CARIBVISTA | IAGRO SAT CARIBBEAN
JM
JAMAICA AGRICULTURAL ACTIVATION BRIEF
Jamaica has 179,585 hectares of idle grassland while importing 80% of its food at $1.1B/year.1
The first complete satellite land census of Jamaica — every 10-metre pixel classified — reveals that grassland covers over 20× more land than active cropland. Former sugar estates, abandoned farms, and idle pastures represent the Caribbean's largest untapped agricultural resource.
Total Land (ha)
1,093,545
ESA WorldCover v200, 10m
Grassland (ha)
179,585
16.4% of land area
Cropland (ha)
8,687
0.8% of land area
Built-up (ha)
34,065
3.1% of land area
Complete satellite land census. ESA WorldCover v200 classifies every 10m×10m pixel on the island into 9 land cover classes. Vegetation health (NDVI) computed from Sentinel-2 scenes at 10m resolution. Parish boundaries from FAO/GAUL/2015. This is not a sample — it is a complete census of 109.4 million pixels.
ESA WORLDCOVER v200 // 10m RESOLUTIONSENTINEL-2 L2A // NDVI 10mFAO/GAUL 2015 // 14 PARISHES
GEE-COMPUTED PARISH CENSUS
Land Cover by Parish
ESA WorldCover v200 pixel counts at native 10m resolution, clipped to FAO/GAUL parish boundaries. Every bar segment is a real hectare count.
Cropland
Tree Cover
Grassland
Built-up
Other
Clarendon
119,600
NDVI 0.54
St. Catherine
119,400
NDVI 0.53
Manchester
83,000
NDVI 0.56
St. Ann
121,200
NDVI 0.59
Trelawny
87,400
NDVI 0.60
St. Elizabeth
119,800
NDVI 0.55
Westmoreland
80,700
NDVI 0.57
St. James
59,500
NDVI 0.54
Hanover
45,000
NDVI 0.59
St. Mary
61,100
NDVI 0.60
Portland
81,400
NDVI 0.64
St. Thomas
74,300
NDVI 0.58
St. Andrew
45,300
NDVI 0.47
Kingston
2,200
NDVI 0.31
8,687 ha
Cropland (0.8%)
845,834 ha
Tree Cover (77.4%)
179,585 ha
Grassland (16.4%)
34,065 ha
Built-up (3.1%)
KEY FINDING
Grassland exceeds cropland by 20.7x
WorldCover classifies 179,585 ha as grassland vs. only 8,687 ha as active cropland. Jamaica — historically a sugar and banana plantation island — has seen massive agricultural abandonment since the decline of the sugar industry. Former estates in Clarendon, St. Elizabeth, and St. Catherine hold the largest idle land reserves. This is the single largest untapped agricultural resource in the entire Caribbean.
Clarendon
NDVI 0.541
24,200 ha
grassland / 1,410 ha cropland / 119,600 ha total
Former sugar heartland — largest cropland AND grassland reserves
St. Elizabeth
NDVI 0.549
23,500 ha
grassland / 1,200 ha cropland / 119,800 ha total
Jamaica's "breadbasket" — enormous reactivation potential
St. Catherine
NDVI 0.532
22,800 ha
grassland / 1,050 ha cropland / 119,400 ha total
Proximity to Kingston market — highest commercial value
MOST URBANISED
Kingston — 55% built-up
1,200 ha urban | 5 ha cropland | 200 ha grassland | NDVI 0.31 (lowest)
MOST VEGETATED
Portland — 86% tree cover
70,200 ha tree | 350 ha cropland | 8,100 ha grassland | NDVI 0.64 (highest)
SATELLITE EVIDENCE
What Our Platform Sees
Cloud-free classified maps from ESA WorldCover v200 and Sentinel-2. Every pixel is a real 10m×10m classification — covering all 10,991 km² of Jamaica.
THE FULL PLATFORM PRODUCES
Monthly NDVI monitoring
Continuous vegetation tracking per pixel across all 14 parishes
Hurricane damage assessment
Automatic detection via IBTrACS + pre/post NDVI delta — critical for Jamaica's hurricane belt position
Crop classification
ML-powered spectral classification of Blue Mountain coffee, sugarcane, banana, and yam zones at 10m
Parish-level census
Every land cover class quantified per administrative boundary
Change detection
Pixel-level vegetation gain/loss over any time window
Financial modelling
IRR, NPV, sensitivity analysis calibrated to satellite data
All capabilities demonstrated in the 30-section intelligence dossier — available through formal engagement.
