Brown questions disconnect between Jamaica’s climate ambitions and project delivery

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Despite $13.4 billion being allocated to five priority climate-change projects, only one has been completed, prompting questions about delays in work intended to strengthen Jamaica’s resilience to climate threats.

Member of Parliament for St Mary South Eastern Christopher Brown questioned the slow progress at Tuesday’s sitting of the Public Accounts Committee, while Permanent Secretary Wayne Robertson pointed to staffing shortages, the effects of COVID-19 and procurement requirements as reasons for the delay.

Brown said the repeated delays identified in the Auditor General’s report raised concerns about whether Jamaica was moving quickly enough to prepare for the effects of climate change, particularly at a time when the country was dealing with the impact of major hurricanes.