​The introduction of a new unit at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade will result in a fresh focus on the Diaspora affairs.
​
The unit, which falls under the new Diaspora, Protocol and Consular Affairs Division at the Ministry, will deal more effectively with matters pertaining to the Diaspora.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Kamina Johnson Smith, made the announcement while speaking to journalists at the Ministry’s quarterly press briefing held recently at the Ministry’s Dominica Drive offices in New Kingston.
​
She said that the new department will allow for more effective focus on matters of Diaspora engagement while facilitating the synergies with the other areas in the Division. Minister Johnson Smith noted that the Diaspora engagement is a significant part of the Government’s domestic and foreign policy.

​​Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Kamina Johnson Smith, will attend two Jamaica 55 Diaspora conference launches in Miami and New York on April 24 and 25, respectively.

​​The Miami launch, set to begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Miramar City Hall, Miramar, Florida, is the first in a series of Diaspora launches for the Jamaica 55 Diaspora Conference scheduled to take place at the Jamaica Conference Centre, downtown, Kingston from July 23 to 26. The New York launch will take place at the Consulate General of Jamaica in the city, beginning at 6:30 p.m.

​Jamaica's Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, on Tuesday (April 4) launched the seventh biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference, slated for July 23 to 26.

The ‘Jamaica 55 Diaspora Conference’, which is organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, will be held at the Jamaica Conference Centre, downtown Kingston, under the theme ‘Partnering for Growth’.

At a ceremony held at Jamaica House, which was streamed live to members of the diaspora in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada, Mr Holness said that this year’s event has been reshaped to be more solutions-oriented and would target wider stakeholder involvement.