标签： Jamaica

KINGSTON, JAMAICA — As Caribbean-based investment firm Eppley Limited accelerates its plan to scale up cross-regional investment holdings, the company has announced two high-profile leadership changes: hiring former PROVEN Properties CEO Aisha Campbell to helm its real estate and infrastructure division as president, and promoting long-time team member Samantha Summerbell to the post of vice-president for credit. Campbell stepped into her new role following the departure of Denise Gallimore, who departed Eppley after more than eight years of service to take a new leadership position at Stanley Motta Limited / Felton Properties Limited.

In her new role, Campbell will oversee all of Eppley’s core real estate and infrastructure assets, including the Eppley Caribbean Property Fund, the firm’s direct real estate holdings, and its fast-growing infrastructure investment portfolio. Summerbell, meanwhile, will take charge of all the company’s on- and off-balance-sheet private credit operations, which includes the prominent Caribbean Mezzanine Fund. These leadership moves come as Eppley works to deepen its footprint in private markets across the Caribbean region, capitalizing on growing demand for alternative investments in the area.

Campbell brings nearly two decades of proven real estate leadership experience to Eppley. During her tenure as CEO at PROVEN Properties, she led an aggressive expansion that grew the firm’s total real estate portfolio from a modest US$20 million to a substantial US$140 million. She also oversaw the development of more than US$250 million in commercial and residential projects spanning three major Caribbean markets: Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, and Barbados, giving her deep on-the-ground expertise that aligns with Eppley’s regional growth goals.

Gallimore, Campbell’s predecessor, leaves behind a significantly expanded real estate platform at Eppley. During her more than eight years with the firm, Eppley’s commercial tenanted footprint grew to 1.1 million square feet across three key markets: Jamaica, Barbados, and Trinidad, laying the groundwork for the company’s next phase of growth.

In an official statement announcing the leadership changes, Eppley Vice-chairman Nicholas Scott praised Gallimore’s foundational contributions to the firm. “Denise has played a critical role in building and formalizing Eppley’s real estate and infrastructure business from the ground up,” Scott said. “We are deeply grateful for her years of commitment to our growth, and we are proud to see an Eppley alumnus step into a leadership role at another outstanding regional real estate firm.”

Summerbell’s promotion to vice-president of credit comes after she led several of the company’s most high-impact and successful transactions in recent years. Her expanded leadership of Eppley’s private credit business comes as this segment has emerged as a core and increasingly vital component of the firm’s overall long-term investment strategy, as private credit has grown in popularity among regional investors seeking consistent, uncorrelated returns.

Eppley CEO Raymond Donaldson emphasized that the leadership changes come at a pivotal moment of growth for the firm. “This is a moment of real momentum for Eppley as we push forward with our regional expansion plans,” Donaldson noted. “Aisha stands out as one of the most accomplished and respected real estate executives across the entire Caribbean, and her track record of scaling portfolios speaks for itself. Sam has long shared our core investment philosophy, and she has consistently delivered strong results for our shareholders over her years with the firm.”

Headquartered in Kingston, Eppley Limited focuses primarily on private market investments across the Caribbean, with core focus areas in credit, real estate, and infrastructure. The firm manages multiple regional investment vehicles, and has steadily expanded its portfolio of direct property and infrastructure assets in recent years as it works to deliver strong, consistent risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders.

KINGSTON, Jamaica — At a time of rising climate uncertainty, shifting regulatory standards, and growing legal risk across the Caribbean, a top insurance industry leader is calling on regional enterprises to reframe how they think about insurance coverage. Marvin Douglas, Deputy General Manager of Sales at Marathon Insurance Brokers, is pressing Jamaican and Caribbean business leaders to abandon the long-held view of insurance as an avoidable routine overhead, and instead embrace it as a form of strategic risk capital that can shield firms from catastrophic financial collapse. In an increasingly unstable global and regional operating environment, Douglas warned that failure to properly transfer unmanageable risk leaves companies dangerously exposed to ruinous losses.

Douglas delivered his remarks at the 2026 Annual Conference for Rotary District 7020, an event held this year under the unifying theme “Recognise needs, transform lives”. In his address, he argued that the outdated perspective of insurance as a forgotten “paper in a drawer” has no place in modern risk management. Instead, he positioned coverage as a foundational tool for building organizational resilience and guaranteeing long-term business continuity.

At its core, Douglas explained, insurance creates a structured framework for transferring risk. It lets businesses trade the threat of unpredictable, catastrophic losses that could sink an operation for predictable, fixed premium costs that fit into annual budgets. By offloading this extreme risk, companies free up capital that would otherwise be held in reserve for emergency losses, freeing those funds to be invested in expansion, innovation, and improved customer service.

A key trend Douglas highlighted is the steady uptick in professional liability claims across Jamaica and the broader Caribbean region. Today, professionals ranging from doctors and lawyers to engineers and independent consultants face far greater exposure to lawsuits, as the region shifts toward a more litigious culture. Douglas emphasized that professional indemnity insurance fills two critical needs: it covers potential damage awards against practitioners, and it covers the cost of legal defense—an expense that can financially cripple a small or medium-sized firm long before a court issues a final ruling.

Against the backdrop of tightening professional standards across all Caribbean industries, this coverage becomes even more non-negotiable, Douglas noted. Beyond covering costs, it protects the professional reputations that practitioners spend decades building, ensuring that one single honest error does not erase years of hard work and community trust.

Douglas also drew attention to the underappreciated value of business interruption insurance, which he described as a “hidden hero” of post-disaster recovery. While most business owners prioritize traditional property insurance to cover physical damage to facilities and equipment, many overlook the crippling financial strain that comes with operational downtime. This strain includes lost revenue during the shutdown and fixed ongoing costs such as staff salaries and rent that continue to accrue even when the business cannot generate income.

