United Nations Development Programme Jamaica

Insecurity, armed violence and citizens' lack of confidence in the State are major obstacles to sustainable development in Jamaica and the situation has worsened significantly in recent years.

The May 2010, West Kingston, Civil Unrest, confirmed the fragility of the situation and the risk that the Country faces.

UNDP responded promptly to the challenging situation, directly implementing a set of activities aimed at supporting local initiatives to  address and coordinate an effective response to the governance and security crisis.  In response to the crisis, UNDP supported  national coordination of recovery and reconstruction activities, through the Planning Institute Of Jamaica and the Ministry of National Security; quick impact activities such as a cash for work programme with the local authority - the KSAC; human rights support through the Office of the Public Defender. UNDP also supported  civil society initiatives including an assessment of Jamaica's readiness for a Truth and reconciliation process, the institutional set-up of the Jamaica Civil Society Coalition and the training done by Root FM.

The Roots FM Community Broadcaster Training Programme"Strengthening community voices" was one such initiative which has targeted members of volatile and vulnerable communities in the inner cities of Kingston, Jamaica, using as a key communication channel - the Radio.,The initiative was implemented by ROOTS FM, a nonprofit/independent community based Radio Station.

The training targeted community workers, who have a proven record of service in specific social development areas, and are uniquely placed to create effective, informative, radio content. The overall objective was to strengthen  the capacity of those community members to use radio as a tool of engagement in public debates to impact the psycho social development of inner-city communities.

25 community workers were selected from established community groups and non government organizations which represent 52 communities in Kingston, Jamaica with an estimated population of 700,000. The agencies were: Mustard Seed Communities; Jamaicans for Community Development, National Transformation Programme, Women's Media Watch, Caribbean Association for Feminist Research, Fathers Incorporated, Social Development Commission, St. Patrick's Rangers, Whitfield Town Community Development Committee, Four Roads Youth Organization, Area Youth Foundation, Seivright Gardens Community Development Committee, United Mountain View Parents in Action, Jamaica Council for Drug Abuse and United Mountain View Parents in Action.

Participants of the Roots FM Broadcaster Training Programme were exposed to 40 hours of formal training and were trained to produce and present radio programmes on select topics. At the end of the project participants identified 6 specific areas of learning around which a series of 1-hr programmes are to be produced and sustained over a six-month period , namely disaster preparedness; gender; restorative justice; parenting; substance abuse and youth lifestyles.

On the final day of training, April 9, 2011 participants proudly received Certificates of Completion during  an informal graduation ceremony at the Mustard Seed Communities in Kingston, Jamaica. The Certificates of completion were presented by UNDP acting Resident Representative, Ms Akiko Fujii, and Ms. Darcy Tulloch Williams, Mustard Seed Communities Deputy Executive Director.

Ms. Fujii closed the ceremony underlining the importance for the graduated community workers to apply to their day to day lives the newly acquired skills, so that they will become more effective contributors for improving the lives of residents of their communities.

Photos