KINGSTON, Jamaica—Eddy Edwards, vice-mayor of Miramar, who attended the recent four-day 11th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference in Montego Bay, says there was no clear-cut plan to improve doing business in Jamaica with members of the diaspora, and for the island to accept assistance from overseas in the technical and healthcare sectors.

“There were some efforts to address these concerns, but in my opinion more discussion is needed,” said Edwards, who was a member of the South Florida delegation.

“There wasn’t any real high point for me; a number of the speakers presented a positive image of Jamaica’s development, highlighting the resilience and quick recovery from Hurricane Melissa.

“Several of the panels offered ideas on opportunities to invest in real estate and other growing industries. I found the Marketplace to be a source of networking and connecting with businesses and government agencies, and having one-on-one conversations to be most beneficial.”

The Jamaica Marketplace, which comprised 80 government and private sector booths, was one of the conference’s highlights. It offered delegates investment ideas and opportunities in areas such as real estate, agriculture and tourism.

South Florida-based Dr Rosemarie Adamson-Lewis, a perennial presence at the conference, lauded the post-Melissa unity.
But she believes issues that affect Jamaicans overseas still need clarity.

“The biggest concerns were sustainable impact, real inclusion, trust, transparency, and engaging the next generation. Also, building resilient housing, green infrastructure and integrating major financial institutions to produce vetted and safer execution of creating good real estate and business investments,” Lewis noted. “We kept asking, ‘How do we move from talk to measurable action that actually benefits Jamaica’?”

However, she was encouraged that those issues were acknowledged by the government.

“The commitment to selfless collaboration was real. The conference laid the foundation; now the follow-through has to match the spirit we showed,” said Lewis.

Over 1,000 delegates attended the June 14-18 event, which was held at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St James.

During the conference Government officials, led by Prime Minister Andrew Holness, spoke about the encouraging recovery Jamaica has made since the Category 5 Hurricane Mellisa devastated the country’s southwestern region last October. It caused 45 deaths and billions of dollars in damage to roads, farms and hospitals.
The Jamaican Diaspora donated millions of dollars in assistance to the recovery effort, which Holness acknowledged.