THE PROPOSAL
Two Entities, One Mission
A for-profit technology company and a proposed non-profit land trust, working together to activate idle farmland at scale across Jamaica.
Caribbean Development Bank
DEVELOPMENT FINANCE
TA Grant + Pilot Funding
CLT
CaribVista Land Trust
PROPOSED NON-PROFIT
Partners with RADA for extension services
Leases idle farmland from Agro-Invest Corp
Employs & trains local farmers
NOT YET INCORPORATED
SAT
IAGRO SAT Caribbean
FOR-PROFIT TECHNOLOGY
Satellite monitoring & analytics
Crop health intelligence
Yield forecasting & risk models
Brazilian origin — South-South transfer
CaribVista Land Trust pays IAGRO SAT for monitoring services → profits reinvest into technology & expansion
Jamaica context: RADA (Rural Agricultural Development Authority) provides extension services to 200,000+ farmers. Agro-Invest Corporation manages state agricultural lands. Both are natural implementation partners.
LEASE MODEL ECONOMICS (ESTIMATED RATE: $250/ha/yr)
+$18.5M
10-Year NPV (8% discount)
Full-scale 5,000 ha, moderate
16.8%
Blended IRR
Pilot 20.1% / conservative 16.8%
2.8 yrs
Payback Period
At full scale deployment
Based on diversified crop mix (yam, dasheen, Scotch bonnet, Blue Mountain coffee, banana, tropical fruits), Agro-Invest lease rates, FAO Caribbean yield benchmarks, 8% discount rate.
NEXT STEPS
The Ask
HURRICANE EXPOSURE
Hurricane Gilbert (1988): $4B damage. Ivan (2004): $595M. Dean (2007): $329M.
Jamaica sits in the heart of the hurricane belt. Satellite monitoring provides 48-hour post-storm damage assessment — critical for CCRIF insurance claims and RADA emergency response coordination.
Phase 1 — Q2 2026
Validation
Ground-truth satellite census across 3 pilot parishes, RADA stakeholder mapping
Phase 2 — Q4 2026
Pilot
500 ha activation in Clarendon, St. Elizabeth, St. Catherine — 150 farmers
Phase 3 — 2027
Scale
5,000 ha across 6 parishes, cooperatives, Kingston market channels
Phase 4 — 2028+
Sustain
Full island activation, Blue Mountain coffee expansion, export channels
01
STEP 1
Exploratory Meeting
Present satellite intelligence to CDB Agriculture Division. Engage RADA and Agro-Invest Corporation leadership.
02
STEP 2
TA Grant
Technical Assistance to fund parish-level activation plan, legal structuring, and detailed feasibility across 3 pilot parishes.
03
STEP 3
Pilot Funding
$3.5M
$2.0M TA grant + $1.5M concessional loan.
Year 1: 500 ha pilot, 150 farmers, 3 parishes.
$2.0M TA grant + $1.5M concessional loan.
Year 1: 500 ha pilot, 150 farmers, 3 parishes.
ALSO AVAILABLE
Agriculture Feasibility Study
Jamaica-specific crop economics: Blue Mountain coffee, yam, dasheen, Scotch bonnet, banana, sugarcane. RADA extension integration. Real setup costs and seasonal risk analysis.
View feasibility study →DUE DILIGENCE
Proof Annex — Source Traceability
Every number in this brief traced to its source. Satellite data reproducible from GEE scripts. For CDB due diligence review.
View proof annex →Entity Structure & Governance
Dual entity model with Jamaica-specific agency partnerships (RADA, Agro-Invest Corp), board composition, and 5-year revenue trajectory.
View entity structure →ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT
This executive brief summarises findings from a comprehensive 30-section satellite intelligence dossier backed by real GEE-computed data. The full dossier, live platform access, and ongoing monitoring capabilities are available through formal engagement.
CARIBVISTA | IAGRO SAT CARIBBEAN // FEBRUARY 2026
Contact: partnerships@iagrosat.com|IAGRO SAT Caribbean
© 2026 IAGRO SAT Caribbean. All rights reserved.
CaribVista Land Trust is a proposed entity — not yet incorporated.
Data: ESA WorldCover v200 (10m) + Sentinel-2 L2A (10m) via Google Earth Engine.
Parish boundaries: FAO/GAUL/2015. Computed 2026-02-22.
1 FAO/GIEWS Country Brief, Jamaica. World Bank Development Indicators. Jamaica Ministry of Agriculture.
CONFIDENTIAL — For named recipients only. Do not redistribute.