On August 14, Special Representative for Global Partnerships Dorothy McAuliffe, U.S. Ambassador to Jamaica N. Nick Perry, and the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship, Caribbean signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) launching a Coalition for Climate Entrepreneurship (CCE) Hub in Kingston, Jamaica. The hub will provide programming, training, and mentorship, and facilitate access to capital for more than 130 climate entrepreneurs from at least 15 countries throughout the Caribbean.
Co-signatories and partners, Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship, the Department of State's Office of Global Partnerships, and U.S. Embassy Kingston will support climate entrepreneurs through capital, capacity building, technical assistance, access to mentorships, and network building in early and growth stages. Initial funding to establish CCE Hub Jamaica comes from a Department of State grant of US $250,000 from the Coalition for Climate Entrepreneurship Fund. This seed money will be matched by private sector partners to bring the total program value to more than US $400,000.
CCE Hub Jamaica is the 9th such hub around the world. CCE Hubs provide a dedicated innovation space for founders and startups working on emerging sustainable solutions for clean energy, climate-smart agriculture, climate finance, climate resilience, adaptation, and recovery. The first CCE Hub was established in Accra, Ghana in 2023 in partnership with Arm and Academic City University. CCE was launched at COP26 in Glasgow as a public-private partnership between the State Department and private sector partners to address the climate crisis while contributing to the green growth of developing countries by supporting entrepreneurship around climate solutions.
CCE Hub Kingston will support the U.S.-Caribbean Partnership to Address the Climate Crisis 2030 (PACC 2030) and will directly further its four goals of improving access to development financing, facilitating clean energy project development, enhancing local capacity for climate adaptation, and deepening collaboration with Caribbean partners.