Ministry of Finance and Public Service’s Inaugural Wealth Summit

The Ministry of Finance and the Public Service will be staging its inaugural Wealth Summit next week Wednesday (August 18).

The summit is the first in a quarterly series and is aimed at helping Jamaicans identify solutions that will improve their lives and find financial security during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is also aimed at improving the financial literacy of Jamaicans by empowering them to make wise financial decisions.

Conceptualiser of the event, Shelly-Ann Weeks, who is also the Director of Corporate Communications and Public Relations at the Finance Ministry, said the free event promises to share critical information that everyone can use to get the most out of their money.

“The Wealth Summit is an opportunity for us to build our knowledge capital on financial literacy in our country. We want to create a space where they can gain clarity; everyone has felt a financial consequence of the pandemic; we need all the help we can get to learn how we can gain prosperity and get back on our feet and that’s why the summit is so timely, especially with the presenters we have selected,” she noted.

Ms. Weeks said in crafting the programme, the Finance Ministry tapped into the wealth of knowledge available from persons in both the public and private sectors who will present on their lived experiences as leaders in business.

“We have the likes of Mr. David Geddes who is Director of Stakeholder Engagement and Communication at the Financial Services Commission who will be talking to us about saving for a rainy day; and the reason this is so important is because right now we are in the middle of a storm (COVID-19 pandemic) but we need to learn to still put aside something,” Ms. Weeks said.

She added: “I am especially proud of the people who will help us make more money, Kadia Francis from Digital Jamaica will help you to find ways to find new money. There are a lot of opportunities online for you and she is going to give you the tools and information that you can use to start making money right after the summit.”

To participate in the summit, persons are required to register and they can check the social media handles of the Finance Ministry and the JIS to get the details.

Ms. Francis said the summit is not to be missed.

“From my presentation on finding new money, I am going to teach people how I started, how I was able to grow and how I am able to earn from my brands online. I am also going to be sharing case studies of other Jamaicans with small and large brands online who have taken the steps to monetise,” Ms. Francis added.

Six speakers are set to make up a stellar cast at the event beginning at 10:00 a.m. It will be live-streamed on the Facebook and YouTube sites of the Finance Ministry as well as the social media pages of the Jamaica Information Service. Registration is now open and persons can go to jis.gov.jm/mofps-wealth-summit/ to book their space.