50 More Garbage Trucks to be Procured

The Government will be procuring an additional 50 garbage compactor trucks, including small units that can traverse narrow community roads.

Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen, made the disclosure while delivering the Throne Speech to open the 2023/24 Parliamentary Year in Gordon House on Tuesday (February 14).

Fifty garbage trucks were handed over by Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness to the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) in December 2022, while 34 units were repaired to bolster the agency’s collection capacity.

The NSWMA is an agency under the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development.

The Governor-General said that the NSWMA will “develop its capacity to transition to monitoring, regulating and enforcing proper waste management”.

“This will include the revision of fines and offences to make them more relevant as deterrents,” he pointed out.

Turning to other programmes under the Ministry, the Governor-General said that through collaboration with the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF), three fire stations were constructed at Barnett Street in St. James, Yallahs in St. Thomas, and Port Maria in St. Mary.

“Preparatory work continues on the construction and upgrading of other fire stations around the island,” he noted.

Other projects include the completion of 25 indigent housing units in St. Mary, Westmoreland, Hanover and Kingston, and night shelters in Ocho Rios and Falmouth.

The upgrade of several rural water supplies was completed in Penn/Lucky Valley and Watermount in St. Catherine; Top Aberdeen, St. Elizabeth; Bangor Ridge, Portland; and Salt River in Clarendon.

Legislative priorities for the Ministry for the new financial year include the Human Services Bill, the National Solid Waste Management (Validation, Indemnification, and Amendment Bill), the Local Governance (Amendment) Bill and the Counties and Parishes (Amendment) Bill.