Transcript Something about Jamaica

Jamaica, an interesting
investing opportunity?
Jamaica 1494-2006
Content
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Geography
History
Politics
Economic Condition
Demographics
Geography
• Location:Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba
• Climate:tropical; hot, humid; 27°C
• Terrain:mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain
• Lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
Highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 m
• Natural hazards: hurricanes (especially July to November)
History
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VI.
Pre-Colombian Jamaica
- Arawaks
The Spanish Occupation, 1494-1655
The Slave Economy, 1655-1838
- British occupation
The Development of the Peasantry. 1838-1938
-Coffee, bananas
The National Movement and Decolonization, 1938-1962
Political Independence, 1962-1972
• Christopher Columbus visited the island in
1494 and this began Spain rule.
• It became a Spanish colony in 1509
• British captured the island in 1655
• Jamaica gained full independence within the
British Commonwealth in 1962.
• Jamaica is the largest English speaking
Caribbean island. It is the third largest island in
the West Indies. It is 90 miles south of Cuba.
Politics
• Parliamentary Representative Democracy
– Executive branch of government
– Popular sovereignty
• 1962 Constitution established a parliamentary system (UK) with
Senate and House of Representatives
• Queen Elizabeth II: Chief of State, elects a Governor General
(ceremonial role), on the advise of the Prime Minister as her
representative in Jamaica
• Independent and Commonwealth Realm (August 6, 1962)
• Constitutional safeguards include freedom of speech, press, worship,
movement, and association
Politics
• Stable, however economical problems have exacerbated
social problems
• Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and the People’s National
Party (PNP)
• The National Democratic Movement (NDM), was created
in October 1995
• 1993 victory of Percival James Patterson (after Michael
Manely stepped down in 1992 for health reasons), was
the first time Jamaican political party won 3 consecutive
general elections since the introduction of universal
suffrage to Jamaica in 1944.
• In March, 2006, Portia Simpson-Miller was appointed
Jamaica's seventh Prime Minister. She is the first woman
in the country's history to hold the position of Prime
Minister of Jamaica.
Economic condition
Quick Facts:
• GDP per capita: $4100
• Population below poverty line: 19.7%
• Unemployment Rate: 15%
• Exchange Rate: US$1= J$62.5
Major economic activities:
• Tourism– English speaking and good weather
• Mining– Bauxite and Aluminum
• Agriculture– Food and banana
• Music and Film– Bob Marley,
Shaggy, Sean Paul
Economic conditions
Economic history of Jamaica
1655
Slave Economy
1820-1824
World’s leading sugar exporting nation
1830-1838
Slavery was formally abolished
1962-1972
Strong economic growth-- Independent
1972-1980
Setback-25% decrease in GDP
1980-1985
Closure of 1st and 3rd largest Aluminum
producers
1980-1990
Rose in Tourism and garment sectors
1991
Economic liberalization and stabilization
Reduced inflation from 80.2% to 7.2%
Demographics
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Official Name: Jamaica
Capital City: Kingston
Population: 2,605,800
Climate: Tropical. Hot, Humid
Language: The official language is English but Patois, a dialect, is widely spoken
across the island
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Ethnic Groups: Black (90.9%), mixed (7.3%), East Indian (1.3%), white
(0.2%), Chinese (0.2%)
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Religion: The majority of Jamaicans are Christian. But also exist churches like
Methodist, Catholic, Seventh-day Adventist, Anglican, to Mormon and
Rastafarian
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Jamaica is known primarily for its Rastafarian religion, which has several
unique practices. They believe that Haile Salassie, the former leader of
Ethiopia, is their leader. They believe in the spiritual use of Ganja.
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Flag:
The Jamaican flag has 3 colors, green, black and gold.
Source
• Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia, Politics
of Jamaica, 2006
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Jam
aica , World Wide Web
• www.investjamaica.com