WASHINGTON – The World Bank’s Board of directors on Wednesday approved a $29.3 million loan to improve the quality of life for the urban poor residing in 12 Jamaican communities.

The money will be used to improve access to basic urban infrastructure, financial services, land tenure regularisation, enhanced community capacity and improvements in public safety.

The communities to benefit are:

. Whitfield Town;

. Passmore Town/Dunkirk;

. Federal Gardens; and

. Jones Town in Kingston.

. Tawes Pen;

. March Pen (area known as Africa);

. Central Village (Big lane, Andrews Lane, Little Lane and

Detroit);

. Dempshire Pen/Jones Town (Shelter Rock);

. Lauriston; and

. Knollis in St Catherine.

. Bucknor/Rectory Lands in Clarendon; and

. Flankers, St James.

“Jamaica has identified inner-city renewal – with a focus on crime and violence prevention – as a key priority,” said Caroline Anstey, World Bank country director for the Caribbean. “We hope this new programme will not only help renew Jamaica’s inner cities, but will also improve the lives of poor Jamaicans by improving basic services,” she said.

The project is expected to:

. increase access and improve the quality of water, sanitation, solid waste collection systems, electricity, roads, drainage and related community infrastructure for over 60,000 residents of poor urban informal settlements through capital investments and innovative arrangements for operations and maintenance;

. facilitate access to microfinance for enterprise development and incremental home improvement for entrepreneurs and residents in project areas;

. increase security of tenure for eligible households in project areas; and

. enhance public safety through mediation services, community capacity building, skills training and related social services, said the World Bank.

“The project will build upon the experience of the ongoing and successful Bank-supported National Community Development Project (NCDP) being implemented by the Jamaica Social Investment Fund JSIF,” said Abhas K Jha, World Bank senior infrastructure specialist and task team leader for the project.

“JSIF has successfully implemented community infrastructure projects under NCDP in inner-city communities and has developed an effective mechanism for community-based contracting that will be replicated in the inner-city project.”

The new programme comes 11 months after the World Bank approved the institution’s Country Assistance Strategy for Jamaica, which projects financial assistance of up to US$150 million between 2006 and 2009, as well as technical and advisory assistance.

The $29.3 million project, a Specific Investment Loan, from the International Bank of Reconstruction and Development has a repayment period of 17 years, including a five-year grace period.