Holness floats unlocking state assets for private investors to boost manufacturing
Published:Thursday | June 26, 2025 | 7:54 PMRuddy Mathison/Gleaner Writer
Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness on Tuesday declared that Jamaica is poised for a return to manufacturing as he officially opened the US$50-million MJS Industrial & Technology Park at Fairymead Farms, on the former site of the Ariguanabo textile mill in Spanish Town.
Speaking at the launch event attended by local and international business leaders, Holness announced plans to make government-owned assets available to private investors as part of a national strategy to transition from a service-based to a manufacturing-driven economy.
“We must get back into manufacturing. Jamaica must resuscitate its manufacturing base, and so we decided that we are going to look at all the assets that the Government has and either we seek to develop it or we are going to make it available to entrepreneurs to develop,” Holness said.
The prime minister emphasised that the key missing element is affordable energy and said that Government is now actively focusing on renewable energy sources to support industrial growth.
He noted, “The Government can do some things on the demand side of the energy situation for citizens, like GCT reduction and rewiring of houses, but the Government has to reduce the cost of energy for investors.”
INVESTORS PRAISED
Holness praised the developers for investing in Spanish Town despite negative perceptions, saying: “None of this could happen without the entrepreneurs seeing that there was a stable economic environment. That is an absolute important parameter for any of these dreams and wishes to materialise.”
He highlighted the country’s economic progress since 2016, stating, “I inherited a debt situation in 2016 of about 108 per cent debt to GDP, and it now stands at 68 per cent.”
Holness also pointed to tax stability as a factor encouraging investment: “There has not been any new taxes in seven years.”
Addressing incentives for development, the prime minister said: “We have struggled with that because incentives can lead to fiscal challenges, and we could end up in a race to the bottom, but there are ways to support development without necessarily having to give fiscal incentives.”
He identified workforce training through the HEART/NSTA Trust as a key non-fiscal incentive.
“Do you see why we cannot be ambivalent in once and for all dealing with the gangs that are in the business of violence?” he said, warning perpetrators of violence that they would “either see a judge or meet their maker”.
Chairman of the Industrial Park, Michael Subratie, said the complex, now Jamaica’s single largest special economic zone, provides 3,500 jobs with capacity for 5,000 more. Tenants include BPO firms Transparent BPO, Intouch CX, Sagility, food manufacturer Honey Bun, the Jamaica Fire Brigade, the ODPEM, and other agencies.
Musson Group Executive Chairman Paul B. Scott announced additional land acquisition across from the complex for future expansion.