Last sitting for Jamaican minister as he heads to IMF senior post

Respected Jamaican Finance Minister Nigel Clarke participated in his final parliamentary sitting on Tuesday, Oct. 29, soaking up praise from both sides of the house and allowing Prime Minister Andrew Holness to boast about his achievements in nearly 10 years on the job.

Clarke heads to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) this week to take up a position as one of four deputies of the not-so-well-liked multilateral lending agency. He resigned as a cabinet minister and representative for the St. Andrew North Western constituency. He was scheduled to leave for Washington, D.C., early Wednesday.

“My heart is full,” he told House colleagues as he made his final presentation to the 63-member lower house. “In making my departure from not just a playing field, but from the stadium. I have run through the tape. We believe in running through the tape and running through the finish line. That’s what I’ve tried to do. Running through the tape. It’s been a privilege and honor of my life,” he said.

Paying tribute to his friend and now former colleagues, PM Holness boasted that in nine years at the ministry, Clarke and cabinet had been able to compile, present, and past budgets in the house with little or no additional fiscal burdens to Jamaicans. 

“We have gone through nine budgets, and we have not increased taxes; our reserves are at the highest levels they have been in decades. We have halved the national debt from 144 % of GDP to 74 % of GDP. These are real things that have happened to transform our economy under the direction of Minister Clarke as the minister of finance. Nigel will be credited for something that we should have been doing a long time ago. This man put the Jamaican dollar that some of us disparage on the international market for people to buy that instrument in Jamaican dollars. That’s a legacy, historic. I’ve always known that Nigel’s skills and his service are not always going to be locally focused. There are other countries that need to benefit from the experience of Jamaica. And it is indeed a distinct honor that that skill resided with us, and we now give that skill to the world,” he said.

Phillip Paulwell, leader of the opposition business in the house, also praised Clarke, noting that he had contributed “high-quality” presentations. “The member, despite one or two aberrations, has displayed tremendous stability and cordiality with his colleagues across the aisle, and we want to recognize that. We wish you well. Bon voyage. We know that you’re going to represent us well, and, of course, on your return, we are going to be at the airport to give you our membership application form.”

However, regional leaders like Prime Minister Mia Mottley of Barbados say they are confident that Clarke will serve the Caribbean well as a deputy. “This achievement marks a significant milestone for the entire Caribbean region. This is a testament to the talent within our region, and it sets a powerful example for us all. Congratulations, Dr. Clarke, the Caribbean stands proudly with you as you step into this new chapter,” Mottley wrote in a social media post this week. At the same time, Holness noted that no regional or Central American native has ever held such a senior position in IMF history.