1. Climate Smart Products For Agriculture
(The Jamaican context)
Glenroy Brown
Meteorologist / Climate Technical Officer
Jamaica Meteorological Service
g.brown@metservice.gov.jm
TEL: 1876-929-3700

2. Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector
WHY would the Met
Service want to
develop climate
service for the
agriculture sector?

3. The Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change (IPCC) considers
small islands, like Jamaica, to be
some of the most vulnerable to
climate change.
Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector

4. This is because climate change
will have disproportionately
greater impacts on our societies,
economies and ecosystems in
ways that will increase our
vulnerability.
Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector

5. Agriculture in Jamaica is
particularly vulnerable to the
impulses of climate variability and
change, given its open field nature,
high number of small holdings and
high dependence on rainfall.
Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector

6. In recognition of this, a Working
Group on Climate Services for
Agriculture in Jamaica was
formed in May 2013.
Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector

7. The group is co-chaired by the
Meteorological Services and RADA and
comprises of other members from the
Ministry of Agriculture, Caribbean
Agricultural Research and Development
Institute (CARDI), ACDI VOCA, as well as
International Research Institute for
Climate and Society (IRI).
Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector

8. The group has three clearly defined goals:
I. Identify priority areas of need for climate services in
the agriculture sector;
II. Develop tools and services to address the needs
identified
III.Provide interactive training for key stakeholders in the
sector including, feedback mechanisms to assess
performance
Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector

9. 1. We Built awareness of available weather products which
include:
 Farmers bulletin disseminated to extension officers monthly
 Web portals that allow persons to get 5-day weather forecast for
specific communities across the island
 Text messages indicating severe weather conditions (drought or flash
flood alerts)
 Training of extension officers (RADA, Banana Board, Coffee Industry
Board and researchers from Bodles), as well as post training review
Specific successes of the project to
date:

10. 2. Conducted assessment of the usefulness of monthly farmers’
bulletin through:
o Focus group discussions held with farmers and extension staff
o Stakeholder consultation (RADA, JMS, Commodity Boards, FAO,
Bodles Research Unit and CARDI)
o ACDI/VOCA in collaboration with RADA and JMS are conducting a
series of farmers’ forum to prepare them for possible severe
weather systems that could occur in the current and near future.
Specific successes of the project to
date:

11. 3. Development of our drought and precipitation monitoring and forecast tools
 A forecast for rainfall for three months in advance.
 A forecast for possible drought conditions on a station basis three and six
months in advance.
Specific successes of the project to
date:

12. • Seasonal Rainfall and Temperature Outlook
(Climate Predictability Tool)
Station
Jamaica
Below (B) % Normal (N) % Above (A) %
Rainfall
35 31 34
Temperature
10 25 65
Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector

13. Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector
Seasonal Drought Forecast (SPI)

14. Developing Climate Service in Jamaica
for the Agriculture sector
Real time Weather Forecast

15. Take Away Message
CLIMATE SERVICES

16. Thank You!
Glenroy Brown
Meteorologist / Climate Smart Technician
Jamaica Meteorological Service
g.brown@metservice.gov.jm