$850 Million to Assist SMEs

The country’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are to benefit from grants and loans this fiscal year, which will help to enhance their productivity.

A sum of $850 million has been set aside in the 2016/17 Estimates of Expenditure to facilitate this and other initiatives under the Jamaica Foundations for Competiveness and Growth project, in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation.

The project aims to strengthen the enabling environment for private sector competitiveness to help Jamaica unleash productivity and growth.

This will be done by: enhancing competition in the business environment; facilitating large scale private investment; supporting SME capabilities and finance essential to unleash private sector productivity upgrading and job growth; and financing policy and societal learning through project implementation and monitoring and evaluation.

Other physical targets for the 2016/17 period under the project include: providing support for the further development of Application Management and Data Analysis (AMANDA) system through enhancements and software implementation, and the hiring of a Specialist; engaging an in-market broker for Business Process Outsourcing sector; and preparing an action plan for the development of Downtown Kingston.

It is also expected that a regulatory authority will be established for the new Special Economic Zone (SEZ) regime; support will be provided to the Office of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel; a feasibility study of the proposed Caymanas Economic Zone will commence; support to the Attorney General’s Chambers for key commercial transactions will continue to be provided ; and the draft Logistics Hub Initiative Master Plan will be prepared.

Physical achievements up to February 2016 under the project, include: Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Act drafted, tabled and passed in both Houses of Parliament; three firms awarded contracts to supply AMANDA software and hardware for the Parish Councils and other referral agencies; and a Competition Policy Expert engaged to support the Fair Trading Commission (FTC) staff in implementing a new advocacy programme.

Additionally, the procurement of a consultancy firm to carry out a feasibility study of the proposed 80 hectares (200 acres) Caymanas SEZ was started; the Jamaica Ship Registry feasibility study was completed in January 2016; a firm was contracted in November 2015 to develop Business Plan for Creative Industries; a total of $712.7 million was disbursed to the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ) for on-lending to SMEs via Approved Financial Institutions (AFIs) – $223.1 million approved for disbursement and $49.3 million disbursed to SMEs.

Through funding by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the project is being implemented by the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries;  Jamaica Promotions Corporation, and the Development Bank of Jamaica.

The project, which began in September 2014, is scheduled to end in June 2020.