As part of the Women Feeding Cities Project, the MiFOOD team in Jamaica organized a virtual Policy Engagement Workshop (PEW) to discuss the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the informal food sector in Montego Bay, Jamaica. The meeting was held 19 February 2025.
A range of stakeholders representing ministries, departments and agencies of the Government of Jamaica, with responsibility for local government, waste management, gender and health attended the PEW. In total fourteen representatives, including a contingent from the Bureau of Women’s Affairs and the Mayor of Montego Bay, His Worship Richard Vernon, participated in the session.
During the workshop, participants reflected on their experiences responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic’s effects on informal food vending, its gender-differentiated impacts, and lessons learnt for future pandemic responses.
The workshop underscored COVID-19’s positive impact on enabling transformation of the informal food sector, such as reliance on food delivery services and digital marketing of products. However, participants also pointed to the need to build capacity among small businesses and gaps related to dedicated public funds to provide social safety nets and insurance for small business enterprises. The workshop also highlighted the need for more robust data collection on market and vending culture in urban spaces in Jamaica, as well as engagement with vendors on alternatives to physical space vending.
The MiFOOD team will draw on the discussion to enhance data collection exercises with informal food vendors and other key stakeholders across government and the NGO community.