The United Kingdom Government has written off 5 million pounds or $645 million in debt owed by the Jamaican Government.

This is good news for the country as the latest Budget has indicated that $0.56 of every dollar earned this year will go towards debt repayment.

It’s not clear how much Jamaica now owes the UK.

The United Kingdom says the debt write-off will help Jamaica to save money and instead improve on public services like education, security and justice.

Between 1998 and 2009, the UK has written off more than 58 million pounds of Jamaican debt.

At the same time, it has given Jamaica 2.5 million pounds a year in aid to help the poor.

UK’s minister for international development, Mike Foster, says Jamaica’s high debt burden is constraining its ability to achieve economic growth.