Prime Minister Andrew Holness says while Jamaica is still trying to secure more coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines, herd immunity is the only way out of the pandemic and a life free from lockdowns and other restrictions.

Holness, speaking on Friday (July 9) at the groundbreaking ceremony for IMCA Jamaica’s US$8 million corporate headquarters in Kingston, effectively married the two and warned none can exist without the other.

Just as Jamaica is starting to see signs of a rebound from economic fallout felt due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Holness said pockets of vaccine-reluctant or worse defiant citizens could be a ticking time bomb.

“We’re seeing the [global] recovery being led by high vaccination rates. In Jamaica, we cannot allow vaccine hesitancy to impact the pace of our recovery. We cannot allow that to happen,” he argued.

“Because the same people who don’t take the vaccine, get ill, demand spaces in our hospitals and treatment from our doctors, will say ‘Why isn’t the Government providing the resources to do so?’—the resources don’t come from thin air, we don’t pick it off trees. It comes from the spending of tourists, the spending of investors with projects like this from which we get the taxes; there’s a connection,” he continued.

As the national vaccination implementation programme got a recent boost through donations from the governments of Mexico and St Lucia, the prime minister charged Jamaicans to take the jab.

He added, however, that the Government is not at this time in consideration of making COVID-19 vaccines mandatory.

“I am urging every single Jamaican: take the vaccine when the time comes,” Holness contended.

“There’s a reason we don’t have vaccines, you know. The richer [countries] made sure they had the vaccines first. Why are we following what I call nonsense arguments about the vaccine? Take the vaccine,” he reiterated.

According to him, and as evidenced by virtually non-existent infections of once prevalent communicable diseases, Jamaica has had a long and beneficial history with vaccines.

“All of you when you were in primary school took vaccines. It wiped out many diseases that threatened us, so I am using this platform to appeal to every single Jamaican. When the time comes, take the vaccine,” the prime minister urged.

“Hopefully, we will have some more supplies of vaccines and we expect to be fully supplied in terms of [treating] the vulnerable groups by August, once we have cleared that group in the society then we will start to progress down other age groups,” he said.

“The quicker we take them, and we have demonstrated that we can roll out vaccines very quickly, is the more appealing our economy looks. We can’t have it both ways. We can’t want to open up the economy and don’t want to take the vaccine, it does not work. And if we keep the economy closed, we can’t provide the services so it is important we be rational and reasonable. Take the vaccine,” Holness added.

Admitting that his vaccine agenda was not part of his keynote address at Friday’s groundbreaking ceremony, Holness said that he uses every opportunity to “reason with Jamaica” to bring sceptical citizens on board, especially since the Government “has not said or intend to make it mandatory for persons to take vaccines”.

Refocusing, Holness said that IMCA Jamaica’s decision to deepen roots on the island was sure to positively influence the construction boon.

The 32,000 square-foot facility, which will soon serve as the Dominican Republic subsidiary’s corporate headquarters, is slated for completion in 12 months and will create 82 permanent jobs.

“I am optimistic that this project will be another industrial growth-stimulating project for Jamaica as Caterpillar continues to bolster its presence. Our construction industry, even in the pandemic, has been growing leaps and bounds,” he argued.

“The construction sector has recorded three consecutive quarters of growth. In the quarter January-March 2021, growth in the goods-producing industries was largely due to higher output levels in construction, up from 10.5 per cent and mining and quarrying, up 7.1 per cent—you can see why IMCA is making that investment. These are very resilient sectors of our economy. We are happy to see this investment by IMCA Jamaica (Caterpillar),” Holness asserted.

The Ministry of Health and Wellness, in a July 7 inoculation tracking update, indicated that some 176,664 Jamaicans have received their first shot of the Astra Zeneca vaccine.

With 1,849 new jabs in the last 24 hours, the number of citizens on the receiving end of their second dose has risen to 109,409. By its estimates, just nine per cent of the Jamaican population has been vaccinated against COVID-19.

• See related article: US$8 million IMCA Jamaica headquarters rises in 12 months in Kingston