KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS) – The Government is intensifying efforts to have the Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park included on the World Heritage List within the next two years.

The park, located in the eastern mountainous region of Jamaica, is one of the country’s first and most important protected areas and was nominated for inscription to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) World Heritage List in 2011.

Addressing a recent function at the Jamaica National Heritage Trust’s (JNHT) downtown Kingston headquarters, Minister of Youth and Cuture, Lisa Hanna, said  the Government is “very keen on ensuring that we get a world heritage site”.

She informed that work has started and “we’ve put in place the necessary information, the necessary lobbying and we’re continuing with the lobbying to ensure that the Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park is and becomes a World Heritage Site.”  

Hanna bemoaned the fact that despite the country’s rich cultural heritage “we still do not have a world heritage site here in Jamaica…we owe it to all of those who have gone before us to make sure that is a reality.”

Covering an area of 78,200 hectares, spanning sections of Portland, St Thomas, St Andrew, and South-East St Mary, the Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park contains the largest area of primary natural forest remaining in Jamaica, and is high in biodiversity.

According to the Jamaica Conservation and Development Trust, the non-Government entity that manages this national park, about 40 per cent of the plants and animals found there are either endemic to Jamaica, or are found only in the park’s ecosystems.

It also noted that the park boasts the highest point in Jamaica – the Blue Mountain Peak (2,256 metres), important watersheds that provide water for half of the island, and many areas of natural beauty and historic importance.

The site is legally protected both as a Forest Reserve (since 1950) and a National Park (since 1993).

The World Heritage List includes some 812 properties forming part of the cultural and natural heritage which the World Heritage Committee considers as having outstanding universal value. These include 628 cultural, 160 natural and 24 mixed properties.

Being named on the list will bring positive spin-offs for the country, especially in the area of eco-tourism.

In the meantime, Hanna said that the Government is working to make the National Museum of Jamaica “a reality very soon”.

Also on stream, as part of efforts to keep the country’s culture alive is the move to embark on a downtown shuttle tour initiative.

“There are hundreds of sites in Kingston, certainly in downtown, that are historic and one of the moves that are underway is where you can take a bus from a particular point and tour all of the historic sites downtown and have an understanding of what those are,” Hanna said.