Jamaicans in UK Urged to tell Good Stories about Country

Tourism and Industry Minister, Aloun Ndombet-Assamba has urged United Kingdom (UK) based Jamaicans to focus on, and tell the positive stories about Jamaica.She said Jamaicans had to make sure that the good stories about Jamaica and its people, who were working hard and achieving, were told.
“Look around you, yes you hear about the bad stories, but we have to make sure that our good stories are also being told, because for every bad story we can find 10 positive ones,” she said.
Minister Assamba was speaking at a Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) road show at the Croydon Chamber of Commerce in London on Wednesday, March 9.
The meeting was the third in a series, aimed at getting the Jamaican community to be more proactive in countering negative stories about the island and putting forward stories about the achievement of Jamaicans and the Jamaican community in the UK. Similar meetings were held in Nottingham and Birmingham. “Those of you who are second, third and fourth generation, please know that you have a very strong history. A strong history not only of the people in Jamaica but also of the people who came here (the UK) and helped to develop and build the British society. You have a proud history and you must talk about that. You have a very strong history, whether in Jamaica or outside of Jamaica,” the Minister said.
Chairman of the JTB, Dennis Morrison said although Jamaica faced many challenges, the JTB was working at rebalancing the image of the country. He called on the community to support these efforts.
The road show was sponsored by GraceKennedy, whose Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, James Moss Solomon spoke of the changes now taking place in the company, such as its Jamaica Birthright programme which targeted second and third generation Jamaicans living in the UK, United States and Canada.
Presentations were also made by Marcya Grant of the Jamaica Trade Commission Office and by BBC journalist, Collette Hebert.