I welcome the convening of this Third Global Review of Aid for Trade which focuses attention on the very important issue of the impact that Aid for Trade funded programmes and projects can have on the economic prospects of developing countries, including small, vulnerable economies like Jamaica. Trade, i.e., imports and exports of goods and services, is indispensable to small,...

The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries would like to make clear that on average some 60,000 tonnnes of sugar is supplied to the domestic market on a yearly basis, with monthly consumption averaging 5,000 tonnes. It is traditional that we import sugar to make up for short-falls in our production after fulfillment of our overseas obligations.  This was the case...

Mr. President As I see it, the state of the nation is that of a house under renovation.  A caution sign immediately comes to mind: “Pardon the inconvenience as we improve conditions to serve you better." When you reconstruct, rehabilitate or renovate, the inconveniences you face are infuriating, but you suffer them because you know better will come. I know...

May I thank the organizers for their kind invitation to participate in this important and timely forum. It is fortuitous that we are having this dialogue on the heels of one of the biggest media scandals in history; one so monumental that it has resulted in the demise of Britain’s largest circulating newspaper, the 168 year old News of the...

Mr. President, I congratulate you on your assumption of the helm of this Assembly during its Seventeenth Session. I am confident that under your astute guidance, the work of the Assembly will be effectively discharged. I wish to commend Ambassador Jesus Silva Fernandez of Spain for his stewardship of the Assembly during its Sixteenth Session. Let me extend a warm...

Drug trafficking, once viewed largely as a social and criminal problem, has transformed in recent years into a major threat to the health and security of people and regions. The $61 billion annual market for Afghan opiates is funding insurgency, international terrorism and wider destabilization. In West Africa, the $85 billion global cocaine trade is exacerbating addiction and money-laundering while...

Today marks the twenty fourth year in which the international community is observing International Day Against Drug Abuse and Drug Trafficking as an expression of its determination to strengthen action and cooperation to attain the objective of a global society free of drug abuse. Despite continued and increased efforts by the international community, the world drug problem continues to pose...

As we gather here today, on Diaspora Day, under the theme “One Nation: Jamaica and Its Diaspora in Partnership”, I am honoured to have the task of welcoming you to Diaspora Convention 2011!  While some doubted our commitment to convene this year, I was quietly confident that we would convert the stumbling blocks into stepping stones.   Admittedly, it has not...

[Click here to view entire speech (PDF)] I extend a warm welcome to Jamaicans of several generations, from the four corners o the earth. I know the feeling of exhilaration of the many who have studied or worked abroad, who upon coming home are greeted by the vivid blue Jamaican sky and the also vivid blue and vibrant Caribbean sea....

"WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control" This year’s observance of World No Tobacco Day is focusing on the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. Jamaica is a signatory to the Convention. We ratified the Convention in 2005.  The Ministry is well advanced in the drafting of the Public Health Tobacco Control Regulations which will represent, when it is completed, a...

The Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA) and the National Environment & Planning Agency (NEPA) have conducted extensive review on the controversial developments around the Blue Lagoon and have decided that the Beach Licence issued to the Developer was proper and complied with the requirements outlined in the Beach Control Act (1956) Beach Control Amendment (2004). The NRCA/NEPA have investigated the...