Presbyterian Church in Ireland - Mission Overseas - Country

• About Us
• Contact Us
• Resources
• FAQs
• Useful Links

• Home
• Countries
• People
• Partners
• Get Involved
• Opportunities
• Projects
• News
• Blogs

Jamaica

JAMAICA is an Island Nation in the Caribbean Sea. It is well known for its reggae music and beautiful scenery, but is also plagued by widespread poverty and crime.

Historical Background

Jamaica was originally called “Xaymaca” by the Arawakan-speaking Taino Indians from South America who settled on it between 4000 and 1000 BC.

Christopher Columbus discovered the island in 1494 and the Spanish settlement began in the early 16th Century.

England colonised the island in 1655 and established a plantation economy based on sugar, cocoa and coffee, making use of imported African slave labour and then, following abolition in 1834, Indian and Chinese servants. After emancipation, many of the quarter of a million freed slaves became small farmers.

Jamaica’s economy prospered for the first 10 years of independence but started to lag following a change of government. During this slump, violent rival gangs connected to the main political parties developed into organised crime networks; and ever since violence, international drug smuggling and money laundering have impoverished parts of Jamaica. Jamaica has one of the highest murder rates in the world (1,300 in 2006). Densely populated and impoverished ghetto areas contrast with the luxury tourist resorts.

Portia Simpson Miller, the first woman Prime Minister, has held office since March 2006, and has promised to improve human rights and address gun crime.

Geography

Jamaica is located south of Cuba, and on the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal. It is the third largest island in the Caribbean Sea with an area of 4,243 square miles, and the most populous English speaking island. A narrow coastal plain surrounds the Blue Mountains of the interior. Natural resources include bauxite, gypsum and limestone. 15.8% of the land is arable.

Jamaica’s tropical location results in a hot, humid climate, though the interior is more temperate. The hurricane season, between July and November, can bring chaos and destruction to the Caribbean.

Society and Culture

Jamaica’s motto “Out of many, one people” describes the mixture of races and nationalities, who have come to the island over the centuries.  Due to intermarriage, there is a great diversity of skin tones and facial shapes.  The most dominant group is Africans who were shipped in as slaves to work on the sugar cane fields from 1517 to around 1830.  Around 95% of the people today are African or have African blood.  Other groups include the Arawak Indians (the original inhabitants), the Spanish Invaders who first ‘discovered’ Jamaica, the English colonists who arrived in 1655, Indian labourers brought in to replace African slaves and Chinese workers, most of whom soon became traders and shopkeepers. 

English is the official languages and Jamaicans speak it with a musical lilt.  There is very distinctive dialect which originated in slavery, and it now almost universally spoken.  The vocabulary is mostly English, but the pronunciation, grammar and rhythms are Africa. 

Jamaicans eat a wide variety of fruits and salad vegetables all grown on the island.  The national fruit is ackkee.  Saltfish is the national dish and spicy jerk pork is also a favourite.  Locally grown spices and peppers are widely used in cooking. 

Many people who go to Jamaica only see the luxourious tourist resorts, however Jamaica has one of the highest murder rates in the world.  Violent crime, drug trafficking and poverty are widespread, especially in the large ghettos in the cities. 

The population growth rate is low, due to continuing emigration to countries, such as USA, Canada and UK. 

Jamaica is famous for it laid-back lifestyle, beautiful beaches and reggae music. 

Economy

During the colonial period, Jamaica’s economy was based on sugar and later banana production.  However, wealth remained largely in the hands of the large land owners, as slaves and later low paid workers were shipped in to work on the plantations.  Bauxite, the red earth used to manufacture aluminum developed as a major industry during World War II and after the war tourism began to develop.  These two industries remain very important today.  In the 1970s influx from the country to the cities, caused a major housing shortage, inflation increased dramatically, as did unemployment and the ghettos developed in the cities.  Economic growth over the last few decades has been hindered by high levels of crime, devastating hurricanes, decline in world demand for aluminum, high unemployment and huge public debt. 

Agriculture along with forestry and fishing, employs around 21% of the working population, though only 7% of the country’s GDP.  Agricultural products include sugarcane (grown throughout the country), followed by bananas, coffee, citrus fruits, potatoes and vegetables.  Major industries include bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper and chemical products.  The services sector, including tourism, accounts for over 60% of the country’s GDP, with tourism providing a quarter of all jobs in Jamaica. 

Around 20% of the population lives below the poverty line and due to high levels of public debt the government has been unable to invest in social programs and infrastructure. 

Christianity in Jamaica

As black slaves, African-Jamaicans were barred from the churches of their colonial masters. In the 1780s George Lisle and Moses Baker, two former American slaves began to preach the Gospel in Jamaica. The Jewish rescue from oppression and slavery resonated strongly in the experience of the African-Jamaicans. The response was such that by the 1820s more missionaries were sent from England to help. By the end of slavery, half the population had been Christianized.

Today, Jamaica has more churches per mile than any other country. Anglican, Baptist and Church of God are the main denominations. There are also American style fundamentalist churches, and Revivalist sects that combine Christian beliefs with African Spiritist traditions. The Rastafarian religious movement originated in Jamaica in the 1930s, and includes elements of Protestant Christianity, mysticism, and African political consciousness. It was an attractive alternative to those who felt Christianity was the religion of white people.

PCI partners the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands (UCJCI), a union of the Presbyterian, Congregational, and Disciples of Christ denominations.

UCJCI has around 200 congregations and is involved in social outreach and education. UCJCI’s Mount Olivet Boys’ Home and Pringle Home for Girls,provide care for neglected and traumatised children; and the Institute for Theological and Leadership Development (ITLD) provides distance learning courses for laity and clergy.

Designed by hamillBosket