Gov’t Committed To Providing Titles for Landowners

Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change Minister, Hon. Robert Pickersgill, said the Government remains unwavering in its commitment to ensure that Jamaicans, who occupy lands for which they have no titles, will soon have these important documents in their possession.

Speaking at the Land Administration and Management Programme (LAMP) titling ceremony at the Linstead Baptist Church in St. Catherine on Thursday (May 31),

Mr. Pickersgill said the administration is “deeply concerned” about the many landowners, who do not have proper titles for property they occupy. This, he noted, is despite LAMP’s efforts to simplify the process of securing titles.

He said the administration is serious about the need for ordinary Jamaicans to attain security of tenure for their holdings, pointing out that “we know that this is one of the best ways to empower our people to improve themselves, build better communities and, ultimately, build a better nation”.

The Minister gave the administration's undertaking to continue to facilitate the process of land titling and streamlining through initiatives such as LAMP, ongoing public education programmes, and direct interventions at the community level.

"We intend to…create an ‘ownership society’ and so, LAMP will continue to be (one of) the vehicle(s) through which Jamaican landowners can become legal owners of their land. The government is committed to the task of developing our communities, as we firmly believe that prosperous communities make for a prosperous nation,” Mr. Pickersgill contended.

Some 25 residents of Linstead, Bog Walk and surrounding communities in St. Catherine, were presented with certificates of title for their properties, during the ceremony.

By Douglas McIntosh, JIS Reporter