Protected Areas and Rural Enterprise (PARE) Jamaica

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through an Interagency Agreement with the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) – International Programs Office is implementing the Protected Areas and Rural Enterprise project in cooperation with Government of Jamaica agencies. The goal of the project is to strengthen the linkage between effective natural resource management practices and livelihoods in and around conservation sites through the demonstration of improved production techniques and management strategies, institutional strengthening and capacity building.

The USAID/PARE activities are expected to help improve efficiency, productivity, and income of natural resource based enterprises and resource management agencies, while helping to mitigate negative impacts of certain land use practices on biological diversity. The project will ultimately build long term capacity and skills in select rural communities, thus demonstrating that opportunities for Jamaica’s sustainable rural development can be found right in the communities seeking improved livelihoods.

Currently the project is working through three main components. The first focuses on recreation and sustainable tourism planning and implementation, the second addresses the threats and economic costs of wildfire and other natural disasters on the rural economy and biodiversity and the third focuses on the development and management of targeted agricultural sectors and enterprises that use sustainable, renewable and non-timber forest products.

The USAID implementing partner in this project, the US Forest Service, works closely with local partners and provides direct technical assistance, grants administration, logistics coordination and other financial and in-kind assistance. Managing close to 77 million hectares in the U.S., the USFS draws on its wide range of expertise in fields such as fire and disaster preparedness and mitigation, watershed conservation, sustainable forest management, recreation and tourism and conservation of biological diversity to support the project.

All Rural Development activities