Gov’t Remains Committed to Providing Benefits for All Jamaicans – Prime Minister Holness

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, has highlighted improvements in Jamaica’s economy and reiterated the Government’s commitment to doing more for the citizens.

He says while the economy can be classified as being stable, the Government will continue to implement programmes that will benefit all Jamaicans.

“Our economy has transitioned. Our growth rate for the last fiscal year was 5.5 per cent. Our inflation after the pandemic went as high as 11.8 per cent; we are now down to about 6.2 per cent. Our dollar has remained stable, even after the fallout of the pandemic. But the one statistic that I really like to mention when I speak about the stability of the economy, is unemployment. The unemployment rate continues to be low,” Mr. Holness stated.

He was addressing the Office of the Prime Minister’s quarterly press briefing on Thursday (August 3).

Mr. Holness said over the past four years, the economy has been delivering jobs for the people.

“In the period of Independence, jobs represent the route to personal independence. Having a job gives you income; having income gives you the ability to have access to goods and services, and to plan for your future,” he maintained.

Prime Minister Holness said the Government is making strategic investments in skills training through the HEART/NSTA Trust as well as social security programmes, so that more Jamaicans can reap benefits.

The improved social security initiatives include increasing the minimum wage and expanding the social pension programme.

“So yes, our economy is doing well. But this is not to say that there are not challenges, because, for many, there is a sense that they are mere bystanders to this success in the economy.

“Yes, there are many young people who are being employed. But there are also many young persons who are left out of the labour market. They are left out, some of them voluntarily, and some of them are not in the labour market because they just simply don’t have the skills and the wherewithal to participate. That is why the Government has invested heavily in the HEART/NSTA to ensure that we can bring particularly our young unskilled workers into the labour force, so that they can get access to the jobs that are being created,” the Prime Minister said.

Mr. Holness pointed out that the Government’s policy is not focused merely on economic statistics.

“At the heart of it, at the core of it, is about how the economy serves people. It serves them through jobs, it serves them by creating the basis for a social safety net system that protects the most vulnerable in the society,” he emphasised.

To this end, the Prime Minister said changes will be made to the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH) to enable more families in need of support to be identified for benefits.