日本ジャマイカ友好協会名誉会長のご挨拶
＜日本ジャマイカ友好協会設立総会 名誉会長スピーチを掲載＞
I extend warm greetings to you all, and it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the Embassy of Jamaica in Tokyo on this auspicious occasion.
I am pleased to see so many familiar faces in the room as well as those joining us virtually. Although we have engaged in different settings and under varying circumstances, there is one common link: I am surrounded by true friends of Jamaica.
We are gathered here to celebrate the enduring power of friendship across distance and time, during today’s launch the Japan-Jamaica Friendship Association (JJFA). We do so at a time when Jamaica celebrates its 60th Anniversary of Independence and as we mark the 35th anniversary of the first dispatch of Japanese Overseas Cooperation Volunteers to Jamaica.
I take the opportunity therefore to commend and congratulate Ambassador Nakano for spearheading this timely endeavour during this milestone year.
As you will all agree with me, Jamaica and Japan have developed and nurtured a longstanding and fruitful relationship built on trust, mutual respect and a shared commitment to development that leaves no one behind.
Indeed, despite the geographical distance between us, our countries have enjoyed a close and genuine partnership since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1964 – sustained by political engagement, active trade, practical cooperation in several areas, cultural exchanges and people-to-people interactions.
As I reflect on our successful bilateral exchanges at the various levels, I must recognize the integral role that each of you has played. Jamaica has been privileged to receive active diplomatic representatives who have worked tirelessly to maintain our dynamic bilateral agenda.
With the support of the JICA at the technical level, Jamaica and Japan have embarked on practical cooperation – implementing projects and initiatives with a focus on people and their wellbeing. Indeed, the engagement of the JICA representatives and other Japanese volunteers at the grassroots level have touched the lives of everyday Jamaicans in more ways than one.
As we seek to unlock new dimensions in the J-J Partnership, I am most pleased that the JJFA will provide a more structured mechanism to leverage the strong bonds of friendship and cooperation that we have forged for almost six decades.
For this reason, I welcome the Association’s main objectives to further promote cultural and other exchanges between our peoples as well as contribute to greater mutual understanding and friendship.
I also commend the focus on youth as important actors in raising the level of mutual interest in our respective countries. I am confident that these overarching objectives—and the upcoming activities to achieve them—will redound to our benefit for many more decades to come.
It is also with a great sense of honour that I accept and embrace my own role as Honorary Chairperson of the Association during the remainder of my tenure in Japan. I am grateful for the opportunity to serve in this capacity and assure you of my full support as we begin to realize the full potential of the Association.
I wish you every success and look forward to the journey ahead. Tomodachi desu!
27 August 2022
Honorary Chairman
Shorna-Kay M. Richards