For a hurricane-prone region that also faces regular global supply chain disruptions, business interruption coverage is the safety net that lets companies remain financially solvent while they rebuild and recover from major disruptive events, Douglas explained. Without this coverage, even firms with solid property insurance can be forced to close permanently after a major shock.

Looking toward the future of regional risk management, Douglas identified parametric insurance as an innovative emerging solution for climate-related risks, which have grown more frequent and severe in recent years. Unlike traditional insurance policies, which require time-consuming on-site damage assessments before payouts can be issued, parametric policies automatically trigger payouts when predefined, objective conditions are met. Examples include a hurricane reaching a set category of intensity, or regional rainfall exceeding a pre-agreed threshold.

This fast-payout model makes parametric insurance particularly well-suited for Jamaica’s two largest economic sectors: agriculture and tourism. Both sectors are extremely vulnerable to climate shocks, and both require immediate access to liquidity to begin recovery and avoid long-term revenue loss. By cutting through the delays of traditional claims processing, parametric coverage gets funds into businesses’ hands when they need them most.

Throughout his address, Douglas stressed that building meaningful organizational resilience depends on proactive risk management, rather than reactive crisis response. While businesses cannot prevent natural disasters, unexpected legal claims, or supply chain collapses, they have full control over how they prepare for and manage those risks. When structured correctly to match a firm’s unique risk profile, he concluded, insurance delivers the financial stability that lets organizations keep operating and serving their local communities, even in the aftermath of major disruptive events.

As Jamaica’s 2024 summer tourist season kicks into high gear, island officials are extending a dual invitation to global travelers: come enjoy the country’s world-famous beaches, culture and events – and stay for the robust investment opportunities emerging from a remarkably fast post-disaster recovery.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett made the call during an appearance on Fyah 105’s popular morning program *The BIM Show*, part of the outlet’s Radio Remote Week hosted at Sandals Ochi Beach Resort in the popular northern coastal town of Ocho Rios. He highlighted a stacked lineup of marquee summer events that draw crowds from across the globe, including the iconic Reggae Sumfest, Dream Weekend and Best Weekend Ever, as core draws for seasonal visitors.

Six months after Hurricane Melissa, one of the most destructive tropical systems to hit the Caribbean in recent decades, Bartlett said the speed of Jamaica’s reconstruction has surpassed all expectations. “After what was arguably the worst hurricane on the planet, you’d barely know we had one six months later,” he noted, crediting the rapid rebound to collective effort from Jamaican people, national leadership, and generous collaboration with the country’s global diaspora community.

In the first full quarter after the storm, Jamaica welcomed roughly one million international visitors, Bartlett reported, with the vast majority of hurricane-damaged hospitality properties already back to full operation. At the current pace of recovery, he projects the island will restore 90 percent of its pre-storm tourism capacity by the end of the calendar year.

Unlike many disaster-hit destinations that lose long-term airline partnerships, Jamaica has retained every single one of its international carrier connections – and even expanded its route network, according to Bartlett. Major airlines including Southwest, Breeze Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Wingo and Copa Airlines have all added new routes to the island in recent months, a clear sign of global industry confidence in Jamaica’s recovery trajectory.

Leading the charge for northern Jamaica’s tourist hub Ocho Rios is St Ann Mayor Michael Belnavis, who has rebranded the town as Jamaica’s “party capital” and is working to position it as a top global entertainment and ecotourism hub. “The entertainment industry here is extremely lucrative, and we’re investing in building it out to draw visitors year-round,” Belnavis explained, pointing to successful past events like the Easter We Vacay party series as proof of the parish’s growing global appeal.

Beyond cultural events, St Ann boasts some of the most diverse natural attractions in the Caribbean, headlined by the world-famous Dunn’s River Falls – which Belnavis called “the number one tourist attraction in the entire Caribbean.” The cascading, ocean-fed waterfall is joined by other iconic natural experiences including the Blue Hole, scenic river excursions, snorkeling, white-water rafting, and newer one-of-a-kind offerings like the Poco Loco floating bar. “This is a destination defined by its aquatic beauty, paired with endless sun, warm seas and an unmatched welcoming energy,” he added.

Ongoing infrastructure investments, including the recent opening of a new purpose-built conference centre, are also growing the parish’s appeal for business and meetings tourism, with Belnavis predicting a coming real estate boom across the Ocho Rios area as demand for visitor and investor properties rises.

Sicourney Jackson, public relations officer for the Jamaica Tourist Board, reinforced the official message during Radio Remote Week, which brought 21 international radio outlets from the United Kingdom and Canada to the island to showcase Jamaica’s post-hurricane readiness. “Right here, right now, Jamaica is open and ready to welcome you,” she said, echoing Bartlett’s call for travelers to support the country’s recovery with a visit. Jackson acknowledged that full reconstruction is still ongoing – the island is not yet back to 100 percent pre-storm capacity – but said progress has been steady and remarkable, crediting frontline tourism workers who have sacrificed personal comfort to speed the industry’s rebound.

As global interest in travel to Jamaica continues to climb, local tourism and government stakeholders frame the island’s rapid recovery as both a demonstration of extraordinary national resilience and an open invitation. Whether travelers are chasing world-class cultural festivals, one-of-a-kind ecotourism adventures, or high-growth investment opportunities, the message from Jamaica is clear: the island is open for visitors and for business.

Radio Remote Week, which hosted international and local media outlets across Ocho Rios’ top attractions, gave journalists a first-hand look at the destination’s recovery, with outings ranging from electric ATV adventures at Mystic Mountain to rides on the resort’s famous Olympic-inspired bobsled track, and visits to the popular Poco Loco floating bar to cap off the week.