Managing director of the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) Omar Sweeney says his organisation is delighted to be part of what he termed a “critical journey” for the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) in making local communities cleaner.

“This life-changing opportunity was [first] made possible under the second of the Government of Jamaica’s $1.9-billion funded Integrated Community Development Project (ICDP-II) currently implemented by JSIF,” Sweeney told the gazetting ceremony for new environmental wardens at AC Hotel in St Andrew, last Thursday.

Sweeney’s comments came in the wake of an announcement by Minister of Finance and the Public Service Dr Nigel Clarke that the Cabinet has given approval for 3,813 new posts to be made at the NSWMA, compared to the current 269.

He noted that there are only 269 posts available to the NSWMA and promised that the permanent posts have already been created and that “time has come” for the NSWMA workers and subsidiaries.

Dr Clarke made the announcement as he closed the 2024/2025 Budget at Gordon House on March 26 in Gordon House. He said that jobs would be available across the NSWMA, including the NEPM Waste Management Authority, MPM Waste Management Authority, SPM Waste Management Authority and the WPM Waste Management Authority.

Sweeney told guests at the gazetting ceremony that the ICDP-II aims to promote public safety transformation, through the provision of basic infrastructure and social services in 10 communities — August Town, Parade Gardens, Denham Town, Greenwich Town, Treadlight, Anchovy, Salt Spring, Mount Salem, Norwood, and Savanna-la-Mar. These include seven zones of special operation.

He said that through the public education, residents in these communities were exposed to sustainable solid waste management approaches; promotions of containerisation; reduction of illegal dumping; and enforcement.

The project, he said, has succeeded in transforming the environmental landscape of the beneficiary communities, through access to sustainable solid waste management services.

Sweeney said that the ICDP-II Solid Waste Management sub-project is designed to improve community cleanliness through public education, expose residents to sustainable solid waste management practices, promoted the containerisation and reduction of illegal dumping anf enforce the laws and regulations of the NSWMA.

“As a result, the environmental wardens programme was implemented under the ICDP-ll Solid Waste Management sub-project. Under this project, JSIF invested $27 million into improving these community spaces, with the beneficiary communities contributing an additional $2.7 million,” he recalled.

The JSIF boss added that 400 environmental wardens were trained, equipped, employed and gazetted under the National Solid Waste Management and are legal environmental officers, primarily responsible for promoting proper waste disposal in their respective communities with oversight from the NSWMA. They have the authority to issue tickets to people who are non-compliant.

Sweeney, in commending the wardens, said: “I am very impressed with the transformation that has taken place in these spaces and how well the level of cleanliness has been maintained. I know that your assignment has not been easy, but you were not looking for easy. You made great efforts to be effective and your effectiveness has resulted in cleaner and healthier communities.”