World Bank Technical Team Coming

A World Bank technical team is coming to Jamaica for discussions with the Government on the extent of assistance which the multilateral institution can provide in developing the Housing, Opportunity, Production and Employment (HOPE) initiative that was recently announced by Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness.

This was disclosed by the Bank’s newly appointed Caribbean Country Director, Tahseen Sayed, who indicated that “we are positive on that”.

“That’s an area where we have immediately asked our technical team to begin dialogue with the Government on,” she informed.

Mrs. Sayed made the disclosure during a meeting with journalists at the institution’s Jamaica Country Office at the Courtleigh Corporate Centre in New Kingston on Friday, April 7.

The HOPE initiative, which Mr. Holness announced during his 2017/18 Budget Debate presentation, will see the Government targeting educational and job opportunities for young persons, aged 19 to 24 years, who are not employed or enrolled in school or any programme of training.

This undertaking will involve skills training through apprenticeship work programmes, personal development and responsibility, and citizenship and volunteerism.

Mrs. Sayed said the initiative was one of several matters discussed with Mr Holness, who raised it during their meeting on Wednesday (April 5), which formed part of her week-long familiarisation visit to Jamaica.

She said the HOPE initiative was consistent with the requisite approach she emphasised in relation to opportunities targeting young people.

“We did indicate that the work to bring the youth into more productive engagements (requires) a very integrated approach, particularly for those in the more marginalised parts of the country,” she said.

Mrs. Sayed said the technical team being dispatched to Jamaica will seek to flesh out the HOPE initiative with Government representatives, “to see how we can help”.

“Our role is not just financier, but also trying to help countries by (learning) more about what has worked or not worked. We would like to bring that to the table as well,” she added.