London – Industry and Tourism Minister, Aloun Ndombet Assamba recently met with Jamaicans in Leicester, England, where she informed them of the positive developments taking place in the country, including the unprecedented levels of investment in tourism.
“We have been able as a country, to attract a level of investment at this particular time in our history that is unprecedented. We have a number of hotel products that are being built in Jamaica, some have opened in the last three years and some are just off the ground and as such, the industry and the growth of the industry have created many jobs”, she informed.
She pointed out, that sectors such as agriculture, transport and construction, stood to benefit from the expansion in tourism.
Minister Assamba, who is leading Jamaica’s delegation at the World Travel Market in the United Kingdom, also pointed out that the expansion and redevelopment of Montego Bay had attracted more airlines into the country. This development, she said, would lead to further growth in tourism.
Turning to other sectors, the Industry and Tourism Minister mentioned major infrastructure work to develop the highways and road network, electricity and water supplies as other growth areas.
In education, Mrs. Assamba informed that $5 billion had been identified to develop an education plan. “We recognize that for a country like ours, an educated population is the only way that we are going to create wealth for the people of Jamaica. The government has committed to a plan, there is an education taskforce and the Prime Minister has identified $5 billion to put into the plan to make sure that we are able to deliver the kind of education required to move us forward,” she stated.
She noted however, that the country still faced serious challenges, with crime being the major issue, but informed that government had put programs in place to address the scourge, including forming partnerships with private sector and international organizations.
The Minister and the team, which included the High Commissioner, Gail Mathurin; Chairman of the Jamaica Tourist Board Dennis Morrison; and Director General Carol Guntley, also answered a range of questions dealing with the restart of the rail service, the awarding of contracts, and the slow pace of development in eastern parishes.
The community meeting was organized by the High Commission through the community relation’s office in conjunction with the Leicester Society of Jamaicans.
