Dr. Tufton To Connect With Diaspora September 30

Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, will be the special guest at the next edition of the monthly virtual town hall, ‘Let’s Connect with Ambassador Marks’, on Thursday (September 30), at 6:00 p.m. local time.

Jamaica’s Ambassador to the United States (US) Audrey Marks, said that Dr. Tufton will update overseas nationals about the Government’s management of the pandemic, as well as matters relating to health and wellness, and hear some of their ideas and concerns.

She noted that members of the diaspora continue to contribute to the island’s health sector, including supporting the fight against the deadly coronavirus (COVID-19), and the session with the Minister provides an opportunity for them to “understand clearly what is happening and to be recognised as the valuable partners they are in this ongoing battle”.

Dr. Tufton, who was in Washington DC last week for the 73^rd Session of the Regional Committee of the World Health Organization (WHO) of the Americas, used the opportunity to highlight the inequality in the distribution of the vaccines, with low-income countries at the bottom of the receiving end.

“A disproportionate amount of the over five billion doses administered globally has gone to high-income countries. While some countries in our region have vaccinated over 50 per cent of their populations, others remain below three per cent. More than a third of countries in Latin America and the Caribbean are yet to vaccinate 20 per cent of their populations,” the Minister noted.

During the meeting, Dr. Tufton was elected President of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) 59^th Directing Council, which brought together health authorities to determine the organisation’s priorities and policies corresponding to health in the Americas, including the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and other health challenges.

Let’s Connect with Ambassador Marks offers members of the diaspora an opportunity to speak directly with the Ambassador about issues that are of interest to them, as well as to be updated on the Government’s policies and programmes and the Embassy’s activities.

From time to time, the Ambassador will be joined by various guests, including Ministers of Government, key members of the diaspora, US Government officials, and players in various agencies.