Gov’t to Spend $979 Million on Water Systems, $600 Million on Rural Electrification

Prime Minister, Portia Simpson Miller, has informed that the government will be spending $979 million this year on a number of water projects in communities across the island.
The areas to benefit are: Lucky Valley, Tydixon, John’s Groin and Waugh Hill in St. Catherine; James Hill and Peace River in Clarendon; Islington, Buff Bay, Fruitful Vale in Portland; Cascade in St. Ann; Broadgate and Enfield in St. Mary; Dublin Castle in St. Andrew; and Coffee Grove in Manchester.
The Prime Minister, who was making her contribution to the 2007/08 Budget Debate yesterday (May 2) in Gordon House, said that during the 2006/07 fiscal year, more than $923.2 million was spent on rural water supply systems, benefiting some 162,000 persons.
The communities, which benefited are: Mango Valley/Huddersfield and Martha Hall in St. Mary; White River, Manchioneal and Ranch in Portland; Red Wood, Berwick and Crawle in St. Catherine; Lambs River, Struie, Haddo and Whithorn in Westmoreland; Cotterwood in St. Elizabeth; Christiana/Spauldings in Manchester/Clarendon; Milk River in Clarendon; Barney Side, Berkshire/Dundee in Westmoreland; and Hope Bay/St. Margaret’s Bay in Portland.
“We are meeting the challenge of providing potable water for more members of the Jamaican family,” Mrs. Simpson Miller stated.
Meanwhile, the government is stepping up the pace of rural electrification, through the implementation of a $600 million, three-year project, which will provide an additional 20,000 rural householders with electricity.
The project will be carried out through the Rural Electrification Programme (REP).
“By the end of the project, 96 per cent of Jamaican households will have access to electricity, which leaves only four per cent more to go,” Mrs. Simpson Miller said.