JBDC SPEECH - May 2012


Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, good morning.

Wealth Magazine is thrilled to be a part of this exciting event which caters to the heart of the Jamaican economic machinery, and I applaud the Jamaica Business Development Corporation for continuing this bold initiative for the fifth consecutive year.

Wealth Magazine is a sophisticated bi-monthly feature, which depicts Jamaica from a primarily financial perspective with a hint of Jamaican lifestyle. Owned and exclusively distributed by Creative Media  and Events, the magazine’s mission and focus is to expose wealth in all spheres. This is to create a culture, which, characteristically, encourages honest accumulation and liberal, dignified display of wealth. Invariably, we will expose entrepreneurial role models and nation builders.

Like the JBDC, Wealth Magazine is founded on a premise of assisting individuals, and businesses to unearth talent, foster development, and most of all to create wealth. Not only in terms of financial gain, but the kind of wealth that will ensure sustainable development, ecologically sound advancement, and possibilities which engage the mind to think creatively, and to unravel the richness of human thought. Our mantra is to INSPIRE. EDUCATE and EMPOWER.

The Jamaica Business Lab’s i3 High School Entrepreneur Competition is one aspect of unravelling this creativity. I applaud the entrants in this year’s competition, especially the top ten finalists and, of course, the winners. I know you have worked tenaciously to bring out those brilliant ideas and I look forward to viewing your exhibitions, along with the many others at the Expo (on May 17th) isn’t this the same day you’ll be giving the speech? This is a significant landmark, and I challenge you to build on this critical stepping stone to pave the way for the future.

The micro, small and medium sized enterprises are central hubs of activity which provide critical income generation for our citizens, and to see the JBDC catering to this sector, I must say congratulations. This year’s theme - Inside the Entrepreneurial Mind: From Ideas to Reality is quite fitting, because in any economy, people are needed with the adequate skills set to drive ideas from conceptualization to realization.

Team JBDC, you continue to invest in the many talents that we have in this country. You are an essential business development organization, one that tends to little seedlings of businesses, and enables them to become giants in their own right.  And to many, you have been a lighthouse, guiding the way with new and essential information for business development, and staying ahead of the game despite the challenges.
Well done, we at Wealth Magazine, look forward to working with you in the future.

I thank you.