KINGSTON, Jamaica — At a youth-focused forum held last Thursday on the Mona campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI), organized by the Mona Campus Youth League in partnership with the UWI Guild of Students, Delano Seiveright, State Minister for Jamaica’s Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, delivered a rousing call to action for the island’s emerging workforce. Seiveright challenged attending students to abandon rigid, outdated career planning and pivot toward agile, forward-thinking strategies, stressing that the accelerating pace of global transformation has rendered traditional, slow-moving approaches obsolete.
Seiveright opened his address by emphasizing that the world is evolving faster than at any other moment in recorded human history. Where major paradigm shifts once took centuries or decades to reshape global society, he noted, meaningful change now unfolds over mere months, meaning missed moments of opportunity rarely come around again. Tracing the arc of technological progress from the 15th-century invention of the printing press through the breakthroughs of electricity, automobile manufacturing, broadcast radio and television, cellular communications, and the modern internet and social media era, Seiveright argued that today’s young people face a unique requirement for constant adaptation that previous generations never needed.
“Static skills and a fixed 40-year career plan can no longer carry you to success,” Seiveright told the crowd of students. “The leaders and achievers of this era are those who act quickly, commit to lifelong learning, and adjust their paths at the first sign of shifting tides.”
Beyond adaptability, Seiveright pressed students to expand their professional horizons far beyond Jamaica’s national borders. With Jamaica’s population sitting at roughly 2.8 million, he noted, the island is embedded in a far larger regional and global marketplace: the broader Caribbean counts 45 million consumers, North America adds more than 390 million, and Latin America contributes an additional 660 million. Voluntarily limiting one’s ambitions to the local market, he argued, is an unnecessary restriction on personal and professional potential.
Crucially, Seiveright pointed out that digital innovation and the rise of remote work have removed historic barriers to international economic participation. Jamaican workers and creators no longer need to relocate abroad to access global markets and earn foreign currency, opening new pathways to prosperity that were unavailable to previous generations.
A core highlight of the minister’s presentation centered on the under-tapped economic potential of Jamaica’s creative industries, a sector he identified as one of the country’s most promising untapped growth areas. From globally renowned music to large-scale entertainment events and digital content creation, Seiveright noted that the global creative economy generates massive revenue, pointing to Jamaica’s own world-famous events including Reggae Sumfest, Dream Weekend, Best Weekend Ever, Sandz and Zimi as proof of the sector’s local capacity.
He held up three prominent Jamaican creative entrepreneurs — Andrew Bellamy, Romeich Major and Kamal Bankay — as models for young people to follow. Notably, both Bellamy and Bankay are UWI Mona graduates who built their successful companies from humble beginnings, proving that creative culture is far more than artistic expression: it is a viable, high-growth business. Seiveright also pushed back against the cultural default of relying solely on traditional 9-to-5 employment, noting that in an era of rising living costs, global competition, and rapid technological change, a single full-time job is often no longer enough to sustain financial security. Instead, he encouraged students to pursue multiple streams of income, building side projects and independent ventures alongside traditional careers.
Seiveright also emphasized two underrated skills that drive long-term success: intentional professional networking and emotional intelligence, noting that the vast majority of valuable career opportunities emerge through informal professional connections rather than formal job application channels.
Turning to one of the most transformative modern technologies, artificial intelligence, Seiveright framed the AI boom as one of the most significant economic shifts of the 21st century, not a passing fad. Global corporate and venture investment in AI is projected to hit $2.5 trillion by 2026 — a sum more than 100 times the size of Jamaica’s entire annual gross domestic product. “Those who learn to leverage these AI tools will expand their opportunities and reach exponentially,” he said. “Those who ignore them will be left behind.”
Closing his address, Seiveright urged students to take decisive action immediately, rather than overplanning or waiting for the “perfect moment” to pursue new opportunities. Opportunities already exist across every core sector of Jamaica’s economy, from agriculture and culture to professional services and technology, he said. The only question is whether young people are prepared to seize them. “No one is going to build your future for you,” Seiveright concluded. “Start where you are, use what you have, think globally, and move.”