KINGSTON, Jamaica— Residents of the communities of Tel-Aviv, Southside and Rose Gardens, in Kingston Central, who have occupied land for years without a title of ownership are to benefit from the regularisation of their land tenure.

These communities have been designated a Land Administration Management Programme (LAMP) Project Area, under the Cadastral Mapping and Tenure Clarification (Special Provisions) Act.

Making the announcement, Member of Parliament for the constituency, Donovan Williams, informed that the Order has the effect of facilitating the cadastral mapping of the parcels of land therein, so that new titles can be issued and existing certificates of titles can be upgraded.

“Simply put, the residents of these communities, by virtue of this Order, now have a less cumbersome path to becoming titled owners for the parcel of land they currently occupy,” Williams said recently, while making his contribution to the State of the Constituency Debate in the House of Representatives.

A first-term MP, Williams said the issue of dilapidated housing structures in Kingston Central is one of the development challenges he has vowed to tackle in his constituency.

He noted, however, that one of the factors working against improved housing is that many people are not titled owners of property, “despite occupying these properties for many years in sole undisturbed and uninterrupted possession, and in some cases paying property taxes.

“[Residents] express that they are reluctant to improve the dwellings because they do not want persons to arbitrarily turn up claiming to be owners and then they lose their investment. Therefore, one of the ways to help address the matter is to use the process of law to regularise these occupants and help them to acquire title,” he explained.

Williams further stressed that having a title will not only empower residents but will also engender a sense of pride and enable them to access home improvement loans and grants to upgrade their homes.

The Kingston Central MP said he has been advised by the Registrar of Titles that in due course an adjudication committee will be set up to specifically hear applications for new titles.

“I will also be collaborating with the National Land Agency (NLA) to organise sensitisation clinics to guide qualified residents on how to go about the process,” he said.

He informed that it was his intention to lobby the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) Committee of the House of Representatives to make allowance for MPs under the Social Housing project type, to be able to arrange and finance periodic title clinics where attorneys-at-law specialising in land law, at subsidised rates, can advise residents on how to successfully go about this process.

“This is in addition to other sensitisation efforts carried out by the NLA. This approach, in my view, would be consistent with the spirit of the CDF in assisting with improving our social housing stock,” he added.