I THE WEEKLY GLEANER | DECEMBER 11 - DECEMBER 17, 2025 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | 9 continued with her move to HSBC as a supervisor and then it was on to Bear Sterns. Roach-Wilson was to spend the longest working time at Bear Sterns, staying there for over 10 years. At Bear Sterns she was involved in bonds, working on the capital market desk, and working on emerging markets such as Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, the Dominica Republic, among other countries. In conjunction with Royland Campbell, who was with Capital and Credit Bank, Roach-Wilson started her own financial consulting firm, Alsion Road Group, that yielded much success, working with many top US financial firms as well as countries across the region. It was while in this position that she first floated the idea of a Diaspora Bond for Jamaica. “I looked at various models and settled on the Indian model and it closely fitted the Jamaican Diaspora needs,” she said. The idea of a Diaspora Bond is still floating around without any concrete efforts being made to implement such a financial instrument, although government officials have expressed warmth for the idea. In 2016, according to Roach Wilson, she was approached by the Jamaican government to take the post of Consul General to New York, an option that she rejected at the time. However, in 2019, she was again approached to become Consul General to New York and this time around she accepted the job, which she has held for nearly five years. As Consul General to New York, she oversees the largest diplomatic territory, which includes 33 states in the United States, as well as Puerto Rico and Bermuda. Since becoming Consul General, Roach Wilson has made investments in Jamaica a focal part of her portfolio, arranging and hosting several investments seminars in New York and elsewhere and giving Jamaicans an opportunity to see the value and worth of investing in their homeland. But she is not fully satisfied with her accomplishments as Consul General so far. “There is so much more to be accomplished both for Jamaica and the Diaspora and I am determined to ensure that such accomplishments become a reality,” she told The Gleaner. She has already overseen a move by the Consulate to bigger and more space, but wants to use the new location to showcase more of Jamaica’s cultural heritage. editorial@gleanerjm.com Published July 2019 Jamaica’s consul general to New York, Alsion Wilson, presents Irwine Clare, CEO of Team Jamaica Bickle, with a letter detailing a donation of US$5,000 towards their fundraising efforts. The amount was made by Greg Fisher, managing director of Jeffries LLC. In addition, the consul general presented seven travel certificates from JetBlue airlines. CONTRIBUTED Jamaica’s Consul General in New York, Alsion Roach-Wilson and her husband Omar Wilson. PHOTO BY ASHLEY ANGUIN THE WEEKLY GLEANER | DECEMBER 11, 2025 - JANUARY 7, 2026 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | FEATURE
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