PM provides personal funds to help Vincentian Students in Jamaica

Prime Minister, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves has disclosed providing personal funds to support Vincentian students studying in Jamaica, which is still in recovery mode after being devastated by Hurricane Melissa last month.

Speaking at the “North Star Rally” of his Unity Labour Party (ULP) in Chateaubelair last night, November 8, 2025, Dr. Gonsalves outlined to the massive crowd of supporters how this came about.

“As you know, Jamaica is in turmoil. Hurricane Melissa devastate the place,” he related, noting that there are more than 200 Vincentian students there. He said he had been in contact with the leadership of the Vincentian Student Association (Vinsa), and inquired whether any of the students required special help, and what were their immediate needs.

“They…sent a letter for me…on Thursday… saying that 31…students need some help, and the student association say they need the help right away. It they could get 500 EC dollars for each of those 31, so that could tide them over for a couple weeks with food until we can replenish more…”.

He said knowing that it would take about seven days for the money to get to the students if he went through the government machinery, he decided to take another route.

“Friday morning, I called my banker and tell him to send the 15-thousand-five hundred dollars…to the account of the Vincentian Students’ Association,” the Prime Minister said.

Hurricane Melissa, made landfall in Western Jamaica on October 28,2025 as a category-5 storm packing winds of up to 185 MPH causing widespread devastation especially to the parishes of St. Elizabeth and Westmoreland.

Ahead of the hurricane’s arrival in Jamaica, Prime Minister Gonsalves had informed Vincentians at home that he was in contact with the leaders of the student body who assured him that they were okay, and officials of the University of the West Indies had also given the assurance that measures were being taken to ensure the wellbeing of the students.

He has, however, been criticized by some persons on social media who said he should have had the students airlifted out of Jamaica ahead of the hurricane’s arrival there.

Before sharing the information at the Chateaubelair meeting Dr. Gonsalves told the crowd that he does “not like to boast about things” but, “for young people” he would mention the provision of personal support he had provided to the students in Jamaica.