On November 12, 2024, the Jamaican Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment, and Sport rolled out the Jamaica Entertainers and Creatives Insurance Plan (JECIP), offering life and health insurance coverage for over 4,400 members of the Entertainment Registry. The program, a one-time benefit funded by a 55 million Jamaican dollar allocation from the government, is a response to the financial hardship faced by many creative workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. While the scheme marks a significant step toward supporting the creative sector, it also underscores a long-standing issue that continues to impede the full development of Jamaica’s cultural economy: the lack of a comprehensive, sustainable policy framework.
JECIP, in its essence, is a much-needed lifeline, offering immediate relief to a community that has long faced financial instability. Many artists, performers, technicians, and other creatives found themselves without income when the entertainment sector came to a halt during the pandemic. The government’s decision to invest in this insurance plan signals recognition of the sector’s vulnerability and the urgent need for institutional support. However, as important as this initiative is, it represents only a temporary solution to a much deeper, systemic problem—the absence of a clear, long-term policy for the creative industries in Jamaica.
The launch of JECIP, though commendable, illustrates the gap between short-term action and long-term strategic planning in Jamaica’s cultural policy. The scheme addresses an immediate need but fails to offer a vision for how the creative economy can grow and thrive in the future. While the insurance coverage is a positive move, it does not tackle the broader issues of financial precarity, access to resources, or industry recognition that plague the creative sector. In many ways, JECIP serves as a band-aid rather than a cure.
The real challenge lies in the absence of a coherent policy framework that links together various creative industries—music, film, theatre, fashion, and emerging fields like digital media and social media management. Without a clear set of guidelines or strategic direction, initiatives like JECIP risk being ineffective or fragmented, serving only a small subset of the sector without addressing the full breadth of its diversity and potential. To ensure that the creative economy flourishes, Jamaica needs a unified, forward-thinking policy that encompasses the entire ecosystem—from financing to education to digital infrastructure.
Part of the problem is the lack of clarity in how creative professionals are classified and supported by government entities. At the launch of JECIP, many attendees raised questions about whether they qualified for the program, highlighting the confusion surrounding the sector’s structure. The entertainment, culture, and creative industries (ECCI) sector is not clearly defined, and the various government agencies involved in regulating it operate with different parameters and guidelines. As a result, many creatives are left wondering where they fit into the puzzle, which undermines their ability to access government programs like JECIP.
Jamaica’s creative sector is rapidly evolving, but it is being held back by outdated frameworks that fail to account for new forms of artistic expression. The explosion of digital media, for instance, has created a whole new generation of creatives working outside traditional industries. Yet, many of these new fields—such as independent media, digital content creation, and even pyrotechnics—lack formal recognition or professional associations. Without a more flexible approach to how creative workers are recognized, many of these emerging sectors will continue to be excluded from vital support structures.
Moreover, the policy surrounding JECIP requires individuals to be members of a professional association in order to qualify. This stipulation excludes many new and independent creatives who have not yet formalized their professional status or do not belong to an existing industry body. While this requirement is understandable from a regulatory standpoint, it limits access to benefits and fails to address the needs of those working in uncharted creative spaces.
Beyond this, there is a deeper issue: the lack of a sustainable funding model. JECIP relies heavily on government funding, but it remains unclear how the plan will continue to operate in the long term. With the creative sector being as dynamic and unpredictable as it is, an insurance plan like JECIP needs to be adaptable and self-sustaining. The government could consider introducing a voluntary contribution model, where creatives can match or supplement the government’s contribution to their insurance plan. This would provide more comprehensive coverage and reduce the program’s reliance on public funding.
What is needed is a holistic approach that integrates the financial needs of the creative sector with the realities of today’s market. This involves working closely with financial institutions to develop products and services that specifically address the challenges of creative workers. This could include tailored loans, grants, and investment opportunities that align with the unique cash flow cycles and risk profiles of the cultural economy.
Additionally, the launch of JECIP highlights the growing need for a unified policy that not only addresses immediate financial concerns but also fosters the long-term growth of the sector. The current fragmented approach to cultural policy, with efforts scattered across multiple agencies and ministries, undermines the sector’s potential. Jamaica needs a clear national policy for the creative economy that goes beyond one-off initiatives and focuses on sustainable growth, development, and wealth creation.
The government’s delay in implementing a comprehensive cultural policy—despite multiple efforts since 2015—has left the sector in limbo. Although the framework for a creative economy policy was introduced nearly a decade ago, it has yet to be fully realized. While there is talk of omnibus legislation and further consultation, there is little clarity on the direction these efforts will take. For JECIP and other initiatives to have real impact, they need to be embedded in a broader, more strategic cultural policy that recognizes the creative economy as a vital pillar of national development.
In conclusion, while JECIP is a welcome start, it is only a small piece of a much larger puzzle. For Jamaica’s creative industries to thrive, the government must adopt a more integrated, sustainable approach to policy-making. This means creating a clear and inclusive framework that provides not only financial support but also the infrastructure, recognition, and investment needed for the sector to grow. Only then can initiatives like JECIP truly empower Jamaica’s creative practitioners and ensure the long-term success of the cultural economy.
Dr. Deborah Hickling Gordon is an expert in cultural policy and a member of the UNESCO Expert Facility on the Diversity of Cultural Expression.
