By: Staff Writer
January 30, 2026
Prime Minister of Jamaica, Andrew Holness, said at The International Economic Forum Latin America and Caribbean 2026 being held in Panama that his country has hit their debt to GDP target of 60 percent.
Holness highlighted the country’s economic resilience post-Hurricane Melissa. He noted Jamaica’s public debt reduced from 140 percent in 2013 to 90 percent by 2019, and unemployment at a historical low of 3.3 percent.
Jamaica secured $6.7 billion in development financing, with $5.5 billion channelled through the National Reconstruction and Resilience Authority. Holmes emphasized the need for regional competitiveness, institutional readiness, and a renewed diplomatic posture to shape global standards and partnerships, inviting investors to capitalize on Jamaica’s momentum.
Holness also said: “Just under three months ago, Jamaica faced one of the most severe natural disasters in modern history, the third most powerful hurricane ever recorded in the world. Hurricane Melissa, a Category five storm tested our institutions, our infrastructure and our people.
“Yet today, I stand before you with a simple but powerful message, Jamaica has endured. Jamaica is recovering and strongly recovering, and Jamaica is moving forward. This moment is best understood in the context of how fundamentally Jamaica’s economic resilience has changed over time, how our capacity to absorb shocks and rebound from them has been deliberately strengthened in 2008 the global financial crisis struck a heavily indebted and structurally vulnerable Jamaican economy.”
Holness also said: “It took 11 years for Jamaica to return to pre crisis output, 11 years of fiscal repair, institutional reform and sustained efforts to rebuild credibility.
“Jamaica’s public debt to GDP ratio underwent significant transformation between 2008 and 2019 rising from 120 percent in 2008 following the global crisis, to a peak of Over 140 percent in 2013 before decreasing to roughly 90 percent by the end of 2019 and This marked the beginning of a major turnaround in fiscal stability.
“Then, just as the recovery was consolidating, the world was struck by the covid-19 pandemic, compounded by global supply chain disruptions, escalating geopolitical tensions on a scale not seen in a century. And yet, Jamaica responded differently.
“Our recovery was V shaped. But we returned to pre pandemic output in just three years. And were it not for hurricane Melissa, we would have hit our debt to GDP target of 60 percent.”
Holness added: “We’re proud to say that for the last 10 budgets presented to the people of Jamaica, we have not exacted any new taxes. We have a freely floating currency with no foreign exchange controls, no capital controls. We are further reinforcing this strong macro economic framework through productivity reforms to reduce delays, cut bureaucracy and accelerate investment.
“We are reinforcing it through the energy sector reforms, through low energy cost, expanding renewable energy capacity and strengthening the resilience of our grid, and importantly, we are in reinforcing it through improved public safety.”