Introduction
How is the Military in Jamaica and how does it work to maintain Sucity and fight terrorism? In terms of Military and security forces, we have the Jamaica Defense Force (JDF): Ground Forces (Jamaica Regiment), Air Wing, Coast Guard; Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF); Jamaica National Service Corps (JNSC) (2024).
In Jamaica, in addition to its responsibility of defending against external aggression, the JDF's primary missions are border, internal, and maritime security, including support to police operations in combating crime and violence; other missions include search and rescue, disaster response, humanitarian assistance, and peacekeeping; it has arrest authority and partners with the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF); both the JDF and JCF are under the Ministry of National Security, which directs policy for the security forces; the JDF participates in bilateral and multinational training exercises, including with the militaries of Canada, the UK, the US, and other Caribbean nations
while Jamaica had a militia force as early as the 1660s, the JDF was constituted in 1962 from the West India Regiment (WIR), a British colonial regiment which dates back to 1795 (2024)
while Jamaica had a militia force as early as the 1660s, the JDF was constituted in 1962 from the West India Regiment (WIR), a British colonial regiment which dates back to 1795 (2024)
Security and military information of Jamaica
| Military and security service personnel strengths | approximately 5,000 personnel (2023) |
|---|---|
| Military equipment inventories and acquisitions | the JDF is lightly armed with a limited inventory featuring equipment mostly from Australia, Canada, Japan, the Netherlands, the UK, and the US (2024) |
| Military service age and obligation | 18-23 for voluntary military service (17 with parental consent) for men and women; 18-28 for the reserves; no conscription; since 2017, the JDF's standard mode of recruitment is to enroll recruits ages 18-23 through the Jamaica National Service Corps (JNSC), which has a service requirement of 12 months (2024). note: as of 2022, women made up about 20% of the JDF's uniformed personnel |
| Military deployments | . |
| Military expenditures | |
| Military Expenditures 2023 | 1.2% of GDP (2023 est.) |
| Military Expenditures 2022 | 1.3% of GDP (2022 est.) |
| Military Expenditures 2021 | 1.4% of GDP (2021 est.) |
| Military Expenditures 2020 | 1.7% of GDP (2020 est.) |
| Military Expenditures 2019 | 1.6% of GDP (2019 est.) |
All Important Facts about Jamaica
Want to know more about Jamaica? Check all different factbooks for Jamaica below.
