Jamaica seeking Chinese partners for growth
BRI, complementary trade emphasized as nations move to strengthen bilateral ties
China and Jamaica, two strong supporters of economic globalization, will count on improved infrastructure projects and tangible growth of the Belt and Road Initiative as well as their complementary trade to further deepen bilateral business ties in the next stage, said trade watchers and business leaders.
To further bolster mutually beneficial cooperation, the trade watchers and business leaders said that the two countries should join hands to advance the implementation of the Global Development Initiative, and explore new growth areas in fields such as the maritime economy and digital economy.
The GDI, proposed by China at the General Debate of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in 2021, aims to steer global development toward a new stage of balanced, coordinated and inclusive growth.
With its rich resources and potential, Jamaica is perfectly matched with China’s technologies and financing. With this understanding, Jamaica is open to Chinese investment to enhance its strength in the fields including healthcare, urbanization, industrialization, digitalization and energy transition, said Zhao Ping, deputy head of the Academy of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade.
The collaboration with China is also essential to support Jamaica’s efforts to increase exports, and build more infrastructure and modern service facilities, as well as solar and wind power projects, Zhao said.
She said that both countries have closely communicated and coordinated in deepening international anti-pandemic cooperation, and promoted global governance reform under global and regional frameworks, as well as multilateral mechanisms such as the United Nations and the World Health Organization.
Benefiting from closer business ties, the trade volume between China and Jamaica had grown from $660 million in 2018 to $816 million in 2021, statistics from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs show.
Bilateral trade surged 23.8 percent year-on-year to $721 million between January and September of 2022, according to the latest statistics released by China’s General Administration of Customs.
The Caribbean country’s exports to China include bauxite, alumina, rum, lobster, coffee, tobacco, fossil fuels and lubricants.
China ships mainly computers, telecommunication equipment, trains, steel, lighting products, medical equipment, building materials, textiles and household appliances to Jamaica. Its passenger vehicles and trucks have also become popular in the island country in recent years.
As this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Jamaica, their strategic partnership will be further enhanced and raised to a new level, said Chen Daojiang, Chinese Ambassador to Jamaica.
“Bilateral relations are always highlighted by China and the Caribbean region. Jamaica was the first Caribbean country to establish a strategic partnership with China, and the first Caribbean country to sign a cooperation plan with China for jointly promoting the Belt and Road cooperation,” he said.
The diplomat said that projects including the South Coast Highway Project and the JISCO Alpart Bauxite Upgrading and Expanding Project, contracted or funded by Chinese companies, will strengthen infrastructure construction, create more jobs and promote economic growth for Jamaica. These projects will become the new symbols of mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries.
After delivering a four-lane, 65-kilometer highway to its Jamaican client in 2016, China Harbor Engineering Company, a subsidiary of China Communications Construction Co, signed a contract to build the Montego Bay Beltway Project with the representatives of the Jamaican government in Kingston in November last year.
The construction period of this project is 44 months. It is a government spot exchange project and adopts the design-build general contract mode. The main work of the project consists of constructing a 27.2-km beltway around Montego Bay, a major tourist city in Jamaica, and the municipal roads in the city.
The project is a long-awaited livelihood project for Jamaicans that will significantly relieve traffic congestion in the city and improve the travel experience of both residents and visitors, said Lu Yunpeng,
CHEC’s deputy chief engineer and general manager of the company’s America regional branch.
He said the project will create a safe and reliable alternative route for motorists traveling across and within Montego Bay, which will result in less congestion within the city and open up new areas for local development.
Even though the infrastructure market in the Caribbean and Latin American countries is slowly growing in sophistication, there are still risks involved, such as currency fluctuations, higher operating costs and weak industrial facilities, said Zhang Yuxin, a researcher at the Institute of Industrial Economics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing.
“But the silver lining has been the buoyant local demand and political need, which will provide the right cushion for sustained growth,” he noted.
Fang Qiuchen, president of the
Beijing-based China International Contractors Association, which helps Chinese companies facilitate new business in overseas markets, said Chinese companies are capable of coordinating finance for projects through Chinese institutions such as the Export-Import Bank of China, the China Development Bank or even their cash-rich parent companies.
“They do not generally seek sovereign guarantees when working with local partners, especially in regional markets such as the Caribbean countries, Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe,” he said.
With both China and Jamaica pursuing green, high-quality and innovation-led growth, the two-way investment cooperation has expanded from sectors such as agriculture, energy, finance, infrastructure and manufacturing to other fast-growing areas, said Dong Yan, director of the trade department of the Institute of World Economics and Politics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
Dong said these areas include digital economy, trade in services, 5G, big data and cloud computing, with scientific and technological innovation as a driving force.
The digital economy mainly entails business resulting from the digital transformation of traditional economic activities powered by the internet, electronic means and data, according to information released by the Beijing-based Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, the think tank of China’s Ministry of Commerce.
Antonia Hugh, Jamaica’s ambassador to China, said the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed more businesses in the Caribbean country to make digital transitions and use more technologies in both the public and private sectors.
Hugh said the pandemic also created opportunities for Jamaica to reposition itself and build new digital infrastructure. Jamaica is seeking strategic partners in China to help to advance its efforts to further spur digitalization across the country.