NaRRA Active on the Ground, While Building Out Internal Structures

The National Reconstruction and Resilience Authority (NaRRA) is actively engaged on the ground while work continues to build out the Authority’s administrative systems and personnel.

Chief Executive Officer, Ambassador Major General (Ret’d) Antony Anderson, said that teams have been speaking directly with residents and conducting field visits to project sites to guide the Authority’s programme, planning and execution.

“These visits have allowed us to see, first-hand, the work being undertaken, engage with the programme and project managers, contractors, technical teams, and gain key insights that will inform NaRRA’s approach to programme, planning and delivery,” he said.

Ambassador Anderson was addressing Tuesday’s (September 22) signing ceremony for a US$5 grant agreement between the Government, the European Union (EU) and the World Bank to bolster the country’s capacity to deliver the national reconstruction and resilience programme.

The agreement, in support of the Jamaica Hurricane Melissa Reconstruction Implementation Support Project, was signed at the AC Hotel in St. Andrew on September 22.

The NaRRA CEO, in reporting on the Authority’s activities since his June 1 appointment, said the team has toured Black River and Parottee in St. Elizabeth and communities in Westmoreland, to get a first-hand look at the hurricane damage and hear from citizens.

“We want to see the conditions for ourselves and discuss the ways in which we can rebuild in a manner and in locations that protect lives but enhance livelihoods and create safer and more resilient communities,” he stated.

Ambassador Anderson said that work continues to build out the NaRRA staff, noting that the organisational structure has been settled on, job descriptions created, and recruitment is in train.

“This team will combine the right blend of technical, project management, procurement, financial, communications, and administrative capabilities. We are deliberately developing an organisation that has the capacity required to deliver speedy reconstruction while maintaining the standards of accountability expected of a public institution,” he pointed out.

He noted that premises have been secured for the Authority’s operational base, with move in expected in a couple weeks.

“Simultaneously, we are scoping and acquiring the information and communications technology (ICT) tools, systems, and platforms necessary to support internal operations and program delivery,” Ambassador Anderson said.

“We have engaged in bilateral discussions around support and delivery options. We’ve engaged MDAs (ministries, departments and agencies) whose portfolios intersect NaRRA’s indicative projects. We’ve also engaged the private sector as we refine the FAST (Facilitated Acceleration of Strategic Transformation) programme, apprise them of opportunities, and assess their own capacity to support what we’re trying to do,” he added.

Ambassador Anderson thanked EU and the World Bank for their partnership in providing the grant to Jamaica, which will advance the institutional development of NaRRA, enabling the entity to deliver reconstruction projects efficiently and effectively.

“The grant is not just a technical assistance arrangement. It is actually a partnership in building Jamaica’s capacity to deliver,” he noted.