The Prime Minister of Jamaica, Dr. Andrew Holness paying floral tributes at the Samadhi of Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat, in New Delhi on October 01, 2024.
New Delhi: India said it will “move forward” in training and capacity building of the Jamaican military in the field of defence. With organised crime, drug trafficking, and terrorism being the common challenges before both nations, India and Jamaica today agreed to face these challenges together.
India is also ready to share its experience with Jamaica in areas like Digital Public Infrastructure, small industries, biofuel, innovation, health, education, agriculture, and the space sector.
“I am delighted to welcome Prime Minister [Andrew] Holness and his delegation to India. This marks Prime Minister Holness’s first bilateral visit to India. That is why we give special importance to this visit,” India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today. “I am confident that his visit will bring new energy to our bilateral relations as well as enhance our engagement with the entire Caribbean region,” he added.
Throwing light on his meeting with the visiting Jamaican Prime Minister Holness, Modi said in today’s meeting, both leaders discussed strengthening their cooperation across all sectors and identified several new initiatives. “Trade and investment between India and Jamaica is growing. India has always been a reliable and committed development partner in Jamaica’s journey of development. All our efforts in this direction have been centred around the needs of the people of Jamaica,” Modi said.
Modi noted that India and Jamaica may be separated by vast oceans, “but our minds, our cultures and our histories are deeply intertwined”. The people who migrated from India to Jamaica nearly 180 years ago laid the strong foundations of our people-to-people ties.
Today, the nearly 70,000 people of Indian origin who call Jamaica home are a living example of our shared heritage. “I thank Prime Minister Holness and his Government for taking care of them. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to Prime Minister Holness and his government for their care and for supporting the community,” he said.
Just as Yoga, Bollywood and folk music from India have been adopted in Jamaica, similarly “Reggae” and “Dancehall” from Jamaica are also becoming popular in India. Modi announced that the road in front of the Jamaica High Commission in Delhi will be renamed Jamaica Marg. “This road will symbolize our enduring friendship and collaboration for generations to come,” Modi said.
The Jamaican Prime Minister also called on President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan today. Welcoming Prime Minister Holness on his first visit to India, the President said that Jamaica holds a special place in the hearts of Indians, especially with our shared love of cricket and music. She added that the Indian diaspora in Jamaica is also a very important link in their relationship.
The two leaders agreed that there is a need to continue to deepen the partnership at various levels through parliamentary, academic and cultural exchanges, as well as cooperation in international fora.
President Murmu appreciated Jamaica’s participation in all three editions of the Voice of the Global South Summits organized by India. She noted that both countries are strong advocates for reform of multilateral institutions including the UN Security Council, and have been working together as part of groupings such as the L-69 to achieve this. She expressed confidence that Prime Minister Holness’s visit will further boost ties between our two countries.
– global bihari bureau
