• Category

  • Content Type

Advertisement

JSIF Funds School Upgrading Project in Portland

March 13, 2004

The Full Story

Representatives from the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) and the Boston community in Portland on Thursday (March 11) signed a $7.3 million contract for the expansion and upgrading of the Boston Primary and Infant School.
The signing was held at the Boston community centre. The signatories were Owen Sweeny, Operations Manager at JSIF; Gangolf Schmidt, Technical Advisor to the European Union, which is funding the project; and Sigismund Maine, Corine Brown-West and Terrence Beckford from the Boston community.
The scope of work will involve the completion of an unfinished classroom and the construction of a new one, as well as putting in place new bathrooms, sickbay and storeroom.
In addition, the school will be provided with a play area equipped with swing, seesaw, jungle gym, slide and sandpit. The project is expected to have a three-month duration and the direct beneficiaries of its successful completion will be the school’s 350 students.
In his remarks at the signing, Mr. Sweeny congratulated the residents of Boston for the exemplary community spirit they have displayed in the planning of the project. He said that the effort by the community to get the project off the ground was clear indication that the residents of Boston placed high priority on early childhood education.
Noting that the implementation of the project marked another worthwhile investment by JSIF in the parish of Portland and in the country’s education system, he said $31 million had been invested in the construction and upgrading of 11 schools in the parish since 1996.
Mr. Sweeny pointed out that the total investment of JSIF in Portland was close to $100 million, with most of the money going towards 29 poverty alleviation and community development projects.
Mr. Schmidt pledged the European Union’s support for the project while Ministry of Education, Youth and Culture representative, Lauriston. Wilson, gave the assurance that the Ministry would help to furnish the new classrooms.

Last Updated: March 13, 2004

Skip to content