WASHINGTON, United States (CMC) — A coalition of major international financial institutions has pledged up to US$6.1 billion over the next three years to support Jamaica’s recovery and reconstruction following Hurricane Melissa, according to a joint announcement on Monday.
The package, assembled at the request of Prime Minister Andrew Holness, brings together the CAF–Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG).
The institutions say the coordinated effort signals a unified commitment to help Jamaica pursue a sustainable, fiscally responsible rebuilding programme, combining emergency liquidity, sovereign financing, grants and private-sector investment.
The announcement comes ahead of a scheduled call between Prime Minister Holness and representatives of the agencies to discuss implementation of the support package.
Jamaica’s existing disaster-risk financing framework enabled a swift flow of funds in the immediate aftermath of the hurricane, providing US$662 million in early support. According to the bulletin:
— US$37 million came from the Government of Jamaica’s own contingency and disaster reserve funds;
— US$91 million from the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF);
— US$150 million from a World Bank catastrophe bond;
— US$300 million through the IDB’s Contingent Credit Facility; and
— US$42 million, scalable to US$84 million, from the World Bank’s Catastrophe Deferred Drawdown Option.
With hurricane damage estimated at US$8.8 billion, the group outlined a longer-term recovery financing package worth up to US$3.6 billion over the next three years. The breakdown includes up to US$1 billion from CAF for government-identified priorities; up to US$200 million from CDB for resilient infrastructure and small business support; up to US$1 billion in sovereign financing from the IDB; up to US$415 million from the IMF via its Rapid Financing Instrument for large natural disasters; and up to US$1 billion from the World Bank for budget support, risk guarantees and critical sector projects.
To strengthen recovery planning, the institutions have also mobilised US$12 million in grants for technical assistance and policy support, with additional funding expected.
Attracting private investment will be critical to scaling reconstruction efforts, the institutions said. Through IDB Invest, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), up to US$1.9 billion in private-sector support is being targeted— US$700 million from the IDB Group and US$1.2 billion from the World Bank Group.
In the joint statement, the organisations reaffirmed their commitment to helping Jamaica “build forward better”, emphasising resilience, innovation and long-term sustainability in the recovery process.
They said the combined resources and expertise position Jamaica not only to rebuild after Hurricane Melissa but to emerge stronger and more capable of withstanding future disasters.