MANCHESTER, Jamaica – The Jamaica Bauxite Institute (JBI) will be working with Member of Parliament for Manchester Central, Rhoda Moy Crawford, to develop an orchard project on mined-out lands in Broadleaf, says Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining Floyd Green.

“I have said it to the JBI, that in all of our bauxite mining areas, we must have an agricultural-based project. The Broadleaf community used to be known for its agriculture, but many people have turned away from it because they lacked support. The climate here is wonderful and good for fruit-tree production,” the minister said.

He was delivering the main address at the opening of the newly refurbished Broadleaf Community Health Centre, held at the Broadleaf Infant School grounds, on August 22.

The work was completed for just over $10 million. Since 1990, more than $1 billion has been spent in various communities on healthcare, economic empowerment and education, under the Jamaica Bauxite Community Development Programme (BCDP) of the JBI.

Green said crops that can be grown on mined-out lands are well known and cited castor beans among them, adding that there is high demand for Jamaican castor oil.

Meanwhile, the minister noted that bauxite mining is on the rebound and that coming out of COVID-19, during the last quarter, Jamaica registered economic growth of 1.5 per cent, propelled by a 163 per cent growth in the bauxite sector, which was due in large part to the rebound of Jamalco, in Clarendon, which had been closed for several months following a fire at the plant.

“We will continue to work with the bauxite industry, because if bauxite is not growing, we cannot get the resources we need to do projects of this nature,” Green said.

The Broadleaf health centre provides antenatal and postnatal care, family planning services, and more.

During the two-year closure, residents had to travel to either Porus or Mandeville for those services.

Work done at the health centre included expansion of the waiting area, additional space to accommodate staff, storage area renovated, parking area created, restroom repaired, termite infestation treated, water storage drum with water pump installed, building painted and perimeter fence erected.

For her part, Crawford said the completed health centre took years of advocacy and a commitment to serve everyone in the constituency.

She noted that it was a campaign promise to get the health centre fixed for the citizens who had to journey to Mandeville and many times they did not have the cab fare.

Crawford said the JBI has allocated $8 million to carry out road works from the Porus and Comfort entrances to the area, and that there are also plans for some farm roads to be repaired.

-JIS