Hundreds of millions of dollars are being spent on social and other intervention programmes in the Zones of Special Operations (ZOSOs), the Minister of National Security, Dr Horace Chang has cited.

Chang provided the update on the ZOSOs as the House of Representatives last week debated and passed seven motions that will see the security measure extended for a further 60 days from December 22 when they were set to expire.

The seven ZOSOs are located in Denham Town in West Kingston; Norwood and Mount Salem in St. James; Greenwich Town, Parade Gardens and August Town in St. Andrew, and Savanna-la-Mar in Westmoreland.

Chang, who is also the Deputy Prime Minister, told the House that as of December 4, for the period prior to and during the declaration of the respective ZOSOs, areas under the security measure continue to record reductions in all major crimes.

He also provided a brief update on some of the activities under way in those communities. He explained that given the advanced development status of the Mount Salem Zone, the first one declared in Jamaica in September 2017, activities are principally around consolidating and completing projects toward the sustainable development of the community.

“So far, the Social Intervention Committee (SIC) has managed the implementation of over $300 million in investment in Mount Salem,” Chang disclosed.

He noted that the priorities on the work plan are all implemented, and only a handful of residual activities remain for the community, adding that the committee will continue to provide oversight until the interventions are completed.

In Denham Town, capacity-building of the Community Development Committee resulted in investments of more than $20 million being directly managed at the community level.

The security minister said this created increased job opportunities for residents, whilst increasing governance and accountability.

“The Social Intervention Committee continues to engage and provide critical guidance to the sustainable buildout of interventions within the Denham Town ZOSO. With over $450 million invested, the Zone has had tremendous impact. The overall work plan remains on track, and the Social Intervention Committee will continue to monitor and provide updates,” said Chang.

Also, through the ZOSO, Greenwich Town has had the single largest period of public investments said the minister. The Social Intervention Committee continues to monitor the implementation of key social investments within the community.

The current investments under active implementation are Enterprise Grant – Phase III; Integrated Community Development Project, Solid Waste Management Cycle II; Infrastructure Upgrade and Safe Passages.

For August Town, Chang said the community continues to show promising results.

“The Social Intervention Committee continues to engage and provide critical guidance to the sustainable buildout of interventions within the area. With over $200 million committed to date, the zone remains on track and will achieve its intended objective of a safer and better community,” he stated.

Meanwhile, the Norwood ZOSO is earmarked for significant buildout of much-needed infrastructure, including supporting the rehabilitation of road and water supply.

Chang said that in the interim, several short-term initiatives are being executed. Currently, there are approximately $300 million in approved projects to be implemented in the community. These investments are projected to be implemented over the next 12 to 24 months.

With regard to the Parade Gardens ZOSO, this is still at the pre-development phase, with activities largely focused on identifying community needs for prioritisation.

The Social Intervention Committee is developing an overall work plan to identify the level of public investments required to address the developmental challenges in the community. The plan will be finalised in the coming months and the identification of funding confirmed.

“Similar to the Parade Gardens Zone, the Savanna-la-Mar ZOSO remains in the pre-development phase with the formulation of the critical priorities for the community under development. Notwithstanding this, there have been selected interventions to support the community in the interim,” Chang said.

These include the 60th clean-up activities, which saw improvement to the physical landscape of the community; operation certification in which some 86 residents from the community were processed for new birth certificates; and a baseline assessment of the community which was implemented through the Planning Institute of Jamaica.

“We remain confident that the Zones of Special Operations are transforming these communities and the lives of these residents. The Government remains committed to providing opportunities for our most vulnerable citizens,” said Chang.