Speeches by the Prime Minister

Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen Allow me to commend and congratulate the co-convenors of this timely initiative and to thank Prime Minister Modi in particular for his invitation.  I well recall the meeting between India and CARICOM leaders on the margins of the UNGA a few years ago when PM Modi listened to our developmental concerns and pledged his support. In Jamaica, our resilience-building efforts will shortly be boosted by a US$1 million grant from India to support the construction of facilities for sustainable agriculture. The initiative being launched today rightly focuses attention on SIDS, as we are on the frontline of this Climate Crisis. As we all know, a single disaster can derail the entire budget of a small island and set its economy back by years, reducing fiscal space to finance climate adaptation and resilience efforts. We, therefore, welcome this much needed initiative that reflects our own thinking around the pivotal role played by infrastructure in building resilience.  In fact, the Government of Jamaica is currently co-hosting the 7th UN Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Americas and the Caribbean under the theme Building Resilient Economies. Jamaica believes in innovation.  As part of our national strategy and…

TO THE UNITED NATIONS FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE (UNFCCC) Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom November 1-2, 2021 Mr President, Excellencies, Colleagues, On behalf of the people of Jamaica, I thank the Governments of the United Kingdom and the Italian Republic, for their strong commitment and leadership in hosting this COP 26 within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and for the excellent arrangements that have been made to keep us safe. The message is clear - climate change remains a pre-eminent priority for global action.  As we have come to appreciate with the pandemic, “no one is safe until everyone is safe”.  So too with CLIMATE CHANGE. All countries must act responsibly and with ambition, to preserve our climate for current and future generations. Importantly, the pandemic demonstrated that the world has the capacity to develop global solutions in record time when we believe and agree that the problem threatens our safety and security.  It also demonstrated the need for equity. Equity is similarly critical to our response to climate change. Countries that have profited the most from carbon over decades have a responsibility to make resources and technology available to others to adapt and transition to low carbon economies. This was…

National Heroes Day is set aside as a public holiday each year to honour those great Jamaicans, who by their work and often ultimate sacrifice, revolted against slavery, secured our freedom, fought for equal rights and justice, guided our Independence, resisted oppression, and in so doing inspired a revolution and an awakening of self-pride and consciousness, not only in Jamaica as a nation but as black people all over the world. Today we honour the memory of Nanny of the Maroons, symbolic of the fierce and indomitable spirit of resistance in the face of overwhelming power, that has come to define the Jamaican ethos, “little but tallawah.” I speak of Sam Sharpe, though enslaved, he was a deacon and a teacher. He used his education and his religious standing to inspire his fellow enslaved to rise up against slavery. Sam Sharpe was hanged on May 23, 1832, he along with over 500 enslaved persons paid the ultimate sacrifice of their life for our freedom today. The 1801 Christmas Slave Rebellion he inspired would prove to be instrumental in bringing about the abolition of slavery in 1834. Thirty years after emancipation, there was very little meaningful improvement in the condition of…

FIRST AFRICA-CARICOM SUMMIT OF HEADS OF STATE AND GOVERNMENT 7TH SEPTEMBER 2021 Theme: UNITY ACROSS CONTINENTS AND OCEANS: OPPORTUNITIES FOR DEEPENING INTEGRATION Mr. Chairman (and Brother Uhuru Kenyatta) Your Excellencies Friends Good morning and good afternoon. I am truly honoured to address this historic inaugural Africa-CARICOM Summit, a timely dialogue which can only strengthen our fraternal bonds. The common historical experiences between Africa and the Caribbean have been enriched by cultural, economic and political affinities. Potential untapped for centuries lies within our respective reaches as we not only develop national capacities, but engage opportunities for cooperation with each other across continents and oceans. The challenges of the last year and a half have reinforced the possibilities and value of the Africa-CARICOM relationship. Most critically, Jamaica and the Caribbean region benefitted greatly from the African Union’s provision of access to COVID-19 vaccines and other critical medical supplies through the innovative AMSP which has been a game changer for the continent and for us. The Africa Continental Free Trade Area is another - creating an enabling environment for the flow of investment and tourism. For Jamaica, there is potential in the agro-industry and logistics sectors, and Jamaican companies have already invested in Africa.…

