ADAPT Jamaica: Enhancing climate change resilience of vulnerable smallholders in Central Jamaica Jamaica

The ADAPT Jamaica project seeks USD 40.55 million from the Green Climate Fund to support smallholder farmers in Trelawny, Saint Ann, Saint Elizabeth, Clarendon, Saint Catherine, and Manchester. The project addresses vulnerabilities exacerbated by Hurricanes Beryl (2024) and Melissa (2025) by establishing model farms as learning centers, scaling up CRA and FLW reduction technologies, modernizing the agrometeorological network, and creating a dedicated credit line through the Development Bank of Jamaica. It targets 736,090 total beneficiaries, with a strong focus on women and youth, to shift the agricultural sector toward a high-climate resilience equilibrium.

• Jamaica's agricultural sector is highly vulnerable to climate extremes, with recent disasters causing massive losses: Hurricane Beryl (July 2024) caused agricultural losses estimated at over JMD 4.7 billion (USD 30 million), and Hurricane Melissa (October 2025) caused damages estimated at US $6-7 billion, representing 28-32% of GDP.
• Smallholder farmers are disproportionately exposed to climate risks because the vast majority rely on rain-fed agriculture and often occupy less suitable arable land on hillsides, making them susceptible to landslides and soil erosion.
• The project targets six central parishes—Trelawny, Saint Ann, Saint Elizabeth, Clarendon, Saint Catherine, and Manchester—which account for approximately 70% of Jamaica's domestic food production.
• The project will establish a network of 65 model farms (45 individual and 20 clusters) to serve as Farmer Field Schools (FFS), demonstrating CRA and FLW reduction interventions, including hurricane-resistant greenhouses designed to withstand Category 4-5 storms.
• To address food security and income loss, the project will provide USD 3 million in livelihood recovery assistance via cash transfers: USD 1 million through cash-for-work for vulnerable individuals and USD 2 million through conditional cash transfers for women-led households.
• The project will modernize Jamaica's agrometeorological network by installing 9 new Automatic Weather Stations (AWS) and 35 rainfall data loggers, replacing equipment damaged by Hurricanes Beryl and Melissa.
• A dedicated credit line of USD 1 million will be established through the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ) to facilitate lending for CRA and FLW reduction solutions, supported by a new resilience finance taxonomy.
• The project expects to reach a total of 736,090 beneficiaries (334,421 women), comprising 315,226 direct and 420,864 indirect beneficiaries.
• The project aims to bring approximately 26,166 hectares of farmland under improved low-emission and/or climate-resilient management practices.
• Total financing for the project is USD 49,999,381, with USD 40,554,313 requested as a grant from the GCF and USD 9,445,068 in co-financing from JSIF, MOAFM, DBJ, and FAO.

APA

Green Climate Fund (2026). ADAPT Jamaica: Enhancing climate change resilience of vulnerable smallholders in Central Jamaica Jamaica. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp299.pdf

Chicago

Green Climate Fund. ADAPT Jamaica: Enhancing climate change resilience of vulnerable smallholders in Central Jamaica Jamaica. 2026. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp299.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Green Climate Fund |title=ADAPT Jamaica: Enhancing climate change resilience of vulnerable smallholders in Central Jamaica Jamaica |date=17 April 2026 |url=https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp299.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{greenclimatefund2026adapt, author = {{Green Climate Fund}}, title = {{ADAPT Jamaica: Enhancing climate change resilience of vulnerable smallholders in Central Jamaica Jamaica}}, institution = {Green Climate Fund}, year = {2026}, month = apr, url = {https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp299.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }