CONTRIBUTED
Imani Duncan
The Jamaican Economy Project began around meeting tables at the University of the West Indies. It was an informal start, launched by a group of citizens from various walks of life the public and private sectors, and academe who were united by a common conviction: the only way to chart a viable development strategy for Jamaica would be if the country produced an honest, frank assessment of how it had got to where it was.
By mid-2004, frequent meetings had produced a draft document to guide the creation of a research project. An advisory committee to oversee the project was formed, incorporating some of the ad hoc committee members, and adding some of the brightest Jamaican minds. All that was left was to find an executive director, somebody who could oversee the operations of what would be a large, complex and ambitious project.
"We wanted somebody who embodied the ideals that guided the project from the start," said John Rapley, the advisory committee chairman. "This project was drawing together the scholarship of a new generation of Jamaicans. It was independent, resisted all party affiliations, sourced its own funding, and allowed no strings to be attached to donations to the project. It was bright, dynamic and committed, above all, to finding a new way forward for the country, even if that meant some painful reckoning with the past."
Young and idealistic
At the first committee meeting, one name kept coming up: Imani Duncan. Young and idealistic, the Harvard-educated Ms. Duncan had been one of the project's founding members, but had recently taken leave from its activities to start her own business. The committee agreed it should try one last time to persuade her to come back to the project. But with her energy being consumed by her exciting new enterprise, everyone agreed it was going to be a tough sell.
"I remember that evening well," Dr. Rapley tells the story. "I was sitting on a terrace in Liguanea, sipping my beer, waiting for Imani, and wondering how on earth I'd persuade her to take leave from a nascent business to work for free."
Ms. Duncan bounded in with her usual enthusiasm. In the process of moving house, she was still wearing a paint-splattered sweat suit and carrying the stack of documents sent to her by the board. Having already read through the project overview, in between packing and unpacking, she said at once, "I love it." True, she acknowledged, she had much on her plate. But then she added that she considered this the "mission of our generation: designing our own agenda for sustained growth and development."
Since then, it has been a roller coaster ride for Ms. Duncan. Early on, the committee had taken the decision that the project should be locally funded from private sources. As chief beneficiaries of Jamaica's future growth, it was only fitting that Jamaican businesses should be the chief benefactors. But this meant eschewing targeted fund-raising among large, well-endowed foreign agencies, and beating the bushes in a seemingly endless series of private luncheons and office visits. And the difficult task of fund-raising fell squarely on Ms. Duncan's shoulders.
not an easy ride
It has not always been an easy ride. "Enlightened self-interest is not in abundance in Jamaica at this point," she sighed in a recent interview. "Plus, so many intellectuals think it's just another study. So it takes persistence and a burning passion for the pursuit of truth to keep me going."
That doggedness appears finally to be paying dividends. Ms. Duncan noted that more and more businesspeople were now coming on board,
offering both moral and financial support. Nevertheless, she laughed, and quickly added, "Of course, we still need all the support we can get!"
Some have marvelled at Ms. Duncan's ability to manage all the competing demands on her time, from public speaking, to consulting, to managing a business. But her capacity to remain focused on this particular task would seem to owe much to its nature.
Ms. Duncan considers this a moment in the country's history to conduct an honest assessment of its history. "As a country, we have to take some tough decisions now, and stick to them ... but those decisions must be informed, so that we don't make the same mistakes twice."
The Jamaican Economy Project is an independent research body dedicated to charting a way forward for Jamaica by conducting a detailed and objective study of the country's economic history. It is in the midst of an 18-month
comprehensive and inter-disciplinary study, which is drawing together dozens of the leading researchers on Jamaica both at home and around the world. You can send your comments to:
takingresponsibility@gmail.com.
