DaviesNEW YORK, USA:
"GET ON-BOARD, or bring more on-board," declared Jamaica's Minister of Finance Dr. Omar Davies as he wooed the overseas community on Monday after he outlined what he labelled "the biggest challenges for Jamaica of a magnitude never seen before."
Such challenges, Dr. Davies said, came in the wake of Alcoa's US$700 million investment at Halse Hall, Clarendon, another $500 million from tourism investment; the confidence placed in the future of Jamaica and the new thrusts in the sugar industry.
"We shall be seeing accelerated rate of construction, and simultaneously with the tourism, we will have to provide high quality work, contractors, highly-skilled workers. We are going to be pressed to produce skilled workers, contractors for these challenges," he told investors, including representatives from Bears Stearns, Zim-American Israeli company, businessmen and concerned Jamaicans.
Dr. Davies was addressing the businessmen and financial community in New York for the first time in over seven years.
ECONOMIC GROWTH
The future economic growth of Jamaica, he said, "could never have been better" the country was seeing the best in tourism, production of bauxite and aluminium was the second highest ever, Alcoa had completed Halse Hall expectations by 75 per cent, the demand in the world for aluminium had benefited the foreign exchange market; and tourism was making great strides.
"We are acquiring three more Spanish chains to invest in Jamaica, in addition to Riu, which operates occupancy of between 85-90 per cent. To produce the high quality expected simultaneously with Alcoa is going to be challenging," he said.
EXODUS
He invited the overseas community to look at how they can offer their services whether they are financial, banking, or construction involved.
As he explained the role of the trade unions, he singled out Dwight Nelson, head of the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU), for his leadership qualities 'of which we should emulate' and how well workers in public sector were doing, and the freezing of salaries for some civil servants.
Karl Ross, a representative of Bears Stearns, questioned the Minister on the implication of having an exodus from the public sector to the private sector because of better wages.
Even though the Minister addressed the social problem of education and crime concerns, the Provost of John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Dr. Basil Wilson, expected specific answers on the social problem of poverty.
General manager of Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS), Earl Jarrett, earlier outlined the new economic realities affecting money transfers. As an advocate for free trade, one of the obstacles faced was access to markets, and he asked that in negotiations for free trade that recognition and differential treatment be given to small countries.
