THE Government is looking to deliver 6,000 homes to Jamaicans islandwide under the New Social Housing Programme (NSHP) as they move to ramp up the initiative.

This was announced by Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness while addressing Friday’s handover ceremony for NSHP homes built in Westmoreland.

“We [the Government] are building the capacity to be able to deliver those houses quite rapidly. In fact, in the coming budget year we will be making quite a sizeable allocation to the [initiative],” he outlined.

Holness advised that the programme, which has delivered approximately 300 houses and with additional units under construction, will expand to include housing for workers in the tourism industry.

He said this will benefit residents of Westmoreland in particular, where tourism is a significant economic contributor.

“The NSHP is called such because there is a difference to it. We have built a programme that will endure,” he noted.

The prime minister said NSHP represents a significant shift in Jamaica’s approach to social housing.

He pointed out that, unlike previous initiatives which concentrated housing developments in specific areas — similar to housing projects in the United States or council houses in the United Kingdom — NSHP aims to distribute housing benefits across Jamaica by building on existing lands where people already reside or own.

Dr Holness added that this approach ensures that the beneficiaries of these developments do not experience socio-economic challenges.

“So the benefit is spread rather than concentrated, and it doesn’t create communities which, if not properly managed and properly supported in later years, get turned into inner-city communities. So, that’s a new dimension of social housing,” he underscored.

Meanwhile, Holness highlighted the rapid development of irregular settlements and inner-city communities in Westmoreland, noting that these have contributed to increased crime and violence in the parish.

He assured the residents that the Government has been implementing various interventions including a zone of special operations (ZOSO), enhanced security measures, and road and water infrastructure improvements so as to counter this.

“I want to say to the people of Westmoreland that you are on [the Government’s] plan and you will get the attention that the parish deserves,” Holness stated.

Four newly constructed houses were presented to beneficiaries in the parish on Friday. They include two families who lost their homes to fire, a pensioner, and a vulnerable individual in need of improved living conditions.

The recipients were Beatrice Appleby and Maureen Adams of Porters Mountain, and Patricia Webb of New Galloway, Whithorn, who each received a two-bedroom unit, and Samantha Fray of Meylers Avenue in Savanna-la-Mar who got a three-bedroom house.

Fray, who lost her home to fire in 2017, said she appreciated the Government’s assistance in enabling her to secure the new dwelling that she will share with her children and partner.

She underscored the importance of initiatives like NSHP, which she said provide a fresh start for families who lack the resources to rebuild their homes.