Energy security, goodwill top Obama agenda in Jamaica visit

US President Barack Obama gets a tour of the Bob Marley Museum from a staff member Natasha Clark (L) in Kingston, Jamaica April 8, 2015.[Photo/Agencies]

Governor General Patrick Allen and Prime Minister Simpson Miller along with a delegation of officials greeted Obama on arrival at the airport.

Security measures have been intensified. A main street in corporate areas of Kingston, where main financial institutions, big hotels, government agencies and at least three shopping centers are located, is set to be closed for 24 hours, to welcome the visiting US president.

Vendors around the National Heroes Park, which is right in the center of Kingston's downtown area, are asked to make room for Obama's tribute to veterans scheduled on Thursday.

H Simpson Miller views Obama's visit as "an affirmation of the strong ties of friendship and cooperation" between the United States and her small island country.

"We are confident that through fruitful dialogue and exchanges during the visit we will succeed in further strengthening the close relations that exist at the bilateral level between Jamaica and the US and between the US and CARICOM," she said in a statement.