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. Madam Deputy Speaker, I wanted to update Parliament on the proposed measures for December 2020 prior to the enactment of the new Orders under the Disaster Risk Management Act.  We must take measures now to continue our measured, evidence-based, proportionate and situationally appropriate risk-based management approach to the pandemic.   We are now approaching another period of high risk for us in the pandemic.  We're now approaching another period of high risk for us as a nation in the pandemic. This is a period of time when we will be seeing higher levels of travel both internally and from overseas. It is a period of time when Jamaicans are looking forward to the traditional merriment that is associated with the Christmas season. Those factors contribute to this period being a higher risk period than normal. It is a difficult balance to fulfil the expectations of the season, anticipated increase in commercial activity, while at the same time keeping the population safe and not overwhelm our health system.   We must remain diligent in our adherence to the infection prevention and control measures and not jeopardize our recovery prospects in 2021.   Our measures for the…

183 years ago today on August 1, 1838, the descendants of trafficked and enslaved Africans, who themselves grew up in generations of slavery, finally celebrated their full freedom, as declared in the Emancipation proclamation. There are many reasons to be considered as to why the British Parliament decided to end slavery as a means of social and economic organization in its colonies. The abolitionist movement and a growing consciousness of the inhumanity of slavery would have played a part. Eric Williams in his celebrated thesis on Capitalism and Slavery contended that sugar and how it was produced through the plantation system became increasingly unprofitable and costly to maintain. However, we must never overlook or underplay the role that our forebears played in resisting and rebelling against slavery. Though the system of chattel slavery was total in its control and dehumanization, it could not completely eliminate our dignity and the spirit of resistance to oppression. Our forebears were not passive and obsequious onlookers, waiting for freedom to be handed to them. They actively rejected the idea of enslavement and fought it physically, often making the ultimate sacrifice; paying with their lives as did Sam Sharpe and many other nameless fighters. Today,…

Good morning again. Now, let me acknowledge Councillor Rosalie Hamilton. You're a longstanding councillor, you've been in this area representing for more than 20 years Rosie; very good, longstanding, and faithful councillor. Let me acknowledge the principal and vice-principal of your school. Let me acknowledge the Superintendent who is doing an amazing job and her team that is here. I know that this area, MP Williams, is not an easy area to manage and to service, but I wanted the people of Central Kingston to know that we know and understand the issues you face in this community and at another event, I'm going to address those issues specifically, but one of the issues you do face, which is facing all of Jamaica now, is access to learning and the Government is doing the best it can with the limited resources available to us because of the COVID pandemic. You would have all heard and understood that we have lost significant revenues, almost $2 billion from tourism alone. We have had a 10%, 11% decline in our economy. And at the same time, we've had to spend more on health and security, so there is a challenge for resources, but…

Madam speaker, I'm taking this matter on behalf of the Minister of Finance. Madam Speaker, I want to thank the members opposite, who have participated in this debate and have expressed important opinions, some of which are valid and I want to say from the outset that the government thought long and hard about going this route before we entered upon it, because we are quite seized of all the issues as it relates to the contracting with overseas firms, issues of securing value for money, the transparency of the use of public funds, all the issues that have been raised here quite ably by members of the opposition. So, it is not a matter that we take lightly. I would also want to say Madam Speaker, that this is not a route that should be used with any form of frequency, precisely for the reasons that have been raised but I wish to point out Madam Speaker, that it was the government at the time led by our friends opposite, who made a change to the procurement guidelines in 2015, Madam Speaker, and then they did it for good reason because it was quite clear that the old procurement…

The Honourable Joseph R. Biden, Jr., President of the United States of America, Excellencies and colleagues Happy Earth Day! The need for meaningful climate action has never been greater. Jamaica is heartened that the United States has re-joined the Paris Agreement - an important expression of global solidarity for climate action.  We are also greatly encouraged by the United States’ announcement to cut emissions by half by 2030. The COVID-19 pandemic has created a perfect storm for Small Island Developing States with the collapse of tourism, falling revenues, rising debt, limited access to vaccines and with disasters continuously threatening lives and our sustainability. Governments are forced to choose between addressing today’s crises and building resilience to mitigate against future shocks. Notwithstanding these challenges, Jamaica’s enhanced NDCs target a 60% reduction in emissions by 2030. We, like all SIDS and many developing countries, remain committed to advancing climate action, and we are determined to build forward stronger, better and greener. The world COMMITTED to $100 billion per year to support climate action in developing countries. It is critical that this commitment not only be honored but that the ambition be increased and major emitters should contribute more to its financing. We…