JSIF Spends $4 Billion to Finance School Projects

The Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) is making a significant contribution to education, as part of its mandate to facilitate empowerment and assist in nation building. A sum of $4 billion has been spent over the past 19 years to finance various school related projects and programmes, under the JSIF’s National Poverty Eradication Programme (NPEP).   “The JSIF is a major investor in education at the Early Childhood, Primary, All-Age and Junior High levels,” Managing Director of the Fund, Omar Sweeney, told JIS News       Addressing a recent JIS ‘Think Tank’,  he said that over 500 learning institutions have benefitted from JSIF’s intervention, with the primary focus on Early Childhood education.

“The Fund has invested heavily in establishing early childhood institutions to meet international standards,” Mr. Sweeney said.  He noted that the $4 billion represents 40 per cent of the total amount that has been expended through the Fund to finance hundreds of intervention programmes across all 14 parishes.

Of the amount, $2 billion has been spent to build, rehabilitate and expand 237 Basic and Infant schools; provide equipment and furniture for some 50 schools; and construct perimeter fencing for 29 of the schools. The JSIF has not only expanded its support in terms of equipment and infrastructure, but has done a number of capacity building initiatives in the schools.

“We have conducted training workshops for principals and senior teachers in all of the schools that JSIF has assisted.   These workshops are extensions of the Ministry of Education National Leadership Programme,” Mr. Sweeney informed.

Established in 1996 as a component of the Government’s  National Poverty Eradication Programme,  JSIF was designed primarily to channel resources to small scale community based projects.