Jamalco Hands Over Titles
By: June 24, 2017 ,The Full Story
Thirty-one families were presented with titles by Jamalco on June 23, as the company seeks to bring closure to its land settlement agreements with persons in several communities in Clarendon.
Minister of Transport and Mining, Hon. Mike Henry, congratulated the bauxite mining company for the initiative, which saw persons who had been resettled as a result of mining activities receiving their titles.
Mr. Henry, who is also Chairman of the Bauxite Lands Land Titling Committee, was guest speaker at the handing over ceremony, held at the Halse Hall Great House in Clarendon on June 23.
“Over the last two years, Jamalco has successfully transferred approximately 99 titles to occupants in ten subdivisions, namely New Bowens, Phases One, Two and Three; Sheckles One and Two; New Wales; Burke and Belle Plain. While this is a good start I want more to be done. A 100 per cent increase in the number of titles issued annually is not an impossible dream, so this is my challenge to Jamalco,” the Minister said.
In response to the need to fulfil its titling obligations, Jamalco established a Land Closure Team in 2015 and signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Land Administration and Management Programme (LAMP).
Jamalco’s Land Closure Administrator, Mrs. Tamara Grant-Bogle, said the association with LAMP has made the process smoother and speedier, in terms of processing time and cost savings.
She reported that Jamalco has transferred 177 titles to persons since the process of acquiring land began.
According to Mrs. Grant-Bogle, titling obligations have also been closed out for two sub-divisions, namely New Wales and Burke in Knockpatrick, Manchester. Jamalco now has the distinction of being the first bauxite company to hand over 232 titles to the Commissioner of Lands.