Finance Minister Commends Diaspora for Post-Hurricane Melissa Remittance Support

Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Fayval Williams, has commended members of the Jamaican Diaspora for their support through remittances, particularly in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa in October 2025.

Speaking during Wednesday’s (September 16) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House, Mrs. Williams noted that, consequent on the Diaspora’s response, remittance inflows for fiscal year 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026) totalled US$3.12 billion.

“In the three months after the hurricane, Jamaicans abroad sent home US$93 million more than they sent in the same three months a year earlier,” she informed.

The Minister pointed out that in November 2025, remittance inflows from the diaspora rose by 16 per cent to US$273 million.

Additionally, she said December recorded inflows of US$296 million, up 15.3 per cent, representing the largest single month of remittances on record at the Bank of Jamaica.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Williams advised that the economy is recovering faster than expected from the impacts of Hurricane Melissa.

She explained that the economy contracted by 7.1 per cent in the quarter (October-December 2025) during which Hurricane Melissa made landfall.

The Minister noted that the economy subsequently declined by 4.1 per cent in the following quarter (January-March 2026) and by 2.9 per cent in the quarter thereafter (April-June 2025).

Mrs. Williams, however, noted that the -2.9 per cent figure is not yet settled by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN), whose final out-turn is expected by the end of September.

She pointed out that the progressively smaller contractions indicated that economic conditions were improving and underscored that the trend did not signal a recession.

“The Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) already debunked that notion. The shrinking year-on-year numbers are themselves proof that the economy is recovering. An economy in decline produces deepening figures, not improving ones,” she added.

The Finance Minister noted that, in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa, the PIOJ projected that economic output would not recover to pre-storm levels until the final quarter of 2028, roughly three years later.

“The PIOJ now expects that we will begin to see growth in the second quarter of 2027, six quarters earlier, a year and a half earlier. The Planning Institute of Jamaica has been able to revise their forecast because the out-turn keeps getting better,” she said.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Williams also pointed out that, following the hurricane, the fiscal deficit was projected at -3.8 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).

“It came in at -2.5 per cent, better by 1.3 percentage points. The primary surplus, which was projected to be 1.3 per cent, came in at 2.3 per cent, a full percentage point better for fiscal year 2025/26. We had [also] projected in the aftermath of Melissa that our debt to GDP ratio would rise to 68.9 per cent. It came in at 65.6 per cent… 3.3 percentage points lower,” she indicated.
Mrs. Williams also reported that tax revenues for the first four months of the fiscal year (April to July) amounted to $329 billion, up $42.4 billion, relative to the corresponding period last year.

“Capital spending, if you compare it to last year as well, that’s up… that’s reconstruction. The wage bill came in on budget, and the primary surplus is $22.4 billion against a target of $32.1 billion. So, I’m giving you these numbers and providing a context to let you know that the recovery is on,” the Minister stated.

While acknowledging that “not everybody is feeling it just yet”, Mrs. Williams maintained that “based on the numbers that we’re seeing, based on what was projected in the aftermath of Melissa, and relative to what’s happening now, the recovery is on the way”.

“I want to say that numbers matter. [These out-turns are] not one-off… it’s because we had stronger nominal GDP. The economy itself is bigger than we assumed, and that is the kind of improvement that will persist,” she declared.