First Day of Diaspora Conference Explores Key Issues
By: , June 18, 2024
Photo: Yhomo Hutchinson
Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Senator the Hon. Aubyn Hill (second left), participates in a panel discussion on transforming investment and enterprise in Jamaica through diaspora engagement, during Monday’s (June 17) opening day of the 10th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St. James. He is joined by (from left) Panel Moderator and JAMPRO President, Shullette Cox; Chief Executive Officer of Grace Kennedy Financial Group, Grace Burnett; Owner of Travellers Beach Resort and Founder of Throp Media, Winthrope Wellington; Chief Executive Officer of VM Finance Limited and VM Overseas Offices at the VM Group, Leighton Smith; and Managing Director of JN Fund Managers at JN Group, Brando Hayden.The Full Story
Several key topics were covered on the opening day of the 10th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference, which is being held at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in St. James from June 16 to June 19.
During several engaging and informative sessions held throughout the day, participants from government, the private sector and the diaspora made presentations covering investment opportunities, health, education, national security and climate change, among other areas.
Chair of the Programme and Content Sub-committee of the Conference, Dr. Kevin Brown, in giving a wrap of Monday’s activities during the Reflections of the Day session, said that in planning the conference agenda, care was taken to cover “all the important topics that matter, not only to the diaspora but to Jamaicans on the island”.
“Every conference must produce tangible outcomes. We are not just here to have good conversation; we want to take away key recommendations and points that we can work towards achieving,” he pointed out.
Dr. Brown highlighted panel discussions involving Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Senator the Hon. Aubyn Hill, that looked at doing business on the island and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Kamina Johnson Smith, that explored the role of Jamaican missions and diaspora communities/organisations in supporting and sustaining Jamaicans overseas.
There were also 30-minute Riverside Chats with new Police Commissioner, Dr. Kevin Blake; Chef Wenford Patrick Simpson; and Educator Dr. Anthony Munroe.
Engaging sessions on green entrepreneurship, achieving lasting peace and security, transforming Jamaica’s health system, the entry of charitable donations for health and education, and how the diaspora can uplift vulnerable communities through the Jamaica Social Stock Exchange (JSSE), were also a feature of Monday’s opening day.
The Conference is being held under the theme ‘United for Jamaica’s Transformation: Fostering Peace, Productivity and Youth Empowerment’.