National Survey of Informal Settlements Near Completion

The Ministry of Economic Growth and Infrastructure Development (MEGID) is nearing completion of a national survey of informal settlements that will provide the data needed to inform a new policy framework for addressing squatting across Jamaica.

Chief Technical Director (CTD) for Housing, Urban Renewal and Projects at MEGID, Authrine Scarlett, said the survey has been completed in 13 of the island’s 14 parishes and is expected to begin in St. James by the end of September.

Addressing a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) Think Tank on Wednesday, (September 23), Mrs. Scarlett said the survey will provide Government with comprehensive, evidence-based information on the number and characteristics of squatter settlements, including their socioeconomic conditions and infrastructure needs.

She explained that the findings will help determine which communities may be suitable for regularisation and which may require relocation, while also supporting the development of the Ministry’s National Squatter Management Policy, which is currently being prepared.

“The policy and this data will go hand in hand to enable government to come up with some concrete strategies and programmes to address squatting once and for all,” Mrs. Scarlett said.

She noted that squatting remains a significant housing challenge, particularly where settlements lack adequate infrastructure and some structures are unsuitable for human habitation.

Mrs. Scarlett said the survey is especially important because planning and intervention efforts have often relied on anecdotal information, noting that “we are hoping that this will now give us concrete evidence-based information on which to plan”.

The Chief Technical Director further explained that squatter management forms part of the Ministry’s broader housing mandate, which extends beyond housing construction to include land use, planning, infrastructure, financing, social issues and urban renewal.

In addition to the National Squatter Management Policy, the MEGID is developing several other policy frameworks, including an Urban Renewal Policy and a Public-Private Partnership Policy, while also reviewing existing housing-related policies and overseeing legislation and regulatory frameworks that support the sector.

The Ministry also has responsibility for housing implementation and squatter regularisation and works closely with agencies such as the Housing Agency of Jamaica, Jamaica Mortgage Bank, Commission of Strata Corporations and the Real Estate Board.

Mrs. Scarlett identified access and affordability, land tenure and titling, and illegal settlements among the major challenges facing Jamaica’s housing sector.

She said addressing these issues is critical to achieving the Government’s objective of ensuring that Jamaicans have access to safe, affordable and legal housing solutions.