Ashford W. Meikle, Staff Reporter
Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller cuts the ribbon at the official opening ceremony of the JEA/JMA Expo at the National Arena yesterday. Assisting the Prime Minister are the president of the Jamaica Manufacturers' Association, Doreen Frankson (left) and the president of the Jamaica Exporters' Association, Dr. André Gordon. - RUDOLPH BROWN/CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER
PRESIDENT OF the Jamaica Manufacturers Association (JMA), Doreen Frankson, has raised concerns about the country's burgeoning trade deficit.
"As manufacturers and exporters we are greatly concerned about our worsening trade deficit that now stands at approximately US$3 billion (J$195 billion)," Mrs. Frankson said. "Competitive local production is the answer to this pandemic. We must grease the engines of production and produce our way out of this deficit."
She was speaking at yesterday's opening of the 2006 Expo at the National Arena, St. Andrew. The four-day event, a joint partnership between the JMA and the Jamaica Exporters Association, has some 150 exhibitors showcasing Jamaican products and is being held under the theme, 'Buy Jamaican, Brand We Love'.
POLICY PRESCRIPTIONS
The JMA president bemoaned that: "There continues to be a lot of talk about the need for growth and the appropriate policy prescriptions. I just wish as a nation we would all stop paying lip service to the fact that there is just no short cut to growth."
Identifying what she calls the 'three variables' stymieing production, Frankson said: "Despite our best efforts, we continue to battle the obstacles posed by high interest rates, the high cost of energy as well as the high incidence of crime. These variables are wreaking havoc on production and limiting the expansion of the productive sector."
Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller, who reiterated the Government's commitment to the manufacturing sector and small business development, gave the main address. In an attempt to address some of the weaknesses of small businesses, the Government is pursuing the Small Business Incubator Project in both rural and urban Jamaica.
"By operating in an incubator, a start-up business is able to access business development services such as training, technical assistance, assistance with marketing, accounting services and so on," the Prime Minister said.
