The Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association (JMEA) plans to deepen industry data collection as part of a five-point agenda unveiled by President Kathryn Silvera after her re-election on Wednesday, building on efforts already under way to strengthen the association’s industry intelligence capabilities.
“This year, we began laying the foundation for stronger manufacturing industry intelligence that will ultimately help us better understand production capacity, export readiness, employment trends, market opportunities, and sector performance,” Silvera told members at the association’s annual general meeting.
The initiative is alongside four other priorities for the new term — export diversification, skills development, labour policy reform, and stronger partnerships — and is intended to strengthen evidence-based advocacy on issues affecting manufacturers and exporters.
“Our vision is simple: to move from assumptions to evidence, from evidence to action, and from action to results,” Silvera said.
The association also sees stronger industry data as a tool for increasing local participation in tourism-related business opportunities.
“Imagine a developer planning a new 1,200-room hotel asks whether Jamaican manufacturers can supply the mattresses needed for the project,” Silvera said. “Instead of guessing, the JMEA could use industry data to confidently show that our manufacturers have the capacity to meet the demand, turning the conversation from ‘Can local companies do it?’ to ‘How do we ensure local manufacturers get the contract?'”
The organisation has already been working to strengthen those linkages. In May, 110 manufacturers participated in meetings with 30 tourism sector buyers at the Montego Bay Convention Centre, while the ‘Road to Retail’ initiative connected 55 manufacturers with 14 distributors and retailers.
The association believes better industry intelligence will improve its ability to influence policy decisions, while helping members identify and pursue commercial opportunities.
“When JMEA sends a survey, when we ask for your data, that is not bureaucracy — it is ammunition,” Silvera said. “It is how we walk into a room with the Ministry of Finance or the MIIC (Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce) and make an argument they cannot dismiss.”
That approach has already begun shaping the association’s advocacy work. Through its Energy Committee, the JMEA surveyed 47 member companies and used the findings to develop a six-point energy platform that includes a 2032 target of reducing electricity costs by roughly half.
The platform also calls for expanded access to renewable-energy financing, a reduction in General Consumption Tax on manufacturers’ electricity bills, implementation of wheeling arrangements, and an assessment of nuclear energy as part of Jamaica’s long-term energy mix.
“If you ask any manufacturer in this room what keeps them up at night, electricity costs will come up in the first sentence,” Silvera said.
The agenda comes against the backdrop of a challenging year for the productive sector. According to the JMEA’s 2025 annual report, manufacturing exports declined 4.5 per cent to US$803.4 million, although the sector remained a large contributor to domestic exports, accounting for 53 per cent of the total. Manufacturing employed 85,500 people and recorded output growth of 1.1 per cent during the year.
Much of the association’s work in 2025 was shaped by Hurricane Melissa, which disrupted operations, damaged facilities and affected supply chains across multiple parishes. Feedback from 78 member companies informed recovery efforts, including the establishment of a J$10-million micro, small, medium enterprise recovery grant fund and wider private-sector support initiatives.
Silvera was re-elected alongside Deputy President Cecil Foster, managing director of FosRich Group, and Treasurer Damion Dodd, chief financial controller and corporate secretary at Seprod Limited.
Members also elected eight directors to the board: Dmitri Dawkins, Aswad Morgan, Lisa Johnston, Marc Frankson, Conroy Rose, Tamii Brown, Archie Williams, and John O. Minott.
“Data is power because it is not just about producing reports,” Silvera said. “It is about unlocking opportunities.”
carolyn.guniss@rjrgleaner.com
