Going for Growth
The Government of Jamaica is rightly emphasizing growth as the way to underpin the success of its fiscal consolidation efforts, and more importantly, to reduce poverty and promote development. Central Government and the Public Bodies are to spend J$112 billion (about 8% of GDP) on infrastructure and civil works in 2013/14. This would be a boost to GDP of at least 1% (approximation from the Growth Inducement Strategy) if implemented according to plan, as one of the challenges faced usually is that the pace of the spending does not lend itself to maximizing economic activity. In addition, the GOJ has announced several other initiatives which are evaluated below.