The People’s Republic of China last year emerged as the leading contributor of official development assistance (ODA) to Jamaica, with a combined portfolio of loans and grants totaling US$409.7 million or approximately $64.4 billion — ranking as a major development partner in terms of financial support, despite an overall decline in new ODA for the year.

The data contained in the latest publication of the 2024 Economic and Social Survey compiled by the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) also showed other bilateral partners such as the United Kingdom as the top grant donor, providing over $21.1 billion in funding. The United States, through USAID, similarly contributed $13.9 billion in grants spread across 13 initiatives, with a focus on social infrastructure and governance.

Following Hurricane Beryl in July 2024, the country received US$8.8 million or about $1.4 billion in grant funding from international partners for immediate relief and recovery efforts. These funds were disbursed through various multilateral and bilateral channels.

“Of total ODA in 2024, bilateral partners accounted for the largest share with 54.4 per cent followed by multilateral financing institutions (MFIs) at 38.8 per cent; environment and climate change (EnCC) funds with 3.2 per cent and multilateral technical cooperation (MTCs) with 2.8 per cent. For the full year loans amounted to US$852.6 million ($134.0 billion) and grants, US$548.8 million or US$86.3 billion,” the survey indicated.

In 2024 newly approved ODA however amounted to $13.7 billion — 21.6 per cent below that in 2023. “There was a general decline in new ODA, with 2024 recording the lowest level of support. The primary factors contributing to this decline included Jamaica’s continued efforts in exercising fiscal prudence by decreasing dependence on loan funding as well as the country’s classification as an upper-middle-income country, which reduces eligibility for some grant funded development assistance.”

Over the last four years the country is said to have secured a total of $150.7 billion in new ODA which comprised 96.4 billion in loan financing and $54.2 billion in grants.

ODA—consisting of concessionary loans, grants, and technical assistance—is intended to support economic development and improve citizens’ welfare in developing countries. In 2024, ODA, combined with counterpart funding from the Government, were used to support both new and ongoing projects valued at $267.3 billion, of which $220.1 billion came from international partners.

Development assistance allocated across multiple sectors saw social infrastructure projects including health, education, housing accounting for the bulk of these funds at $4.8 billion. This was followed by productive sector funding mainly in the areas of agriculture and tourism at $4.3 billion; environment and climate change at $2.1 billion and economic infrastructure comprising transport, power, water and sewerage at $2.0 billion as well as administrative/governance support of $566 million.

Top MFIs included the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), European Union (EU), Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and the World Bank. MTC agencies such as the United Nations, International Labour Organisation (ILO), and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) also made notable contributions throughout the year.

“Total disbursements for new and ongoing projects amounting to US$136.4 million ($21.4 billion), however, fell sharply reflecting a 43.9 per cent decrease when compared with 2023. This decrease was primarily attributed to the near completion of some projects and the slow start up of new projects. Loan disbursements accounted for US$59.5 million ($9.4 billion) while grants amounted to US$76.9 million ($12.1 billion),” the survey also found.