Jamaicans living overseas sent US$3.12 billion to the country during the 2025/26 fiscal year. The total places remittances at the centre of a wider discussion about how overseas communities can contribute to recovery, investment and public services.
Alando Terrelonge, the minister of state responsible for diaspora affairs, said the figure included a marked increase after Hurricane Melissa. He said US$93 million more was remitted in the three months immediately following the hurricane than in the corresponding three-month period a year earlier. The comparison describes a change in inflows, rather than identifying how individual households used the money or proving a direct effect on recovery.
A large annual total and a monthly peak
Mr Terrelonge said December 2025 produced a monthly remittance high of US$296 million. That single-month figure sits within the US$3.12 billion reported for the full 2025/26 fiscal year, so it should not be read as a separate addition to the annual total.
Remittances are money sent across borders, often by people supporting relatives or meeting expenses in their country of origin. The latest figures were presented as evidence of the diaspora’s continuing role in Jamaica’s economic life, particularly at a time when households and communities have been managing the effects of severe weather.
The figures were announced at the opening of the second Jamaica Diaspora Northeast USA Conference, held at Temple University in Philadelphia on 23 and 24 October. More than 300 delegates attended the opening session, bringing together people from government, business, education, healthcare and community organisations. The gathering was framed around strengthening links between Jamaicans overseas and development priorities at home.
Beyond money transfers
Mr Terrelonge said the government wanted the relationship with overseas Jamaicans to move beyond individual acts of support towards longer-lasting programmes, partnerships and measurable national outcomes. He pointed to professional expertise, volunteering, cultural advocacy and community engagement alongside financial transfers.
One example raised at the conference was the Adopt-a-Clinic programme. As of October 2025, 37 of the 59 clinics involved had received diaspora support, with commitments of more than J$100 million towards improving access to primary healthcare in communities across Jamaica. The number refers to commitments described at the event and does not mean that every clinic had received the same level of support or that all funds had already been spent.
Mr Terrelonge also highlighted Farm Up Jamaica, a New York-based non-governmental organisation whose agricultural work is intended to support local production, reduce food imports and expand exports through organic cultivation. Other forms of engagement discussed included professional development activity in education, public health, science and technology, as well as support for school and healthcare infrastructure.
Plans for a broader partnership
The conference discussion extended beyond recognising past contributions. Mr Terrelonge said the government was exploring ways to reduce institutional barriers affecting trade, business, investment and philanthropy. He also identified possible roles for diaspora members in advisory boards, knowledge-transfer programmes and policy committees.
Those ideas remain areas for development rather than newly introduced schemes. No new remittance policy, investment programme or spending commitment was announced alongside the annual figure. The immediate significance of the update is the scale of money reported for 2025/26 and the higher inflows cited after Hurricane Melissa.
The Philadelphia conference also illustrated the practical geography of Jamaica’s diaspora links. It brought together people based in the north-eastern United States with Jamaican officials and community representatives, while placing discussion of remittances alongside health, agriculture, skills and investment. For families who send money home, the annual total is made up of many individual decisions. For policymakers, the question raised at the conference is how to connect that support with durable opportunities without treating private family transfers as a substitute for public services or long-term investment.
