Jamaica’s Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clarke has announced that he will resign as Member of Parliament for St. Andrew North Western at midnight Tuesday, concluding his time as the country’s finance minister. He shared this news during a farewell address at a Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) rally in his constituency.
“…I leave the playing field effective midnight tomorrow night…,” he said before thanking Prime Minister Andrew Holness for appointing him to the top post.
The government announced in August that Dr. Nigel Clarke will be leaving his position to assume one of four deputy managing director roles at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on October 31.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness confirmed that Clarke’s successors as both Member of Parliament and finance minister have been identified. Duane Smith, a local councilor, has been chosen to replace Clarke as the Jamaica Labour Party’s representative for the St. Andrew North Western constituency.
Clarke’s foray in politics began in 2016 where he was appointed by Prime Minister Andrew Holness, to serve as Jamaica’s Ambassador-at-Large for Economic Affairs within the Office of the Prime Minister. Clarke previously served as a Senator in the Upper House of the Jamaican parliament between 2013 and 2015. He then went on to serve as Member of Parliament for the North West St. Andrew constituency, after winning the by-election to that seat held on 5 March 2018. Shortly afterwards he was appointed the Minister of Finance of Jamaica.
Clarke’s tenure as finance minister focused on maintaining macroeconomic stability and navigating the economy through crises. Under his tenure, Jamaica’s debt to GDP ratio declined form 110 per cent in 2020 to 72 per cent in 2023.
Meanwhile, Holness praised Clark for his exceptional service “Nigel provided a critical skill in the management of the technical area of change. I don’t think that there is anyone in Jamaica who could question the technical competence of Nigel Clarke in managing the economic affairs and transforming Jamaica’s economic prospects,” he said.
Holness said he considered that it is a “distinct honour” to have a JLP member, Clarke, sought after for an international position.
