our cooperation in sports. I am confident that the outcome of today’s discussions will accelerate our relations even faster than Usain Bolt and we will continue to reach new heights,” Modi said.

In praising the Indian community in Jamaica, he said that the people of Indian origin who consider Jamaica as their home are a “living example of our cultural heritage”.

“The people who went to Jamaica from India about 180 years ago laid a strong foundation for our ‘People-to-People’ ties. The nearly 70,000 people of Indian origin who consider Jamaica as their home are a living example of our cultural heritage. I thank Prime Minister Holness and his Government for taking care of them…The cultural exchange programme being held today will further strengthen our mutual ties,” Modi said.