Prime Minister Andrew Holness has urged Jamaicans to focus on building a future at home, amid news that the United States will indefinitely pause immigrant visas for 75 countries, including Jamaica.
Speaking in a wide-ranging interview, Holness reflected on the historical frustrations that have driven many Jamaicans to seek opportunities abroad and emphasized that the solution lies in creating conditions that make staying in Jamaica attractive.
“Yes, when I was growing up, which is not so long ago, all of my friends wanted to go to the United States. Even when I was at university, all of my friends wanted to migrate. They just could not see a future here in Jamaica,” he said. Holness noted that his own choice to remain was not out of superior patriotism but a desire to help fix the country from within. “Somebody has to stay here and fix government and create opportunity. Because it is not always going to be in the interest of the receiving country to have immigration.”
Holness highlighted that Jamaicans’ talents have long benefited other countries, citing the Cayman Islands as an example: “It struck me that more than half of the population in Cayman could claim either being Jamaican or having Jamaican heritage. A developed society that relies on Jamaican talent. It’s all around the Caribbean. It’s all around the world.”
For Holness, the issue has never been the people themselves, but the opportunities governments create. “The problem was always what governments do and the opportunity they create,” he said. “My job is to create a good government and opportunity so that people can make their economic decision not just on a moral position of patriotism, but on the ability to feed their family.”
The Prime Minister detailed his administration’s efforts to address migration “push factors,” pointing to record-low unemployment, rising wages tied to skills and productivity, and significant reductions in violent crime. “Lowest unemployment rate in Jamaican history. Practically full employment. All right, so the employment issue is not a problem… higher wages are tied to productivity. Productivity is tied to innovation, higher skills, better management of resources.”
Holness also stressed the importance of infrastructure and quality of life. “You want world-class infrastructure. You want to go to the cinema, go to good restaurants. You want good landscape and streetscapes. You want to feel like you’re enjoying modernity and you don’t have to leave here to go somewhere else.” Health care, education, and community safety remain central to the government’s strategy.
Significantly, Holness said the government is already seeing signs that more Jamaicans abroad are considering a return. “As I travel, one of the things I get is that people have been saying, ‘I want to get my Jamaican passport.’ If you look at the number of applications for Jamaican passports from overseas, that’s just increased almost 100 percent. People are beginning to look back at Jamaica seriously.”
At the same time, Holness acknowledged that some Jamaicans will still need to migrate for specialized fields, such as nuclear science, and that Jamaica respects the sovereignty of other nations in managing immigration policies. “Other countries may very well follow suit. There is a growing public view in many developed countries to stem immigration. So we must bear in mind that it is a sovereign decision by a sovereign country,” he said.
Holness said that the government’s primary responsibility is to make Jamaica the country of choice for its people. “We are going to pursue diplomatic channels, yes, but even more, we are going to make our country the place of choice to live, work, do business, raise families, and retire in paradise. I think that is a greater object than me personally.”
