Jamaica has opened a 480-hectare irrigated agro park in St Catherine, backed by British grant money and the Caribbean Development Bank, in a bold bet that modern, climate-proof infrastructure can make its farmers less hostage to the weather.
Main photo: ThisAphrodite / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
The Government of Jamaica, the United Kingdom and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) on Thursday commissioned the Amity Hall/Bridge Pen Irrigation System and launched the Amity Hall/Bridge Pen Agro Park, the Jamaica Observer reports.
What has been built
The park covers 480 hectares split into around 143 farm lots. It is served by a pumping station able to deliver 46,000 cubic metres of treated irrigation water a day, a 20,000-cubic-metre reservoir, roughly 24 kilometres of irrigation pipes and 13 kilometres of farm roads.
A 100-kilowatt solar system is expected to cut electricity costs by about 15 per cent. Farmers are expected to grow onions, sweet potatoes, Irish potatoes, hot peppers, cassava, mangoes and papayas.
The park is part of the wider Southern Plains Agricultural Development (SPAD) Project, which spans 795 hectares across Amity Hall in St Catherine and Parnassus in Clarendon and is expected to benefit about 700 farmers and agricultural entrepreneurs. It is funded mainly through the UK Caribbean Infrastructure Fund (UKCIF), delivered with the CDB.
Women and young farmers in focus
British High Commissioner Alicia Herbert said more than 300 women farmers and agricultural entrepreneurs are expected to benefit directly, calling the project “inclusive development in action”. She also highlighted its aim of drawing in young people and persons with disabilities.
So far, 576 people have received training through SPAD and 60 farmers have been supported by its matching grant scheme.
‘The greatest return on our investment’
Agriculture Minister Floyd Green said that when the UK set aside £300 million for Caribbean infrastructure, Jamaica could have chosen any sector but backed farming because it would give “the greatest return on our investment”.
L. O’Reilly Lewis, director of projects at the CDB, said reliable water, drainage and roads mean harvests no longer depend on rainfall, strengthening water and food security across Jamaica and the region.
Why it matters
The launch lands as Jamaica marks one year since Hurricane Melissa, which exposed how vulnerable rural farming communities are to extreme weather. Jamaica is the largest beneficiary of UKCIF support, a reminder that Britain’s development ties with the Caribbean remain significant for the region and for the Jamaican diaspora in the UK. Across the Caribbean, governments are increasingly using international finance to build resilience, as when Barbados secured an IDB-backed guarantee to fund health resilience. The test now is whether the new lots translate into higher yields, steadier incomes and more home-grown food on Jamaican tables.