HEART/NSTA Trust and PIOJ Sign MoU to Empower Residents in Several Communities

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) and HEART/NSTA Trust to empower and build the capacity of residents in several targetted communities.

The MoU was inked by PIOJ Director General, Dr. Wayne Henry, and HEART/NSTA Trust Managing Director, Dr. Taniesha Ingleton, at the Institute’s Oxford Road offices in St. Andrew on Friday (February 23).

In his remarks, Dr. Henry said the MoU marks the culmination of ongoing discussions between the PIOJ, represented by its Community Renewal Programme (CRP), and the Trust towards framing a mechanism for collaboration in the implementation of appropriate programme for building the capacity of citizens within volatile and vulnerable communities.

The CRP was established in 2011 as a multi-level, integrated intervention for coordinating and enhancing service delivery among 100 of the most volatile and vulnerable communities in Jamaica.

The selected communities are from the five parishes that have had the highest sustained murder rates over the last 10 years.

These are St. James, Clarendon, St. Catherine, Kingston and St. Andrew.

Dr. Henry said the collaboration comes against the background of the social and economic realities that often confront the citizens within the target communities, noting that many youth in these areas have been underprepared for integration into the productive sector of the society.

“They often lack the technical and social skills required for full participation in the labour market and mainstream society. They often also lack information on how and where to access the opportunities for capacitating themselves. They, therefore, often require the intervention of external actors to assist them to identify and access the facilities that may help them to improve their circumstances. Many of these frustrated youth often become victims and perpetrators of violence and crime,” he noted.

The Director General said the vulnerability of these youth is, therefore, a serious problem requiring urgent intervention, and is one of the critical issues that gave rise to the CRP’s introduction.

Dr. Henry explained that the CRP was established to be the main government mechanism for supporting the development of volatile and vulnerable communities by inviting support from implementing agencies for targeted community spaces, enabling improved coordination and targetting within these spaces.

He further noted that the MoU will allow for the delivery of interventions in several communities identified under the Government’s Citizen Security Plan (CSP).

“Both the PIOJ and HEART/NSTA Trust also support the National Plan of Action for Crime Prevention, and have defined roles in the plan of action for the national consensus on crime and the CSP. We therefore expect this partnership to have a positive impact on the development landscape in Jamaica, particularly among volatile and vulnerable communities. It’s also our hope that youth from the target communities will see positive transformation in their lives through this partnership,” Dr. Henry said.

Meanwhile, Dr. Ingleton said the strategic alliance between the entities is expected to catalyse positive change in the lives of Jamaicans.

“We will be facilitating data sharing for monitoring and evaluation. We will be providing programmatic support for interventions in targetted communities, and we will be conceptualising replicable models to enhance human development,” she noted.

She said that the Trust has remained steadfast in dedicating itself to human development, equipping individuals with the necessary skills to thrive personally and professionally.

The Managing Director pointed out that over the past two fiscal years, between 98.6 and 99.3 per cent of HEART programmes were aligned to labour market demand.

She further noted that the entity’s annual tracer study has consistently shown high employment rates among graduates, and this serves as a compelling validation of the effectiveness of the entity’s training programmes in preparing individuals for meaningful and sustainable employment opportunities.

“But this is not about statistics. It is about people. It is about the 88 to 91 per cent of HEART graduates who find jobs within a year of completing their training programmes. They are now contributing to society. So these figures are not called numbers, they represent mothers providing for their families, they represent fathers building futures and they represent young people carving out their own paths,” Dr. Ingleton said.

“So, imagine this, a young resident from a CRP targetted community equipped with the skills and the confidence gained through the training, walking into a thriving business ready to contribute. Imagine the ripple effect, the increased productivity, the strengthened economy, and the hope that will ignite a community,” she added.

Dr. Ingleton said the MoU is the spark that ignites hope through data sharing, joint programme development and capacity building.

“We will create a symphony of collaboration. So the Trust’s expertise in TVET will be woven into the fabric of the CRP’s targetted interventions, ensuring skills are relevant, in demand and life changing,” she maintained.