Jamaica is positioning to attract more infrastructure investments and is setting the groundwork for significant infrastructure-led economic growth over the next few years.

Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke has disclosed that the Government of Jamaica (GOJ) is working with the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) to put together competitive processes designed to attract major investor interest in this area. He stated that the GOJ is looking at attracting more than US$1 billion of infrastructure projects over the next three years.

Clarke said the Holness administration is making a “big push” on infrastructure-led development and growth over the next few years, noting that the country is now at a position where this undertaking can be pursued. Speaking during a ministerial briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade in downtown Kingston recently, Clarke recalled that several years ago, “when our economy was much more fragile, Jamaica was “greatly restricted” in how it could pursue infrastructure expansion.

He argued that consequently, Jamaica could not attract private capital to infrastructure projects. Dr Clarke is hopeful that in light of improvements in this regard, construction firms from many of the countries with which Jamaica shares diplomatic/bilateral relations, “will show an interest in the projects that are going to come on stream”.

Investments coming in casino resorts

He reiterated that investments of some US$1 billion are anticipated for the Integrated Resort Development project, for which two licenses will be granted. These are mega-resorts with entertainment complexes featuring casino gambling and hotel rooms.

Minister Clarke noted that these developments undertaken locally are required to have at least 1,000 rooms, of which 500 must be luxury rooms, with a minimum investment of US$500 million. The successful applicants bidding for the licenses are expected to be announced shortly, following the closure of the request for offer (RFO) on March 9.

Other key investment opportunities that are being pursued include deepening the financial ecosystem by facilitating the establishment during fiscal year 2022/23 of four private equity and venture capital funds in which the Government has minority investment. These entities would target funding support for micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).

In addition, the finance minister noted that the government will also be introducing unemployment insurance, pension reforms to provide greater security in retirement, reforming the Customs Act to enhance the Jamaica Customs Agency’s (JCA) operational efficiency and divestment of assets in Clarendon Alumina Production Limited (CAP).

Jamaica’s economic resilience

Clarke pointed out that Jamaica’s resilience has seen it rebound from a 10.7 per cent COVID-induced economic contraction in 2020 to record 14.2 and 5.8 per cent growth for the April to June and July to September 2021 quarters, respectively, with the prospects of a seven to nine percentage points out-turn for fiscal year 2021/22, barring unforeseen disruptions.

Coupled with this, the minister added, is the restoration of 100,000 jobs between July 2020 and July 2021, which were lost due to COVID-19, and further expansion in the number of persons employed by 75,000 in October 2021. He further indicated that Jamaica’s debt to gross domestic product (GDP) rate, which spiralled to 110 per cent, is projected to fall to 96 per cent by March 31, 2022.

“Our recovery efforts continue. We expect to achieve pre-COVID levels of economic output in this upcoming [2022/23] fiscal year, which is going to be way ahead of our colleagues in the Caribbean, if we achieve it. We, also, at the end of the [upcoming] fiscal year, are forecasting to have our debt levels at the lowest they have been in 22 years,” Dr Clarke said.