The Honorable Olivia Grange, Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport,

Mr. Denzil Thorpe, Permanent Secretary,

Her Excellency Ambassador Taylor Roberts,

Ms Suzzette Ison, Senior Director, Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport,

Representatives from National Sports Association,

Members of delegation,

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

Good afternoon,

Prophet Mohammad once said, "Although learning is far away in China, we should also go and ask for it." It is really a great joy for me to see more and more Jamaican people to go to China, which is another place of choice to live, work, raise family, do business and sports training. Dear brothers and sisters, welcome to China.

It is my great pleasure to witness this important moment in the technical cooperation between China and Jamaica in terms of  China-Aid Sports Coaching Project, which was launched early this year. 

Last January, a team of 9 Chinese coaches successfully completed the first phase of 30 days training of this project in Jamaica. I am therefore glad to announce that in the next two months, more than 130 Jamaican athletes in 7 sporting disciplines, including synchronized swimming, swimming, badminton, gymnastics, women volleyball, women football and women basketball will enjoy further training in China, kicking off the second phase training of this three-year project.

We started the sport cooperation project with pingpong coaching, between late 2004 and 2006. Apart from two early childhood institutions, fireworks projects last year in Grand Gala and other China-Aid projects, this sports coaching technical cooperation project highlights the good will of the Chinese people and government to promote and deliver real benefits to our two countries and peoples in all aspects. Though China and Jamaica are 14,000 kilometers far apart, our interests and future are interconnected. We enjoy the dual-partnership of "Belt and Road" initiative and production capacity cooperation.

Our sports cooperation is complimentary and reciprocal in nature. 10 Chinese track and field coaches and athletes were trained in GC Foster in 2016. I sincerely hope that through our joint efforts, Jamaican athletes, apart from track and field, will enhance their performances to impress the world spectators again in such international events as the Central American and Caribbean Games in 2018, Pan American Games in 2019 and Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020. You are not only the representatives of the Jamaican athletes, but also sports envoys to China and friendship ambassadors between China and Jamaica.

Finally, I'd like to welcome you again to China and wish you a  successful and enjoyable experience in China, your second homeland in your heart, just like me with Jamaican as my second homeland in my heart.

Let's get together and feel all right.