Jamaica to Spend Millions on Water Improvement Project

KINGSTON, Jamaica – The Jamaica government says it will spend an estimated US$209 million to implement the Northwestern Parishes Reliability and Service Improvement Project that is intended to address water concerns and challenges in the island’s northwestern parishes resulting from, among other factors, rapidly deteriorating archaic pipelines.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness addressing the town hall (JIS (Photo)Prime Minister Andrew Holness said among the parishes from which he has received vigorous complaints is St. James where the parliamentary representatives have indicated that several communities do not have access to reliable water supply.

“They have been bringing to us the situation here in Montego Bay, where the main pipelines have collapsed. So, we have decided that we are going to find US$209 million to develop the Northwestern Parishes Reliability and Improvement Service Project,” Holness said.

He said that this will be the first time that any administration will be able to take on a capital expenditure of this magnitude without necessarily having to borrow, reiterating that Jamaica’s water infrastructure was laid in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.

“Jamaica is the land of wood and water, but there are some serious water challenges. The challenge that we have is how to make the water potable… and how to move the water from where it is, to where you live. The two problems we are having is the production… and… distribution of water,” he told a town hall meeting over the weekend.

Holness said that rectifying these issues will require massive investment in infrastructure.

“I recall going to a community in Clarendon called Rosewell… lovely community. They had a big tank there, but it wasn’t operational… . It had no water. I went there and I heard their complaints, and I made sure that when I became Prime Minister in 2016, I fulfilled a commitment I made to them where they now have water.”

Holness urged the audience to remain vigilant and continue keeping the government “on its toes”, noting that their representatives have a responsibility to ensure proper representation and to be answerable to their concerns.

“We are using the stability and growth of the economy… to convert it… into meaningful benefits for you,” he added.