Government Building Investor-Friendly Environment

Prime Minister Stresses Collaborative Environment to Ease Inflation on Consumers
“You can have confidence that this government will make the best decisions for the people of Jamaica, for the consumers of Jamaica, and for those whose duty and job it is to create investments in Jamaica.”
– Prime Minister Holness
——————————————————————
Prime Minister Dr. the Most Honourable Andrew Holness has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to fostering an economic environment conducive to investment, describing it as the best in decades.
Speaking on Wednesday (January 15) at the opening of Caribbean Broilers (CB) Group’s state-of-the-art Air Chill Poultry Processing Plant, The Nest, Dr. Holness highlighted the importance of maintaining investor confidence while ensuring economic equity.
“I am happy to hear that you [CB Group] are going to make further investments in the country. The reason for that confidence in Jamaica is that you know that the government in place, will never do anything to destroy the economic environment that creates the confidence to invest. And for all who are planning to invest in the future, you can have confidence that this government will make the best decisions for the people of Jamaica, for the consumers of Jamaica, and for those whose duty and job it is to create investments in Jamaica,” said the Prime Minister.
In the meantime, Prime Minister Holness underscored the government’s willingness to collaborate with producers to address inflationary pressures while emphasizing the need for fairness to consumers.
“We are willing to work with the producers to see what we can do from our end to reduce some of the unnecessary burdens and costs that you face. But you must pass that on to the consumers,” he noted.
The Prime Minister also called for a balanced approach to economic policy, addressing concerns about pricing, taxation, and equity. “We must moderate prices, not just for the producers in the poultry industry, but for those people who are in the supermarket business, who supply goods and services, we must be fair with our prices,” he stressed.
In this regard, Prime Minister Holness cautioned against simplistic approaches to reducing import duties, emphasizing the potential impacts on local farmers and the broader economy.
“The producers of chicken meat should acknowledge that the high duties, especially in times of crisis, should not be used for their protection only but that they should moderate the increases in prices. That speaks to a kind of cooperative policy where the government comes to the producers and says, listen, man, we are in a crisis now.” Dr. Holness elaborated.
In the meantime, the Prime Minister noted that the government will continue to make policies to ensure equity among the people and protect the vulnerable in times of crisis.