Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport Olivia Grange (left) in conversation with Counsellor for Economic and Commercial Affairs at the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China Fan Jianghong at a news conference held at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel in Kingston on January 2. (Photo: JIS)

THE economic and trade relationship between Jamaica and the People’s Republic of China is very active, with 15 Chinese companies operating in Jamaica with cumulative investments of US$2 billion.

This was disclosed by counsellor for Economic and Commercial Affairs at the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China, Fan Jianghong, during a news conference regarding the sports cooperation programme with China, held at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel in Kingston on January 2.

“The investments keep growing each month. The two-way trade has more than surpassed what it was in 2017. International development cooperation has reached a new high, as we saw more than 3,000 Jamaicans who have been invited to China on short-term training programmes, which cover a wide range of subjects that are key to Jamaica’s social economic development,” Fan said.

Additionally, he cited the scholarships for academic degree programmes and the current three-year technical agreement on sport between both countries as areas of cooperation.

Under the current technical agreement, more than 400 Jamaican athletes will travel to China for training over the next three years.

The first batch, representing seven disciplines — synchronised swimming, gymnastics, swimming, badminton, women’s volleyball, women’s football and women’s basketball — completed 60 days of intense training at specialised facilities across China in the summer of 2018.

Also, in January 2018, a contingent of Chinese coaches and administrators came to Jamaica to assess certain national teams and collaborate with local coaches and administrators.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/15-chinese-companies-operating-in-jamaica_153770