Letter of the Day | Where is Jamaica’s future beyond beaches and reggae?

THE EDITOR, Madam:

I have been fortunate enough to travel to many countries outside of Jamaica and the Caribbean. Yet, every time I return home, I am left with the unsettling feeling that our path to real development is not blocked by foreign powers, but by the very systems and institutions that claim to exist for our growth and progress. It feels as if we are forced to walk in shadows.

Anyone who has interacted with people abroad knows how Jamaica is perceived: ganja, reggae, dancehall, and sprinting. These are parts of who we are, but are they really all we can offer the world in 2025? For a country with so many universities, why are we not equally known for breakthroughs in science, technology, engineering, or medicine? Why are our brilliant young minds not building the next big app, medical device, or green energy solution?

Just recently, I read about an African country where a simple mobile app is helping poor farmers detect diseases in their crops. This is a life-changing tool developed locally, with limited resources, but unlimited vision. Meanwhile, our innovators face roadblocks not because they lack talent, but because of outdated policies and institutions that hold them back. None is more obstructive than our own customs system and unnecessary import restrictions.

Basic materials and tools that are nearly impossible to get without a struggle. We cannot talk about innovation if the very seeds of invention are removed at our ports.

Imagine if a young Jamaican developed a new type of weapon that did not use bullets. How would our leaders react? Would they see it as an opportunity to build and export cutting-edge technology, or would they see it only as a threat? Suppose a group of students invented an advanced defence system to help small nations protect themselves. Would we nurture that into a world-class product, or bury it under fear and bureaucracy?

I am not focusing on weapons to frighten anyone but raising a bigger question. Where is our courage to think beyond beaches, parties, and track meets? Tourism alone will not save us. Rising seas and sargassum blooms are already washing away our coastlines. Reggae and dancehall have been exported, repackaged, and claimed by others. Ganja is being farmed more profitably in other places. And as proud as we are of our athletes, they cannot carry an entire economy on their shoulders.

Our universities, especially UWI and UTECH, must stop producing only workers for foreign industries and start building a generation of inventors, creators, and problem-solvers. Our government must stop acting as the gatekeeper of the old ways and instead become the gateway to the future. They must fund young innovators, open access to critical tools and knowledge, and encourage Jamaicans to push boundaries instead of just following them.

We must not remain a nation known only for entertainment and escapism while the rest of the world races ahead in fields that will shape the future. We must step into the light, or we will remain in the shadows that we have created for ourselves.

Jamaicans must speak up and demand real investment in science, technology, and innovation. We must push our leaders to lift outdated barriers, reform customs rules that stifle progress, and create real incentives for research and invention. Let us demand a national plan that backs ideas and actions, not just empty slogans. Only then can we secure a future worthy of our talent and potential.

CONCERNED CITIZEN