A total of 183 agricultural workers will depart the island this week to participate in the 2026 Canadian Seasonal Agricultural Workers Programme (SAWP).
The first batch of 98 workers left on Tuesday, December 6, with another group of 85 persons scheduled to depart on Wednesday, December 7.
They will be travelling to provinces including Ontario, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland, where they will be engaged in the cultivation of fruits and vegetables, including greenhouse farming, over the next eight months.
Speaking with JIS News after a farewell meeting with the workers at the Overseas Employment Centre in downtown Kingston, Minister of Labour and Social Security Pearnel Charles Jr, underscored the importance of the programme in changing lives, strengthening families and contributing to national development.
He noted that millions of dollars in remittances have come into the country, children have been sent to school, and families have been equipped to start their own businesses, creating opportunities for economic stability.
The minister said that the country’s productive sector has also benefited from the exposure and experience gained by the workers.
“When a farm worker goes overseas and is exposed to a certain type of work ethic and the procedures and the different types of technology, they come back to Jamaica with a different and more professional attitude. You see it in how they conduct themselves. Many of the farm workers are community leaders naturally in their communities…that translates to growth for Jamaica,” he pointed out.
This year’s cohort represents a blend of youth and experience.
Among them is Arnold Campbell from Browns Town, St Ann, who is making his 28th trip to Canada, and first-time participants like André Allen, who carries the hopes of his family as the eldest of four siblings.
“I want to set a foundation because I am from a poor background,” said the 24-year-old Clarendon native, who told JIS News that his house and farm were impacted by Hurricane Melissa.
Established in 1966, the Canadian Seasonal Agricultural Workers Programme provides hundreds of Jamaicans with secure, legal, temporary employment on Canadian farms each year.
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