Prime Minister PJ Patterson accepts a $200-million donation to the Jamaica Hurricane Relief Fund from Seamus Lynch, group CEO for Digicel (left), at Jamaica House in Kingston, yesterday. At right is Digicel's commercial director and chairman of the Digicel Foundation Harry Smith.

Jamaican private sector companies yesterday pledged nearly half-a-billion dollars to a post-hurricane rebuilding fund which the man who has been charged with overseeing the reconstruction effort hopes to swell to as much as J$3 billion.<

The pledges, mostly made at a meeting at Jamaica House yesterday, do not include two preferential loan facilities, totalling $450 million, respectively, by the Scotiabank ($300 million) and the National Commercial Bank ($150 million) for the resuscitation of agriculture and home repairs.

Danville Walker, named on Monday to head the new Office of National Reconstruction (ONR), yesterday declined to provide details on amounts pledged at the meeting between private sector leaders and senior government officials.

But based on public announcements by some firms and other information pieced together by the Observer, it was obvious that companies have already put up over $400 million, with more expected as the administration cranks up its reconstruction machinery.

"I would like to see the fund reach between $2 billion and $3 billion, including donations from Jamaicans overseas, to supplement whatever the government is going to spend on the reconstruction programme," Walker told the Observer.
The largest corporate pledge so far is $200 million offered by Digicel, the Irish-owned mobile telephone company which established here three years ago and has branched out across the Caribbean.

Digicel is using as its vehicle for its donation the soon-to-be-launched Digicel Jamaica Foundation, and Harry Smith, Digicel's commercial director and president of the foundation, delivered a commitment to Prime Minister P J Patterson.

"The foundation has been established with the vision of uilding stronger, self-sufficient communities, so it is very appropriate that the money will be spent on ensuring that Jamaica emerges even stronger after Ivan," Smith said.
NCB, owned by the Jamaican /Canadian entrepreneur Michael Lee Chin, had previously announced that it would match, up to $100 million, pledges made to a hurricane relief fund, repeating an offer it made after flood rains two years ago.

Yesterday the bank said that it would, in addition, disburse, up to the end of October, $150 million for the repair of homes damaged by Hurricane Ivan, which hit Jamaica last weekend. Loans under this facility will range between $25,000 and $300,000, repayable over 48 months.
The bank said loans secured by salary deduction will be two per cent below its current base rate of 18.25 per cent, while those secured by residential mortgage will be lower than its current base mortgage rate of 16.25 per cent. Processing fees will also be waived.

Some credit unions, too, announced that they would offer special emergency assistance plans for home repairs.
Scotiabank announced that it would donate approximately $15.5 million especially to assist in the rehabilitation of primary schools, but Bill Clarke, the head of Scotiabank's Jamaica operations, said it would route through the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ) the $300 million for the agricultural sector. The loan to the DBJ will be for seven years, at 9.5 per cent, which means the funds will reach farmers at substantially lower than current market rates.
Additionally, Scotiabank said it would provide a six-month moratorium on principal payments for existing farm borrowers.

Apart from the pledges by the big players, several other firms made smaller, but substantial donations, including, for instance, $10 million offered by the Jamaica Money Market Brokers.

Foreign governments, too, also yesterday announced first trenches of assistance to Jamaica.
Canada, for instance, announced a Can$550,000 (J$26.3 million) contribution to an appeal by the International Red Cross for relief to Jamaica and Grenada, plus Can$175,000 (J$8.4 million) to local non-government organisations, including the Salvation Army and the local Jamaica Red Cross.

"Once the long-term reconstruction requirements are known, Canada will assess ways to assist in this important effort," the Canadian embassy said.

The Japanese said that they have allocated about US$120,000 in emergency aid to the island, include 70 large tents which can house up to 700 persons, 30 power generators and more than 2,500 items of bedding.
Walker's job will, in part, be to coordinate the flow of foreign assistance into Jamaica. But his more important role will be to help set reconstruction priorities and ensure that they are executed efficiently.

Walker has been seconded for up to six months from his substantive job of Director of Elections.

"I believe that a lot of the work can be done in six months," he told the Observer yesterday. "There will be things at various stages of implementation after six months, but I expect that in terms of the reconstruction all the major decisions will have been taken. the projects (in place and well under way.)

"If we can't get it done in six months, I don't think it would have been necessary to have the Office of Reconstruction. People out there who are depending on us can't wait longer than six months."

According to Walker, among his first moves will be to identify his staff, for which he has been given a free hand, and to pull together the task force from the various agencies that will identify priorities.

He was also mindful of the need to build public confidence in the rebuilding effort, to send a clear message that he would be non-partisan and that the reconstruction will be efficient.
"I am going to seek a meeting with the Opposition to get their views and to get their representation (on the task force)," Walker said.

He conceded that public sector bureaucracy could be a challenge, but hopes the fact that he will report directly to Prime Minister Patterson will help. "I can't imagine a public servant wanting to swim upstream against that," he said.

Tarrus Riley shoots video for Start Anew

Naomi Campbell to open retrospective photo show

A pleasant evening of music and much more