RESIDENTS of May Pen, Clarendon, who are plagued by high levels of crime and violence, unemployment, and inadequate infrastructure, are hoping to turn their community around with assistance from Project Star.

Sharise Staines-Appleby, community services manager at Project Star, said that work started in May Pen in June with walk-throughs, engagement of residents, and the facilitation of meetings with stakeholders.

“We have met with community members to get a directive on what they would like us to focus on; preliminary feedback highlighted high levels of crime and violence, unemployment, poor and inadequate infrastructure are the priority areas for intervention,” she said.

“It is evident that the communities possess a high level of willingness to lead and own their development, demonstrated by numerous initiatives,” Staines-Appleby said.

These initiatives included a summer camp in Pennant Wood, Racetrack, which was facilitated by the Pennant Wood Citizens’ Association, with support from Project Star. Some 38 children, aged five to 13 years, benefited from the programme. Other activities included football competitions and a back-to-school treat spearheaded by community members.

In the area of unemployment and job placement, Staines-Appleby said that they are currently assessing the data gathered from the open days held to determine the level of skills and the job interests of the residents in Havana Heights, Racetrack, and Treadlight.

“We will use that information in the activation of our employment programme as well as in determining what other interventions we will be delivering in partnership with HEART/NSTA Trust, Social Development Commission, Ministry of Labour and Social Security, and other partners,” she said.

“Overall, the support that we have seen for Project Star has been very positive and the residents are open and ready to participate in their own development,” she added.

Saffrey Brown, project director at Project Star, commended community members in May Pen for their willingness to work to address some of the challenges in the community, which she said is evident in the attendance at open days and town hall meetings.

Brown said that Project Star’s five-year plan is to be in a minimum of 10 communities, with a planned expenditure of $2 billion. The expected outcome, she said, is a community that is executing a transformation plan that is owned by the citizens – a plan that is holistic and impacts the entire community.

“The primary goal is greater social cohesion in these communities, driven by increased economic activity, reduced unemployment, economically empowered families, and reduced major crimes and domestic violence. These outcomes will be underpinned by a robust community development model that can be modified for other violent and vulnerable communities, based on the circumstances, across Jamaica,” she said.

Project Star is a social and economic development initiative created by the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica in partnership with the Jamaica Constabulary Force and driven by communities to bring about societal transformation through targeted interventions in under-resourced areas of Jamaica.