Gov’t launches US$50m project for climate-resilient farming

A multibillion-dollar project designed by the Government to harden the country’s agriculture sector against climate shocks is expected to boost nearly 15,000 farmers in the first year, officials have announced.

The benefits include grant funding to help farmers recover from the devastation caused by Hurricane Melissa, as well as training and capacity-building in greenhouse technology.

ADOPT Jamaica, the US$50-million project being funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), was unveiled yesterday by Minister of Water, Climate Change and the Environment Matthew Samuda and Agriculture Minister Floyd Green during a press briefing at Jamaica House in St Andrew.

Some US$40 million was provided as grant financing, Samuda disclosed.

The GCF – the largest global fund dedicated to help fight climate change – approved the project last Friday, five years after it was first floated by the Jamaican Government.

The project is expected to benefit approximately 700,000 farmers when it is fully implemented in six years’ time.

Samuda revealed, too, that the Government is “actively pursuing” climate-resilient, agriculture-related projects valued at US$300 million “that are at varying stages of development”.

Hurricane Melissa, the record Category 5 storm that slammed Jamaica last October, caused approximately $32 billion in agricultural losses, while Hurricane Beryl in July 2024 left over $7 billion in damage to the industry.

“The Government decided, years ago, that in moving towards climate-resilient financing, it would have to be targeted towards our agricultural sector, to build sustainability and to ensure that we are more resilient,” Green said.

Noting that the project includes a component that allows the Government to directly respond to the damage caused by Melissa, he said the benefits will include cash transfers, a cash-for-work programme for some households, and a major irrigation system.

“This project will bring forward at least nine automatic weather stations, 35 rainfall loggers, and a national climate information system tailored to agriculture,” he said.

MULTI-LAYERED PROJECT

Green cautioned, however, that implementation will take place over “the next five to six years”.

“And I say that because now that you hear the announcement, farmers will think that tomorrow we will be able to get out there,” he said, noting that preparatory work has to be done before implementation.

Samuda insisted that there is no need for concern about oversight of the multibillion-dollar programme.

“This is more multi-layered than any other project I can think of, in terms of the number of oversight that will be applied to it,” he said.

Green said the project is designed to tackle the “systematic barriers” to resilience in the agricultural sector and will focus on four main areas.

These will include food loss and waste, policy and institutional strengthening, and investment-ready financing solutions. Jamaican farmers currently lose between 30 and 40 per cent of the crops they produce.

“We will look to develop model farms and farm clusters, where we will deploy climate-resilient solutions to show them work in real time ... things like solar-powered irrigation, reinforced greenhouses that are designed to withstand stronger storms, and efficient water management systems,” he explained.

The agriculture minister said the project will have a strong training component, as well as provide access to affordable tools that are focused on rainwater harvesting and water-efficient technology.

He said that using historical data, officials have identified six parishes – Clarendon, Trelawny, Manchester, St Ann, St Catherine and St Elizabeth – where farmers suffered significant losses in weather events over the last two decades.

These parishes account for up to 70 per cent of local food production.

livern.barrett@gleanerjm.com