Manchester Residents Updated on Development Approval Project

Residents of Manchester were, on October 30, updated on the work of the Development Approval Project (DAP), which was established by Government to improve the manner in which business and project transactions are effected, between the private and public sectors.
Addressing a forum, convened at the Golf View Hotel in Mandeville, DAP Chairman, Anthony Chang, advised that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), had provided funding which was used to assist in undertaking the reform of the stamp duty process, and establishment of the online Tax Compliance Certificate (TCC) system recently, adding that technical support was also forthcoming for these areas.
“The project is quite exciting. We have documented much of what we want to do, and, currently, we are working with the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA), to increase efficiency there. Any agency can make contact with us, and we will seek to apply some of the best practices that we have looked at from other jurisdictions,” he informed.
President of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce, Winston Lawson, who also spoke, said there was need for DAP’s activities to move post-haste, in order to “correct some of the ills that have been with us for too long, when it comes to moving projects”.
“We, as a Chamber, support this, and thank Prime Minister (Bruce) Golding, for his commitment to moving the approval process at a faster pace. Our economy will be better with this worthwhile endeavour,” Mr. Lawson pointed out.
The Developmental Approval Process, is a collaborative undertaking between the Government of Jamaica, USAID, and the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC), which seeks to fulfil the country’s needs for planning regulations and guidelines, which will help to ensure Jamaica’s advancement towards sustainability, while efforts at increasing investments are pursued.