Holness calls for Diaspora to recommit to building Jamaica

Prime Minister Andrew Holness has urged members of the Diaspora to recommit to building Jamaica.

“A part of that recommitment must be how can we build our homeland. Your remittances have been good. Your philanthropy has been good but your investment could be better,” Holness said.

He was speaking Sunday night in Queens, New York at the launch of activities to be undertaken in the Northeast Region of the United States for Jamaica's 60th anniversary of Independence.

Holness was in New York after attending the Penn relays in Philadelphia as well as participating in several high meetings in that city.

At the gathering, he highlighted the work of the Diaspora and its importance to Jamaica and urged persons to always remember their homeland.

“You have a duty to continue to build that brand Jamaica from which we all benefit. So as we celebrate Jamaica's 60th anniversary I want to tell you how much we respect, love and indeed appreciate the Diaspora,” he said.

“Whether we are on the island or spread out all over the world we are going to commit to make Jamaica the greatest country,” Holness said.

Earlier in the day, the prime minister attended a church service in Brooklyn to mark Jamaica's 60th independence anniversary

Among the activities planned to commemorate the independence anniversary in the Northeast Region of the Diaspora are a joint cultural showcase, a cultural photographic display at the Jamaican Consulate in Manhattan, street fairs in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, and a reggae and jazz concert at Lincoln Center.

- Lester Hinds

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