PM Calls For Change In Middle Income Status
By: , June 12, 2015The Key Point:
Photo: Yhomo Hutchinson
Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller (2nd left), makes a point during bilateral talks with Prime Minister of Spain, Mariano Rajoy Brey (right), at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium on Thursday (June 11). The bilateral meeting reviewed several areas of cooperation between Jamaica and Spain and identified additional areas of cooperation to be pursued. Others (from left) are: Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator AJ Nicholson; Jamaica’s Ambassador to Belgium and the European Union, Vilma McNish; and Spain’s Secretary of State for European Affairs, Baron Íñigo Méndez de Vigo y Montojo. The Prime Minister was in Brussels for the second summit of the European Union (EU)-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC). (JIS Photo/Yhomo Hutchinson)The Facts
- She noted that the classification has prevented these countries from accessing greater levels of funding for development and other economic support.
- The Prime Minister was addressing a retreat held on June 11 in Brussels, Belgium, as part of the of two-day summit of Heads of State and Government of the European Union (EU) and the 33 countries of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).
The Full Story
Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller, has pressed for changes to be made to the existing classification of some developing countries as “middle income”.
She noted that the classification has prevented these countries from accessing greater levels of funding for development and other economic support.
The Prime Minister was addressing a retreat held on June 11 in Brussels, Belgium, as part of the of two-day summit of Heads of State and Government of the European Union (EU) and the 33 countries of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).
At the retreat, Prime Minister Simpson Miller spoke about some of the major issues of concern to Jamaica.
These included the need for greater levels of development financing for developing countries within the framework of the Post 2015 Development Agenda, as well as practical on-the-ground programmes to prevent and respond to the effects of climate change.
The Prime Minister, over the course of the summit, which got underway on June 10, also held bilateral meetings with Prime Minister of Spain, Mariano Rajoy Brey; and Prime Minister of Sweden, Stefan Lofven. The meetings reviewed several areas of cooperation between Jamaica and the two EU countries and identified additional areas of cooperation to be pursued.
Areas of technology transfer, agriculture and agro-processing formed a major part of the talks with Spain.
Prime Ministers Simpson Miller and Lofven spoke about of the commitment of their governments to prudent macro-economic management; trade and investment facilitation; employment creation; gender equality; the protection of children; social programmes for the most vulnerable segments of their populations; and programmes to mitigate the effects of climate change.