New Delhi [India], October 1 (ANI): Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness has planted a Champa (Plumeria Alba) sapling at Rajghat. He was accompanied by Jamaica’s Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith and cricketer Chris Gayle.
Holness offered floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat. In a post on X, the Ministry of External Affairs stated, “Honoring ‘Father of the Nation’! PM @AndrewHolnessJM of Jamaica offered floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat today.”
The Jamaican PM is on an official visit to India from September 30 – October 3. This is his first visit to India, and also the first ever bilateral visit of a Prime Minister of Jamaica to India.
The Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness arrived in New Delhi on Monday at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, marking his first-ever visit to India. Union Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, warmly received Jamaican PM at the airport.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a bilateral meeting with Jamaican counterpart Andrew Holness at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Tuesday. The bilateral meeting was followed by delegation-level talks between the two leaders.
Following his meeting with Holness, PM Modi said that the relations between the two nations is based on a shared history, and added that the Jamaican PM has been a long-standing friend of India.
“I welcome Jamaica PM Holness and his delegation…Prime Minister Holness has been a long-standing friend of India. I have had the opportunity to meet him several times and each time I have felt his commitment to strengthen relations with India. I am confident that his visit will give new energy to our bilateral relations as well as our engagement with the entire Caribbean region,” PM Modi said in a joint press statement along with Jamaican counterpart Andrew Holness on Tuesday.
PM Modi stressed that India has always been a “reliable and committed development partner” in Jamaica’s development journey.
He said, “The Four Cs characterize our relations, Culture, Cricket, Commonwealth and CARICOM (Caribbean Community). Trade and investment between India and Jamaica are growing. India has always been a reliable and committed development partner in Jamaica’s development journey.”
“Through ITEC and ICCR scholarships, we have contributed to the skills, development and capacity building of the people of Jamaica,” he noted.
Meanwhile, Jamaican PM Andrew Holness has expressed his country’s desire to strengthen cooperation with India in various sectors, including science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), education, digitalisation, security, and energy.
“India positions itself as the knowledge capital of the world… We recognise the remarkable strides made by your government in STEM education and digitalisation. We look forward to learning from India as a beacon of technological advancement,” Holness said.
Holness also highlighted Jamaica’s interest in India’s technology-driven security solutions to enhance national security and border security.
India and Jamaica share strong historical and cultural linkages, reflected in their shared colonial past, values of democracy and freedom, and passion for cricket, according to a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs.
This visit is expected to bolster bilateral relations, enhance economic cooperation, and solidify the longstanding bonds between Jamaica and India. (ANI)
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