When news broke that international financial institutions had assembled up to US$6.1 billion to help Jamaica recover from Hurricane Melissa, it was correctly framed as a demonstration of global commitment. But the magnitude reveals something deeper... Jamaica’s GDP before the storm was about US$19.9 billion. This means the recovery package represents:
- More than 30% of the country’s total GDP, or
- 10% of GDP per year when spread across three years
This is not aid...
