Deepening Diaspora relationship critical for national development - Campbell

Lester Hinds, Gleaner Writer 

Deepening the relationship between the Diaspora and Jamaica took centre stage at the opening ceremony for the 9th biennial conference now under way at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade in downtown Kingston.

Declaring the conference formally opened, Minister of State in the Ministry Leslie Campbell said that as Jamaica continues on its path towards recovery from the COVID pandemic, the engagement of the Diaspora in nation-building remains relevant and critical.

“The Government of Jamaica remains committed to harnessing the full potential of the Diaspora,” Campbell declared.

To that end, he said that significant progress has been made towards the finalisation of a National Diaspora Policy.

He said that the government is also completing the accompanying plan of action to implement the strategic priorities identified in the policy.

“To be effective in these pursuits, we will need data in the order of access to reliable, regular and updated statistics of the size, location and demographic of Diaspora members, for which technology will be critical” he said.

Campbell said that to achieve this goal, the government is collaborating with its international partners to develop a digital portal and Diaspora Registration Platform to collect data, thereby facilitating evidence-based decisions for Diaspora engagement.

“A feasibility study will also be developed, in consultation with the Diaspora on a Jamaican Diaspora Engagement Model,” said Campbell.

He said that it has also been recognised that the remittance industry needs to be formalised and modernised and the government is working with the International Organization for Migration on this.

Meanwhile, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Kamina Johnson Smith joined the gathering remotely from Geneva where she is attending a conference to wish the participants a successful engagement.

Johnson Smith said that it should be three days of exciting and robust discussions on how Jamaica can become the Silicon Valley of the Caribbean through digitalisation.

She said regardless of where Jamaicans reside their hearts remain in their homeland and she expressed thanks for the contributions made by the Diaspora to Jamaica's development.

The conference is being held in a hybrid fashion with some 100 in-person participants with others joining remotely.

Conference organisers are hoping to have some 5,000 participants over the three-day period.

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