Jamaica faces a financing gap of nearly $965 billion to rebuild after Hurricane Melissa, with disaster insurance expected to cover only a small portion of the cost.

The recovery bill from the hurricane is now estimated at $1 trillion. Jamaica anticipates roughly $35 billion from two major sources: the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF), valued at $11 billion (US$70 million), and a World Bank-arranged catastrophe bond worth $24 billion (US$185 million), both currently in processing. The Jamaican Government has pledged rigorous oversight, with a sub-committee and the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) maintaining detailed accounts of all financial and in-kind donations as funds flow into the recovery effort.

“There is serious accountability in ODPEM. I think that framework was quite robust in its establishment,” assured Dana Morris Dixon during the special press briefing on Hurricane Melissa recovery held on Thursday. “In the ministry of foreign affairs they deal with a lot of the aid that is coming in from bilateral partners and multi-laterals; that is, they have their own system of accounting for all of that,” she added.

ODPEM also intends to make the details of fund usage public at a later date, with plans to develop a robust management framework to oversee the process. While the total amount pledged is still being finalized, donations through the Government’s official relief portal, supportjamaica.gov.jm, have already exceeded $170 million, and contributions continue to grow as more donors give support.

“There is a notion going around that there is a lot of aid and there is a lot of money coming in. Yes, we have made provisions, but all of that is temporary,” Prime Minister Andrew Holness warned in Parliament on Tuesday. “At some point, all of that will dry up, and the Government must be able to stand on its own two feet,” he said to applause from parliamentary members.

More than US$130 million in assistance has so far been pledged to support Jamaica’s recovery following Hurricane Melissa, though not all of it represents direct cash inflows to the Government. Much of the support comprises grants, goods, or regional aid distributed through international partners and charities working on the ground. So far, an estimated US$107.7 million has been pledged in cash commitments targeted at Jamaica’s recovery efforts. This includes US$11 million from the United States Government, US$80 million from the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, and approximately US$9.6 million from the United Kingdom. The cruise industry has pledged more than US$3 million, inclusive of a US$1 million donation from the Miami Heat, Carnival Corporation and the Micky and Madeleine Arison Family Foundation channelled through Direct Relief. The American Friends of Jamaica has announced a US$3 million matching fund that will be disbursed through local partners such as Food for the Poor, Red Cross Jamaica, and the Salvation Army. KFC Jamaica has committed J$18 million, roughly US$116,000, to ODPEM and charity partners, while the Walt Disney Company has donated US$1 million in support of regional recovery efforts. Local entertainer Sean Paul has also pledged to match up to US$50,000 in public donations. Outside of those financial commitments, several entities have made non-cash or regional contributions valued at about US$24 million. These include the Home Depot Foundation’s US$1 million in product donations and grants spread across the Caribbean, as well as the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies’ emergency appeal of 19 million Swiss francs (US$23 million) to assist 180,000 Jamaicans through shelter repairs, livelihood support, and humanitarian aid. Other support from countries such as Spain, Peru, Japan and China has come primarily in the form of relief items and logistical assistance rather than financial aid. These include the packing and distribution of supplies, emergency equipment, and humanitarian materials to affected communities. International relief organisations such as World Central Kitchen, Doctors without Borders and Samaritan’s Purse have also been active on the ground, providing manpower, meals, and medical assistance as part of the broader recovery effort. Beyond the headline pledges, several private sector groups and foundations have been mobilising their own relief efforts, channelling aid directly through local partners rather than contributing funds to the government’s central account.

“All the information is there, and there will be a time for us to present everything, [to say that] this is all that we got from everywhere,” Education Minister Dana Morris Dixon assured.

So far, the Government has allocated over $420 million to Members of Parliament across all 63 constituencies to support emergency recovery at the community level. Constituencies in the most affected parishes, including St Elizabeth, Westmoreland, Manchester, Hanover, St James and Trelawny, each received $10 million, amounting to $200 million across 20 constituencies. In St Ann and Clarendon, each of the 10 constituencies was allocated $5 million, for a total of $50 million. The remaining 33 constituencies across other parishes received $3 million each, adding another $99 million. In addition, MPs in the hardest-hit parishes of St Elizabeth, Westmoreland, Trelawny and St James were granted $2 million each for water trucking, representing $28 million. The remaining 33 constituencies received between $1 million and $1.5 million based on the level of impact, estimated to be between $33 million and $49.5 million. Prime Minister Andrew Holness explained that these allocations are intended to address urgent cases that central ministries cannot respond to quickly, rather than to cover all needs within each constituency. He added that the Government intends to utilise every available avenue of financing from multilateral partners to sustain recovery efforts.

“At this time, we have to be very careful with how we spend,” Holness said. “I give the assurance that what we have will be fairly shared for every Jamaican,” he said in Parliament on Tuesday.

MORRIS DIXON… all the information is there, and there will be a time for us to present everything, [to say that] this is all that we got from everywhere.

Billions in relief and recovery funding are being monitored as Jamaica assesses its post-hurricane financial outlook.