We adapted a violence-prevention, parenting program (the Irie Homes Toolbox, or IHT) for integration into Jamaican preschool services. The adapted IHT was evaluated in a mixed-method feasibility trial in Kingston, Jamaica. Twenty-four preschools were randomly assigned to intervention (n12) or...

The evaluation assessed the EU's Budget Support programmes implemented in Jamaica from 2008 to 2021 in support of the country's National Development Plan (Vision 2030) and the economic, justice & security and forest management sector reform strategies. This evaluation was mandated by the...

The technical assistance mission aimed to build capacity to enhance financial stability analyses and assessments in the Bank of Jamaica. It reviewed the latest available Financial Stability Report and the analytical toolkit. In particular, the mission helped the bank to estimate sectoral credit...

The technical assistance mission aimed to build capacity to enhance financial stability analyses and assessments at the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ). It reviewed the latest available Financial Stability Report (FSR) and the analytical toolkit. In particular, the mission assisted the BOJ in estimating...

Supported by strong policy frameworks, Jamaica has managed to respond to recent global shocks prudently. Policies have supported the economy while still reducing public debt and inflation. Growth has been solid, the external position has strengthened, and the economic outlook remains a positive...

The Country Opinion Survey in Jamaica assists the World Bank Group (WBG) in better understanding how stakeholders in Jamaica perceive the WBG. It provides the WBG with systematic feedback from national and local governments, multilateral/bilateral agencies, media, academia, the private sector,...

Jamaica's progress in digital transformation is paving the way for a foundational change in how the economy and society operate and create value. This report serves as input to guide Jamaica's digital transformation strategy, in line with the country's aspirations and its Vision 2030 National...

Covering the full population of applicants to the Jamaican Conditional Cash Transfer Program (PATH), we explore whether receiving PATH since childhood altered the academic gains from attending a more preferred public secondary school. To uncover causal associations, we implement a double...

We investigate how the frequent flooding that damaged the internal transport infrastructure in late 19th and early 20th colonial Jamaica affected local economies. To this end the evolution of the road and railways transport system was geo-referenced and combined with geo-localized damaging flood...

This paper investigates the impact of hurricanes on school attendance in Jamaica from 1892 to 1942, a period marked by significant natural disasters, including four category two hurricanes. By integrating monthly school attendance data from the fourteen Jamaican parishes with assessments of...

Over the last decade, Jamaica has successfully reduced public debt, anchored inflation, and strengthened its external position. It has built a strong track record of investing in institutions and prioritizing macroeconomic stability. This allowed Jamaica's response to recent global shocks to be...

The COVID-19 pandemic was a structural break in government policies and operations as unprecedented lockdowns and restrictions in movement heralded a change from the pursuit of macroeconomic stability to saving lives and livelihood. Economic activities were significantly affected. Fiscal rules...

Developing countries face the largest exposure to the negative effects of climate change. However, as temperature and rainfall patterns change, we have a limited understanding of their impact on these countries and the mitigation strategies that may be most appropriate. In this paper, we utilize...

Jamaica is a small island developing state situated in the Caribbean. It is the third largest island in the Caribbean, with an approximate population of 2.8 million and a gross domestic product (GDP) of 14.6 billion dollars. Agriculture and tourism are two of Jamaica's main industries, with the...

Approximately 75% of children aged 2 to 4 worldwide are regularly subjected to violent discipline across the globe. This paper studies the impact of a virtually-delivered intervention on positive parenting practices in Jamaica. Short-term results indicate that the intervention improves caregiver...

After a period of sustained distress in the early 1990s, Jamaican financial institutions faced significant liquidity issues by 1996, evidenced by runs on banks by depositors. The government responded by creating the Financial Sector Adjustment Company (FINSAC) on January 29, 1997, to...

In October 2008, the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and liquidity shortages rocked American and European markets, causing investors to exit liquid Jamaican-dollar assets. The Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) feared a “disorderly depreciation” in the Jamaican-dollar (JMD) exchange rate to the US dollar...

Jamaica's commitment to macroeconomic stability and strong policy frameworks continue to allow the country to navigate the difficult global environment. Strong growth continued over the last fiscal year, and sound macroeconomic policies are focused on prioritizing sustainability, supporting...

This paper presents Jamaica's Technical Assistance report on climate public investment management assessment (C-PIMA). Jamaica's dependence on fossil fuels imports for energy generation calls for a transition to renewables even though Jamaica's contribution to the worldwide greenhouse gases...

This paper highlights Jamaica's Request for an Arrangement under the Precautionary Liquidity Line (PLL) and Request for an Arrangement under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF). Jamaica has been buffeted by a difficult global environment-from coronavirus disease, the war in Ukraine,...

The 2022 Article IV Consultation highlights that Jamaica has been buffeted by a difficult global environment-from coronavirus disease (COVID), the war in Ukraine, and the ongoing tightening of global financial conditions. The authorities provided targeted support to vulnerable households and...

Most studies of total factor productivity (TFP) and long-term production functions use capital stock time series obtained from ad hoc estimates of the rate of depreciation and the initial capital stock. This paper introduces a methodology that allows the simultaneous econometric estimation of...

Ratings for the Early Childhood Development Project are as follows: Outcome was moderately unsatisfactory, Bank performance was moderately unsatisfactory, and Quality of monitoring and evaluation was modest. This assessment offers the following lessons: (1) Collaboration, strong national...

This first Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) for Jamaica comes at a pivotal time. The country is seeking a return to the pre-COVID-19 path of fiscal consolidation amid a slow COVID vaccine roll-out, high inflationary pressures, and persistent structural constraints to growth.1 COVID-19 laid...

This paper looks at a basic illustration of what dynamic replication would look like for writers/sellers of European call and put options on a sample of 20 stocks listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange as well as the Jamaica Stock Exchange Combined Index. The author compared the distributions of...

AbstractAccurate forecasting is critical for an efficient fiscal policy framework since it impacts consumer sentiments, business confidence, domestic and international institutions. Forecasts will be evaluated for accuracy, bias and efficiency, using ME, MAE, RMSE, Theil’s U statistic and the...

Covering the full population of applicants to the Jamaican Conditional Cash Transfer Program (PATH), we explore whether receiving PATH benefits alters the academic returns to subsequently attending a more preferred public secondary school. To uncover causal associations, we exploit exogenous...

Family violence is a critical development challenge in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), carrying high health, social, and economic costs and increasing the risk of perpetuating the cycle of violence across generations. Parenting programs have improved parenting practices in high-income...

This paper summarizes empirical findings from a series of recent papers studying a replication of the Jamaica Reach Up and Learn home visiting program in China, China REACH. It collects more detailed information than is available on the original program. An analysis of it facilitates...

Jamaica was hit hard by the pandemic. An early lockdown in the Spring of 2020 helped contain the number of Covid-19 cases but the impact on the economy was severe, with real GDP shrinking by 10 percent. To counter the social and economic effects of the pandemic, the government temporarily...

This report was commissioned by climate investment funds (CIF's) E and L initiative to distill lessons from CIF's pilot program on climate resilience (PPCR) support identifying, designing, and implementing hydrometeorological and climate services investments. It seeks to generate learning and...

This country report provides a description of the emergence of a health care system under public responsibility in Jamaica. The inception of the health care system refers to the first legislation stipulating entitlements to medical care. The report also includes a brief description of major...