MINISTER OF Finance and the Public Service, Audley Shaw, has called on the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) to play a pivotal role in securing the economic transformation of the region. He was speaking at the 39th annual conference of the CDB in The Turks and Caicos Islands last week.

"The global economic crisis does not only pose severe challenges to member countries, but it also creates opportunities for doing things in new, innovative and better way, and the CDB is well positioned to anchor these new and necessary initiatives," Shaw said in his address.

He cited the fresh- and processed-foods sectors as an area that offers vast potential for expansion as the markets in tourism and the Caribbean Diaspora offer many opportunities through linkages and the demand for ethnic foods.

Transformation support

The finance minister pointed out that the CDB and other multilateral agencies' support for this transformation would help foster replacement industries for others affected by the global crisis, such as bauxite and alumina.

Minister Shaw expressed the full support of the Government of Jamaica for a general capital increase in the resources of the CDB to enable the organisation to play a more significant role in the economic transformation of countries in the region, including Jamaica. He suggested that the conference establish a committee of governors to monitor the general capital increase, which, he said, was urgent, and should be implemented before the end of this calendar year.

The minister, in repeating his call for the establishment of creative mechanisms to assist small, vulnerable and heavily indebted middle-income countries, 10 of which are in the region, said: "These mechanisms should include concessionary loans from the multilateral institutions, as well as multilateral/private-sector partnerships in strategic liability management initiatives."

Satisfaction

Minister Shaw also expressed satisfaction with the recent enhancement of the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility against natural disasters, and requested further enhancement to include drainage control and river training, as well as coverage for agricultural damage.

In a meeting of the board of governors on Monday, the CDB approved a US$600,000 (J$53 million) grant to Jamaica for technical assistance in physical planning, complementary to the Government of Jamaica 2030 Vision, as outlined in the National Development Plan.

Accompanying Minister Shaw at the conference were Senator Don Wehby, minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, and Dr Wesley Hughes, director general of the Planning Institute of Jamaica. The finance minister returns to the island on Monday, June 1, 2009.