Jamaica's Success Story: Becoming More Resilient and Less Vulnerable to Climate Change

This factsheet captures what USAID has been doing since 2012 to help build Jamaica’s long-term resilience to climate change and prepare for current climate variability and extremes.

Jamaica is vulnerable to sea level rise and increases in the severity of tropical storms and hurricanes. These threaten a major economic pillar - tourism - which is concentrated mainly along the coast. Its agricultural sector is sensitive to changing rainfall patterns, higher temperatures and extreme weather events.

A USAID-sponsored workshop helped the Jamaican government to identify actions, policies, and resources needed to cope with climate threats. To address immediate needs, USAID has improved Jamaica’s capacity to access and use climate and weather data. For farmers, USAID is supporting improvements in seasonal forecasts and agricultural outreach, focusing on ensuring that information meets their practical needs.

It is also supporting Jamaica’s efforts to develop a low emission development strategy, which will help reduce the growth of greenhouse gas emissions and prepare Jamaica to join the emerging low-carbon global economy. The support covers activities such as data collection, economic modeling, and sector-specific planning.