17 June 2019
Senator Lyndon Farnham with Ian Steff (US Department of Commerce)
Jersey’s Deputy Chief Minister has attended a 3-day business summit in Washington DC. Senator Lyndon Farnham, together with Head of Operations at Jersey Business, Alexia McClure, and Senior External Relations Officer, Rebecca Millar, attended the Department of Commerce Select USA Inward Investment Summit, and conducted a programme of engagement with United States political offices and government departments. The delegation conducted a total of 15 bilateral meetings and attended 14 plenary and break-out sessions of the conference.
Senator Farnham held bilateral meetings with senior officials from the United States Department of Commerce: Ian Steff, who holds the following positions: Deputy Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing, Assistant Secretary for Global Markets, and Director-General of the Foreign and Commercial Service, Brian Lenihan, who is the Executive Director of Select USA and Sarah Kemp, Deputy Under Secretary for International Trade.
Discussions focused on identifying avenues for Jersey businesses to access opportunities in the United States, and on highlighting key sectors of Jersey’s economy. The Deputy Chief Minister also had the opportunity to meet the United States Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross, who hosted the Summit.
At the British Embassy in Washington the delegation met the Deputy Head of Mission, as well as the Regional Trade Director for the East of the USA. From the US Embassy in London, Senator Farnham met Minister-Counsellor John Simmons and Select USA officials who have supported Jersey’s ambition to connect with US State Economic Development Offices. The Deputy Chief Minister has been invited to continue discussions at the US Embassy during a future visit to London.
The delegation met officials from the offices of Congresswoman Watson-Coleman and Congressman Norcross from the House of Representatives, both of New Jersey. Senator Farnham said: ”These meetings help to raise the island’s profile at a political level in Washington, and highlight the work that’s underway to generate State-Island cooperation for the benefit of both communities.”
Senator Farnham also attended the House of Representatives in session and visited the White House.
The delegation engaged a number of State Economic Development Offices during the Select USA conference, including Washington State, New Jersey, Maryland, Arizona and Virginia. Senator Farnham added: “We discussed the sectors that most interest the different States, as well as specific inward investment incentives and programmes that could help Jersey businesses to realise their ambitions for US expansion.”
Jersey Business and the Global Markets team will now work towards a visit to Jersey in the autumn by officials from the US Embassy in London, to set out trade opportunities in the United States. If businesses are interested in participating in such an event, please contact Jersey Business at events@jerseybusiness.je
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