We Keep Counting Remittances While Billions Fly Over Our Heads
What If the Diaspora Is Actually One of Jamaica’s Largest Industries?
For years, Jamaica has measured the value of its diaspora mainly through remittances. Every year we hear the same figure repeated, roughly US$2.4 billion sent home by Jamaicans living overseas.
That number is important.
But the real contribution of the diaspora is much larger than remittances alone.
Because Jamaicans abroad are not only sending money home.
They are flying home.
And every time those planes land in Kingston or Montego Bay, money immediately begins flowing through the Jamaican economy.
Sometimes we discuss the diaspora in abstract terms and miss what is happening right in front of us every single day.
Go to Norman Manley International Airport or Sangster International Airport and simply watch the arrivals board.
Flights from New York.
New Jersey.
Fort Lauderdale.
Miami.
Philadelphia.
Toronto.
Atlanta.
London.
Manchester.
These are not random routes.
These are diaspora corridors.
Those planes are not carrying tourists alone.
They are carrying Jamaicans returning home, children of Jamaicans, spouses of Jamaicans, second- and third-generation families reconnecting with roots, people attending funerals, weddings, family reunions, church events, school graduations, community projects, Carnival, and summer visits.
Not every passenger is Jamaican.
But a very large number are connected to Jamaica through family, culture, obligation, or heritage.
Now let us make this simple for the average Jamaican to understand.
Suppose only 10 direct flights per day arrive in Jamaica from major diaspora cities.
Given the number of daily and weekly flights operating from key diaspora hubs into Kingston and Montego Bay, this is a reasonable illustration.
Now assume each plane carries approximately 150 passengers.
That means:
10 flights × 150 passengers = 1,500 passengers arriving daily.
Over one year:
1,500 × 365 days = 547,500 passenger arrivals.
Now let us be careful and conservative again.
Suppose only half of those passengers are diaspora-related.
That still gives us:
273,750 diaspora-related visits annually from only a small group of routes.
And we have not yet counted additional flights from Toronto, Miami, Atlanta, Orlando, Boston, Chicago, London, Birmingham, Manchester, Charlotte, Washington DC, and seasonal routes.
Suddenly, the estimate of 750,000 to 1.3 million diaspora-related visits annually no longer sounds exaggerated.
It starts making sense.
Now let us examine what happens economically when those visitors arrive.
The average diaspora traveler does not behave like the average tourist staying inside a resort.
Diaspora travelers spread money deep into Jamaican communities.
They buy groceries for family.
They support schools.
They help with funerals.
They contribute to weddings.
They rent vehicles.
They hire taxis.
They purchase food from local cookshops and supermarkets.
They attend parties and entertainment events.
They stay in guest houses, Airbnbs, hotels, or with relatives while still spending heavily in communities.
They repair homes.
They purchase building materials.
They give money to churches.
They support community projects.
So let us conservatively estimate what one diaspora-related trip may generate in economic terms.
Category
Estimated Spending
Airport taxes and fees
US$124
Food and groceries
US$700
Transportation
US$500
Entertainment and events
US$400
Accommodation and housing support
US$800
Family/community support
US$200
Miscellaneous shopping
US$300
Estimated Total Per Trip
US$3024
Now multiply that across the estimated range of diaspora-related visits.
If Jamaica receives 750,000 diaspora-related visits annually:
750,000 × US$3,024 = US$2.27 billion
If the number reaches 1 million visits:
1,000,000 × US$3,024 = US$3.02 billion
If it reaches 1.3 million visits:
1,300,000 × US$3,024 = US$3.93 billion
Pause and think about that carefully.
Diaspora travel activity alone may be generating somewhere between US$2 billion and nearly US$4 billion annually into the Jamaican economy.
And that is before remittances are added.
This changes the entire conversation.
Because the diaspora is not simply “sending money home.”
The diaspora is sustaining airlines, airports, transportation operators, supermarkets, entertainment venues, restaurants, bars, small businesses, Airbnb operators, hotels, construction suppliers, churches, schools, and families across Jamaica.
What Jamaica may actually have is not simply a remittance economy.
It may have a diaspora-powered economic system operating every single day through continuous travel, family connection, and recurring spending.
And perhaps the biggest mistake we have made for years is that we have been counting the wire transfers while failing to properly count the planes.
Thanks for sharing: JTB estimates 600K Visiting Friends & Relatives (VFR), with an average expenditure of $1,400. Even at this #, ($840k US), plus $2.7 billion in remittance. Dem should put more "Respec" on our (JA Diaspora) Names.
Yes, that is why the Minister of Foreign Trade etc. trots out the GDP numbers when it should be a GDP/GNP ratio. The only item not on that list is the collection of income and property taxes if you are from a landowning family. Hence Diaspora conferences as government remittance in lieu of taxes.