IDB Group prepares roll-out of BIGEE Phase 2

Jamaican businesses are set to benefit from a new wave of grants, loans and business development opportunities from the Inter-American Development Bank’s (IDB) Boosting Innovation, Growth, and Entrepreneurship Ecosystems (BIGEE) Programme.

IDB Country Representative — Jamaica Natacha Marzolf revealed plans to roll out the second phase of BIGEE during her speech at the SBAJ Growth and Resilience Conference at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston on July 16.

“So, looking ahead and building on the success of BIGEE 1, and recognising the impact of Hurricane Melissa, the IDB Group is now preparing BIGEE 2 — the next phase of our partnership with Jamaica to strengthen productivity, innovation, and competitiveness,” she told conference attendees.

She continued, “BIGEE 2 is going to move further upstream by helping firms create, adopt, and commercialise innovation through technology upgrading while placing a much stronger emphasis on climate resilience, recognising that climate-related shocks can quickly erode productivity gains in small island economies such as Jamaica.”

Like its predecessor, BIGEE 2 will offer Jamaican businesses a mix of grants, risk-sharing mechanisms, contingent line of credit, technical assistance, and innovation financing to help businesses invest in research and development, new technologies, and climate resilience tools.

The IDB launched the BIGEE programme in 2020 with co-financing support from the European Union in the form of a US$8.2-million grant funding to focus on gender inclusion and climate resilience. The Development Bank of Jamaica has been the executing partner of the initiative.

Creating an ecosystems for MSMEs

Over the tenure of the programme, over supported over 1,500 businesses and nearly 60 ecosystem institutions in Jamaica have received support through more than 15 innovation instruments that have been deployed.

“To expand the outreach of BIGEE 1, we also partnered with the Ministry of Industry, Investment, and Commerce to support nine MSME (micro, small and medium-sized enterprises) roadshows from Manchester to Westmoreland and right here in Kingston. These events have connected entrepreneurs with practical business advice, financing opportunities, government services, and the wide range of programs available to help them start secure seed financing and grow their businesses,” Marzolf shared.

“These roadshows reflect an important principle that guides us in our work: Supporting MSMEs is not only about designing tools and good programmes. It is about making sure those programmes are accessible to businesses in every parish of Jamaica,” she said.

The IDB representative asserted that beyond creating programmes to support MSMEs, there is need for It requires an ecosystem of institutions, financing knowledge, partnership, and people working across sectors and industries.  

“This is why the three windows of the IDB Group provides the complementary strengths, with IDB working with the public sector and the government, IDB Invest working with the private sector, and IDB Lab that works with entrepreneurs and small companies,” Marzolf explained.

“Together, these efforts are strengthening the institutional, financial, and innovation ecosystem Jamaica needs to unlock private sector productivity, accelerate MSMEs' growth, and build a more competitive and resilient economy,” she stated further.

BIGEE 2: A response to Hurricane Melissa

Moreover, Marzolf framed the launch of BIGEE phase 2 in the context of Hurricane Melissa’s impact on MSMEs.

“The urgency of this agenda has become even more compelling following the devastating impact of Hurricane Melissa. The final figures of damages and losses amount to US $12.2 billion, with the private sector accounting for 80 percent of such damages, and the productive sectors bearing more than 60 per cent…of total losses, including MSMEs,” she outlined.

“But disasters do not simply damage buildings and infrastructure. They disrupt production, interrupt supply chains, they reduce market access, they erode productivity, and most importantly, they profoundly affect livelihoods in vulnerable communities across the island. Our research at the Inter-American Development Bank shows that businesses exposed to natural disasters experience measurable declines in productivity, particularly those who have not invested in resilience before disaster strikes,” Marzolf added.

With this in mind, the IDB representative emphasised the regional bank’s commitment to supporting businesses to become stronger, more resilient, and better prepared through investments in innovation, technology adaptation, artificial intelligence, digital transformation, and stronger managerial, operational, and financial capabilities.

Marzolf is hopeful that IDB Group’s partnership with Jamaica continues to add real value while helping transform recovery into resilience and resilience into lasting competitiveness. Achieving this, she said, will require collaboration, partnership with the government, the private sector, financial institutions, business support organisations, academia, and development partners.

- JS