Kingston, Jamaica – Nearly a year after its launch, JAMPRO is reporting significant achievements from its Export Max Programme, which has been delivering capacity building and export development interventions to 15 targeted small and medium sized export companies, to better compete in the global export market.
JAMPRO’s Vice President of Trade and Business Development, Delaine Morgan, told the ‘Let’s Talk Exports’ Forum in Montego Bay last week (March 15) that a number of significant success stories have emerged from the Export Max programme. She said, “Enterprise development plans have been done for all fifteen companies; and a total of fourteen proposals for grant funding have been submitted to the Caribbean Export Development Agency in Barbados amounting to Euros 568,000 or JA $ 67 million.”
“In addition, two companies under the Export Max programme have secured initial exporters orders totaling US $46,000 as a result of participating in the Americas Food & Beverage show in Florida last November which was facilitated by JAMPRO,” she noted.
One Export Max firm was selected as one of seven companies from a total of 150 applicants for consideration under the Compete Caribbean’s Enterprise Challenge Fund. This firm could receive up to US$75,000 to aid the development of a detailed project proposal. If this project proposal is selected the company could receive up to US$300,000 to implement the project. Other grant proposals are being developed for submission to other donor agencies including the Centre for the Development of Enterprises (CDE) to support the Export Max firms.
Other successes include two Export Max firms partnership to invest in a major ginger planting/production operation. Another Export Max client has signed a multimillion dollar co-packing contract with another local exporter facilitated under JAMPRO’s business linkages programme. “Based on these types of successes we plan to actively pursue other sources of external funding so that we can be in a position to extend this programme to other groups of exporters,” Ms. Morgan added.
JAMPRO’s Export Max is a means of developing customized developmental programmes for exporters with sponsorship support from the Development Bank of Jamaica, the Jamaica Public Service Company, Bureau of Standards and the Exim Bank. The programme is a two year initiative which is geared at providing targeted capacity building and market penetration support to the fifteen participating companies in order to significantly enhance their export performance.
Also in an effort to increase export performance and promotion, JAMPRO will be recruiting and hosting 300 buyers at Expo Jamaica to be held at the National Arena in Kingston from April 26 – 29.
