EDITORIAL - Shoring up Caracas and being open to the Gulf

We note the announcement by the foreign minister, Dr Ken Baugh, of the appointment of career diplomat Audley Rodriques to head Jamaica's first embassy in Kuwait, plans for which were announced in July.

Dr Baugh has also disclosed the imminent posting of former Jamaica Labour Party politician and trade unionist, Cliff Stone, to Venezuela to succeed the career foreign service officer, Delrose Montague, who is being reassigned to Mexico. No one has as yet been assigned to South Africa where Mr Rodriques was latterly posted, which hopefully does not signal a downgrade of Africa.

The postings of Mr Stone and Mr Rodriques would be important in any circumstance. They, however, take on particular significance at this time as Jamaica grapples with its economic crisis and seeks to rationalise its energy mix to help bring greater efficiency and competitiveness to the economy.

Closely watched and judged

In this regard, Mr Rodriques' performance is likely to be closely watched and judged, not only by what he does in Kuwait City, but in the wider Gulf region. His job, as was signalled by Foreign Minister Baugh in his parliamentary remarks, is to leverage the tools of diplomacy to Jamaica's economic advantage.

"We have recognised, in particular, the role being played by Gulf States in issues of shipping and logistics, development cooperation, energy and global investment and finance," Dr Baugh said. "With a combined GDP of over US$1 trillion, and control of over 40 per cent of the world's known oil reserves, the influence of the Gulf on global affairs will continue to grow."

To put it bluntly, Mr Rodriques will be expected to help identify sources of development financing, economic support and investment and steer them to Jamaica. He will begin with a small toehold.

For instance, the Kuwait Investment Fund (KIF) is not unknown to Jamaica. Indeed, Jamaica owes the KIF approximately US$43 million, largely related to financing for the May Pen bypass when the roadway was incorporated into the first segment of Highway 2000. Additionally, nearby Abu Dhabi is the home base of TAQA, the listed energy company that is Marubeni's 50:50 partner for the 80 per cent of Jamaica Public Service Co (JPS), the light and power company not owned by the Jamaican government.

More sympathy

While Jamaica wishes that Gulf financing will find its way to new sectors of the island's economy, Kingston hopes that a consistent presence in the region will also influence a more sympathetic approach to the liquefied natural gas project by TAQA and, ultimately, JPS, as well as help the delivery, at the best price, of natural gas.

The efforts of the embassy, however, will have to be coordinated with a specific programme for the Gulf region by the investment promotion agency JAMPRO.

It is significant, we think, that in the case of Caracas, Jamaica is dispatching as its envoy a political player who is likely to have access close to the top. Venezuela is itself going through economic uncertainties and its seems that its commitment to projects in Jamaica under the PetroCaribe arrangement, such as the expansion of the Petrojam oil refinery, has gone off the boil.

Some claim that Caracas does not feel a sense of engagement, at the political level, from Kingston, which is President Chávez's preferred way of doing business. It seems, therefore, that Mr Stone is expected to rekindle that energy.

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