Above: Industry, Investment and Commerce Minister Anthony Hylton

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Jamaica’s government is currently in the midst of finalizing a $50 million “growth and competitiveness” project with the World Bank, according to Industry, Investment and Commerce Minister Anthony Hylton.

The loan project, which will take place over a four-year period, will be executed in its first part by the Jamaica Promotions Corporation through the National Competitiveness Council.

“This component will place specific focus on increasing Jamaica’s competitiveness, through strengthening of the country’s competition laws and the work of the Fair Trading Commission,” Hylton said this week.

The second portion of the project will cover the development of the master plan for the country’s much-touted Global Logistics Hub Initiative, including the “packaging of Hub investment projects.”

The third component, Hylton said, will support “support a lending facility as well as capacity building and linkages programmes for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.”

JAMPRO will be working with the Development Bank of Jamaica and the Planning Institute of Jamaica as lead coordinating agencies for “discrete components” of the work, the Minister said.