The FIPA's independence is one of its most valuable assets and it maintains its integrity in two ways. First, we make extensive use of our own member's knowledge.
No confidential studies are undertaken. Second, we ensure that our funding base is wide and diverse. Unlike some other institutions, we are not beholden to, or the mouthpiece for, any particular section of the community or any particular economic activity or group.

  Our annual budget---of about $1.5 million---is obtained from more than 100 Members and individuals, event sponsors, corporations and foundations.
No single source accounts for more than 10 per cent and no sector accounts for more than 20 per cent of total funds.

  Over the years, the issues examined at the Institute have reflected the changing concerns of Jamaican society and the world. During the Great Depression, conferences focused on social reform, the state of the economy and the growing threat of war in Europe. In the late 1940s and 1950s, participants discussed issues such as rebuilding the local economy in a post-war world, and the challenge of world peace. More recently, the topics have turned to such issues as technology, the environment, the problem of illiteracy, the economic challenges facing today's youth and food security.

  The Farquharson Institute of Public Affairs prides itself on maintaining its non-partisan, non-advocacy stance. Its purpose is to help Jamaicans from many walks of life form their own opinions after listening to, and discussing with, experts and others interested in the challenging issues facing our country and the world.

Interested in becoming a part of it? Become a member