Prime Minister Breaks Ground for New Energy Efficient IDB Country Building

Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller today (December 19) broke ground for the construction of a new permanent country office for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in Kingston, Jamaica. The Prime Minister was joined by President of the IDB, Luis Alberto Moreno, IDB Country Representative, Therese Turner-Jones and Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Peter Phillips in the symbolic ground breaking exercise.

Expressing gratitude for the partnership that Jamaica and the IDB have shared for the past 45 years; the Prime Minister noted that the new building is a positive signal that the IDB and Jamaica will continue to forge even stronger bonds of cooperation and support. “I want to thank you (IDB President) for selecting Jamaica for the construction of this building. We know it will redound to the benefit of the Jamaican people,” Mrs. Simpson Miller said.

Construction on the new energy-efficient building will begin next year and should be completed by January 2017. IDP President, Luis Moreno noted that the construction of the model building in Jamaica, which will serve as an example for other IDB country offices globally, was indeed symbolic of “a new time and place where we can help to shape Jamaica of the future.”

Since 1969, the Jamaica-IDB relationship has positively transformed the lives of countless Jamaicans through grants and loans for investment and budget support. Approved financing to Jamaica since the country’s adoption of Member Country Status in 1969 to June this year, was US $3.8 billion.

Loan financing from the IDB has continued to support the Government’s capital investments across several sectors and sub-sectors, including health, justice, education, youth development, agriculture, energy and infrastructure such as roads and water supply. Through IDB financing, the Government has been able to modernize public sector governance and implement fiscal reforms.

Additionally, the IDB recently (December 11) approved a grant of US$250,000 to support the Ministry of Health in its efforts to prevent and control the spread of diseases, such as the Chick-V and activities to guard against the Ebola virus.

Ahead of the groundbreaking exercise, the Prime Minister, IDB President and government officials held talks concerning a range of development matters in Jamaica, including energy conservation and diversification, agriculture and leveraging brand Jamaica for the financial gain of the country. As one of the main outcomes of the talks, the parties recognized the need to work more assiduously to achieve greater economic growth for Jamaica and committed themselves to that goal.