Senior IMF Rep Commends Government

Senior International Monetary Fund (IMF) Representative in Jamaica, Dr. Gene Leon, has commended the Government for displaying the vision to formulate a programme, aimed at resuscitating the country’s economy.

Speaking at a Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprise (MSME) Alliance public forum at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ) auditorium, New Kingston, on April 11, Dr. Leon said the programme represented a “blueprint” and a  “map,” which presents opportunities for Jamaica going forward.

“I think it’s a unique opportunity for Jamaica…in conjunction with (its) international partners, the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, and a number of others,   to start the process of getting the country out of where it is,” he said.

Noting that the economic challenges have mainly resulted from consumption exceeding earnings, Dr. Leon underscored the need for a collective approach by stakeholders at all levels of the society to address this and other contributing factors, to  enable Jamaica to effectively address the problems.

“Self responsibility requires us to see our role in where we are, to see our responsibility in taking us out of where we are, and that’s the only way we can galvanize ourselves around the national consensus, the national responsibility and the national thrust that will get us into a different place,” he said.

The forum, which focused on the theme: ‘MSMEs waiting to Exhale’, was jointly staged by the MSME Alliance, Jamaica Micro Finance Association (JaMFA), and the University of Technology’s (UTech) Joan Duncan School of Entrepreneurship, Ethics and Leadership (JDSEEL)

By Douglas McIntosh, JIS Reporter