By Dennise Williams, Staff reporterTHE RIGHT Hon. George Foulkes, British Member of Parliament and senior back bench member of the Labour Party, visited Jamaica from November 10-12 in the capacity as president of the Caribbean Britain Business Council (CBBC).
The CBBC is a United Kingdom-based membership organisation that brings together over 200 major British companies with an investment and trading interest in the Caribbean. It offers UK companies regular networking opportunities through events, trade missions and other activities and provides information on a regular basis to Britain's Foreign & Commonwealth Office and other UK Government departments to discuss policy towards the Caribbean as it affects both large and small UK investors and traders.
CRITICAL CHALLENGES
Stated Mr. Foulkes, "The region faces a number of critical challenges arising out of trade liberalisation. Britain continues to be an important friend. I believe that organisations such as the CBBC can play an important and constructive role in ensuring that trade and investment, the cement in the relationship, continue to flourish."
Nonetheless, there seems to be a love me, love me not, relationship between Jamaica and Britain. And it is Mr. Foulkes' supposition that this can be corrected with self-determination of the Jamaican people.
He was particularly impressed with the strides made by the public and private sector. "The Jamaican Government and the private sector have encouraged investment. They have attracted tourists and modernised old industries. In particular the sugar and banana industries. I visited a St. Thomas banana plantation and I could see the investments made in cost-cutting measures and the positive attitude of managers and workers.
"This new reality has not gotten over to people in Europe and Britain. Jamaica Producers, not just their bananas, but also the efficiency of the company that improves monthly and the diversity of the company also impressed me.
"There is a real will to succeed by those in the sugar and banana industry. I am taking on the task to make Britain aware of the dreadful social dislocation and misery that will occur if these two industries are not given time to restructure in order to compete.
"If the people making a living in the rural communities find that their industries disappear, they would possibly drift into Kingston and possibly into crime."
DICHOTOMY
In terms of how Jamaica is perceived, Mr. Foulkes stated, "There is a dichotomy in view. There is a positive image in terms of tourists and the links between Jamaica and the UK.
"I mean there are Jamaicans in the UK making a good contribution to UK life. But more recently, the view of Jamaicans has become rather more negative. That view is a product of the drug trade and the resulting crime and social instability. This then impacts on Jamaica in two ways.
"The negative news that British people read will scare the tourist and there is a concern that Jamaican gangs are operating in Britain. That affects the law-abiding Jamaican. But there are those of us who are anxious to make sure the image of Jamaica is positive. We want to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative."
Mr. Foulkes emphasised that perception is the issue. "Britain needs to realise that incidents that they read about in newspapers are not typical of life in Jamaica." And because of this misunderstanding, he believes that UK investors are missing out on investment opportunities in Jamaica.
"The climate for investment in Jamaica is good. I have spoke to a number of Jamaican private sector members and see that investments are happening here. National Commercial Bank is a good example of foreign investment. The climate in Jamaica is right for investment. I think that Britain is losing out to Spain and the United States in terms of tourism investment opportunities."
WORLD TRADE NEGOTIATIONS
In regards to the ongoing world trade negotiations, Mr. Foulkes believes that Jamaica is not tapping into its own personal gold mine Jamaicans who are voting citizens of other countries. "I am concerned that Jamaica's interests are not properly taken into account in the arena of trade, and not just in the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The Jamaican Government needs to mobilise the Diaspora in the UK, Canada and the United States to lobby within those countries on behalf of Jamaica in issues of trade. Jamaica can become more visible through their citizens who vote in other countries."
