Jamaica Diaspora

The definitive quarterly intelligence report on Jamaica’s global diaspora for April–June 2024: the 10th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference draws 1,193 delegates and launches the JA-DEM, the Diaspora Registration Portal and the Jamaica Diaspora Mentorship Academy, Q2 remittances grow 3.8 per cent, and — as this report goes to press — Category 5 Hurricane Beryl approaches Jamaica on a track for landfall within 24 hours.

As Toronto’s Little Jamaica fights to survive gentrification caused by a decade of transit construction, an independent report on Jamaica exposes gaps in Britain’s Windrush outreach, and the post-coronation debate over Jamaica’s republican future gathers momentum.

The quarterly intelligence report on Jamaica’s global diaspora for October–December 2023: full-year 2023 remittances declined 2.0 per cent to approximately US$3.37 billion, Q4 GDP grew a solid 1.9 per cent, 655 Jamaican nationals were returned from the United States during the year, the National Diaspora Policy enters implementation, and Jamaica prepares for a general election.

The Jamaica Diaspora Annual Roundup for 2023: the generative AI revolution reshapes economies and workforces across diaspora host countries; the Israel-Gaza war erupts in October and tests international solidarity frameworks; Jamaica’s economy delivers its strongest growth in years; the reparations campaign continues to gain momentum; and remittances remain above US$3.3 billion as cost-of-living pressures ease.

The quarterly intelligence report on Jamaica’s global diaspora for July–September 2023: remittances continue their post-pandemic normalisation below the 2022 pace, Q2 2023 GDP grew 2.3 per cent, an above-average Atlantic hurricane season passes Jamaica without a direct strike, the National Diaspora Policy drives deepening engagement, and Jamaica’s diplomatic missions manage elevated consular demand.

The quarterly intelligence report on Jamaica’s global diaspora for April–June 2023: remittances opened the year strongly with approximately US$500 million in January–February, the National Diaspora Policy drives a deepening institutional agenda, the 9th Biennial Conference commitments are in active follow-through, the UK cost-of-living crisis continues to suppress British-Jamaican remittance growth, and voluntary returnee flows from the UK remain the dominant stream of voluntary migration to the island.

The quarterly intelligence briefing on Jamaica’s global diaspora for January–March 2023: remittances sustained their broad scale with approximately US$250 million in January alone, the landmark National Diaspora Policy begins operational implementation, outcomes from the 9th Biennial Conference guide inter-ministerial working group activity, the UK cost-of-living crisis exerts continuing pressure on British-Jamaican senders, and voluntary returnee processing through PICA maintains steady throughput.

The death of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022 sent complex waves through the Jamaican diaspora and across the island itself — accelerating the republic movement, prompting fierce debate about the meaning of grief, and marking the end of an era that connected the Caribbean to the Crown through memory, loyalty and loss.

The quarterly intelligence report on Jamaica’s global diaspora for October–December 2022: Jamaica adopts its landmark National Diaspora Policy in November, full-year 2022 remittances reach approximately US$3.44 billion in the first decline since the pandemic-era peak, GDP growth of 5.2 per cent confirms a strong economic year, the UK cost-of-living crisis intensifies through the Christmas quarter, and the FIFA World Cup Qatar brings the diaspora together for football in the absence of the Reggae Boyz.

The Jamaica Diaspora Annual Roundup for 2022: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February triggers the largest European conflict since World War Two and a global cost-of-living crisis; Queen Elizabeth II dies on 8 September aged 96; the UK passes through three prime ministers in one year; the Caribbean reparations campaign intensifies; and Jamaica remittances hold above US$3.2 billion despite inflation pressures on diaspora households.

The quarterly intelligence report on Jamaica’s global diaspora for July–September 2022: the 9th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference outcomes drive a sustained post-conference implementation agenda, Hurricane Fiona strikes Puerto Rico and the eastern Caribbean while Jamaica is spared, global inflation pressures continue to squeeze diaspora household budgets, Jamaica’s economy maintains strong post-pandemic growth, and the National Diaspora Policy approaches final consultation before adoption.

The quarterly intelligence report on Jamaica’s global diaspora for April–June 2022: the landmark 9th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference returns to in-person format in Montego Bay on 18–21 June, the Russia-Ukraine war’s food and fuel price shock squeezes diaspora household budgets, Jamaica’s post-pandemic economic recovery gathers pace, remittances remain at historically elevated levels while beginning a gentle normalisation from the 2021 peak, and voluntary returnee processing continues through PICA.

In March 2022, Prince William arrived in Jamaica to protests and a prime minister who told him Britain was being left behind. Three months later, a bronze family stood in Sunday best atop a pile of suitcases at Waterloo Station — the National Windrush Monument, unveiled by the same prince.

The quarterly intelligence briefing on Jamaica’s global diaspora for January–March 2022: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February reshapes global commodity and energy markets with immediate implications for diaspora household budgets, the Omicron COVID wave subsides and international travel restrictions begin to ease, 2021 full-year remittances confirm a record US$3.49 billion, preparations intensify for the 9th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference in June 2022, and Jamaica’s economy continues its robust post-pandemic recovery.

When Barbados became the Caribbean’s newest republic in November 2021, it electrified a conversation about Jamaica’s own constitutional future from Kingston to Brooklyn. In the same month, a damning parliamentary report found that only five per cent of Windrush scandal victims in Britain had received compensation.