Jamaican Diaspora Mini Conference

Well this past weekend I went to the mini conference of the Jamaican Diaspora. Though I could not stay for the entire meeting I enjoyed the event and it left me feeling very positive for the future. My interest level was along the business aspect of things so I sat with the group that addressed business issues. A couple points that came up was the creation of a database of businesses and associated skills, a forum where the Jamaican government can list projects for which it is accepting bids for jobs, and a network of sorts where the issue of funding can be addressed.

A few thoughts sprung to my mind. First, a database already exists. There is a website (http://www.caribbeanbusinesscommunity.com/) that lists Caribbean businesses all over the world. The portal allows for the user to search for businesses by country of origin. Now, if the Jamaican diaspora chooses to use this website, it would be in essence promoting this business. Personally, I don't see a problem with this. The owners of this website already has a framework in place that the diaspora can take advantage of. It is worth noting that the Trinidad diaspora wants to do the same thing i.e creating a database as well. Should these members of the Caribbean diaspora choose to go with the above website, it would be taking advantage of existing infrastructure and opening up the businesses being listed to a wider audience.

The issue of funding comes up in all discussions regarding small businesses. But, I think that instead of relying on government or bank loans there is enough wealth to go around among private individuals to solve the issue of funding. The term angel investors come to mind. The question is are we sophisticated enough to do this and are we willing to trust each other enough to do this. I think we have enough knowledge and sophistication to do this but the jury is still out on the latter part of my question.

Venture capitalists may not be the answer for the smaller businesses or start ups but angel investing or a network that matches up investors with entrepreneurs may be the way to go. I submitted these thoughts as part of my input in the meeting before I left. Let's see if anything comes out of it. Marlon Hill Esq, who is the Jamaican diaspora representative for southeast Florida usually sends out minutes of the meetings. I look forward to receiving it.