Security and Justice Programme Hosts Opportunity Fairs

Registration for birth certificates is one of the major focusses of the opportunity fair being hosted by the Citizens’ Security and Justice Programme (CSJP) in several inner city communities between April 24 and May 22.
In an interview with JIS News, Community Action Officer with the Programme, Marcia Flynn outlined that, “The objectives of the opportunity fair are to legitimise the residents and their children so we give them a chance to get on the national grid. So they will get the opportunity to register for birth, marriage and death certificates”.
According to Ms. Flynn, persons have been unable to access training from the HEART Trust/ NTA, because they do not have some critical items such as a Tax Payer Registration Number (TRN).
“The opportunity fair is basically to get these things done legitimately, because we have persons who can’t access some things from these communities because they are not equipped. A case in point is a student who has gone through the CSJP training and I can’t send in his application to HEART for him to get his Level One certification because he still does not have a TRN number,” she pointed out.
Some of the other areas that the fair will address are wealth creation, and health.
“There is an opportunity for wealth creation for persons who are employed as we will have the City of Kingston Credit Union, the Electoral Office of Jamaica, and access to credit through Micro Enterprise and Financial Limited,” she informed.
The Community Action Officer added that, “we will be promoting good health, both mental physical, and skin care. And as such we will be bringing in the Diabetes Association and they will be providing services such as cholesterol, blood, and sugar testing, and foot care.”
The first fair was held in Trench Town St. Andrew, on Friday (April 24), with a second scheduled for May 1. Other fairs will be held in Denham Town on Friday May 15 and in Hannah Town on Friday May 22. The CSJP is part of the Government’s social intervention thrust.
Under the Community Action Component of the CSJP, a range of violence prevention services are delivered to residents of 15 communities across the Kingston metropolitan area, and St. Andrew. Another 11 are delivered in Montego Bay St. James and Savanna-La- Mar Westmoreland.
Participating agencies include, the Registrar General’s Department, the Electoral Office of Jamaica, the Inland Revenue Department, the National Health Fund, the Ministry of Health, the Diabetes Association of Jamaica, the National Insurance Scheme, Kirk Distributors, and the National Youth Service.