THE Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ) is preparing to launch the Blue Green Facility, a new climate financing mechanism to support climate action initiatives across the island.

This follows the bank’s accreditation to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) in 2023, granting it access to over $250 million to fund climate resilience projects in Jamaica.

“This accreditation is a big deal,” said Programme Manager Roxanne Valentine-Donegan, who is spearheading the fund. “The DBJ realised Jamaica needs climate finance, so we approached the GCF. It was a long process but worth it,” she said during the JPS Climate Action Expo over the weekend.

It marks the largest GCF accreditation in the Caribbean.

“With this accreditation, we are hoping to access a $500-million facility,” she said. “The GCF is providing $200 million, but we are trying to raise $300 million through our international development partners and our private sector.”

The fund aims to attract private sector stakeholders and investors focused on climate resilience by offering green loans and grants to support the development of climate-related projects. It will also provide equity financing to drive climate action in Jamaica, helping to mitigate the impacts of climate change. The funding is designed to support a wide range of initiatives aimed at building resilience, promoting adaptation, and addressing loss and damage caused by climate-related events. The DBJ noted that young entrepreneurs seeking funding to develop their ideas will require support beyond the BIGEE Programme, which the bank plans to expand. Under the Blue Green Facility, special emphasis will be placed on community-based projects to ensure that small organisations can benefit. However, businesses seeking to access loan funding must meet specific prerequisites.

“We’d like to see something different and something that we would consider impactful,” said Valentine-Donegan.

Pointing to Keefarms, a seaweed farming project in Boscobel, as an example, Valentine-Donegan explained that the business was able to secure funding from the DBJ due to its unique, innovative approach to climate resilience, which has a more significant impact on adaptation and mitigation efforts. However, she added that while small businesses might develop patents, the DBJ is focused on the sustainability of the project and is particularly interested in seeing what happens after it progresses beyond a particular stage.

While the DBJ’s green fund is welcomed, Adrian Watson, executive director of the Jamaica Environmental Entrepreneurs Advocacy Network, raised concerns about the accessibility of financing options and the lack of support available to help SMEs prepare to meet the requirements needed to access such funds.

“If we can build an incubator space in the same way that we build the communities to basically hand-hold you through the process, you’ll find that more businesses will be profitable,” he said.

In response, the DBJ outlined plans to assist businesses in navigating the application process more smoothly. Addressing concerns that some may struggle to understand the business concept or lack a business plan, the DBJ emphasised its Gemini Programme, which offers “hand-holding” support to help businesses prepare the necessary documents to access funding. Valentine-Donegan also explained that the gap between SMEs and the DBJ stems from a lack of understanding of how the DBJ’s financial options work.

“We do not give direct funding to the MSME sector; we work through our accredited financial institutions, and these are the things they would ask for, and in my opinion, that is what would be the gap, and we are trying to fill that gap, but we are trying to fill that gap through the different programmes we offer,” she explained.

The DBJ also offers energy loans of up to $40 million at an interest rate of 11.5 per cent. For residential customers, loans of up to $5 million are available for alternative energy solutions at interest rates as low as 9.5 per cent.

DBJ’s Programme Manager Roxanne Valentine-Donegan, spearheading the fund, gives more detail on climate financing during a fireside chat.