Business
Jamaica aiming to become global logistics port hub and transform economy
“I don’t understand those who are uncritically accepting that there will be sufficient benefits to destroy one of our protected areas,” she said, adding that her environmental group is not opposed to a logistics hub in Jamaica but is fighting against a big transshipment port in the Portland Bight area.
To fuel the hoped-for revival, the government plans to cluster global companies into as many as 16 special economic zones and pitch incentive schemes comparable to those offered in logistic centers like Dubai and Singapore. One of Jamaica’s main goals is to convince companies to outsource parts of their production and bring the country into the global supply chain.
Officials also hope that warehousing and manufacturing operations will add value to partly finished products shipped from China that are destined for North America and elsewhere.
“Stockpiling goods in Jamaica will mean that it will take a day or two to be delivered as opposed to weeks when ordered directly from China,” said Eric Deans, chairman of a task force to advance the hub plans.
It is hoped that the impact of a logistics center in Jamaica will create the badly needed jobs and spur growth both in Jamaica and the Caribbean region at large.
Source: The Associated Press
