Managing Director (JAMAICA SOCIAL INVESTMENT FUND)

Introduction: Just to give you a quick context, in the mid-90s, World Bank introduced the concept of the social investment fund in Jamaica.  Social Investment funds exist all over the world in developing countries, and so, where they exist, they normally reside within the Office of the Prime Minister or the President. These funds serve as independent and autonomous organizations which are separate from the government.  In most cases they are directly funded by the International Development Partners for example the World Bank, the European Union, Caribbean Development Bank, OPEC etc. These International Development Partners (IDPs) offer development assistance and contribute funds through concessionary loan rates or grants to the government. The principle of the agreement is that by not being a part of the centralized government system, the concessionary funds as a specific and targeted fund will provide an avenue to address the appeals of the citizens through local demand mechanisms; as such, it’s normally a smaller fund in the wider context of the government resources established to deliver these services.

Q: Is this government participating in financing this fund?

A: They can, and they do. In 2010 Jamaica signed an IMF agreement, to manage and structure our expenditures; there have however been some fiscal constraints. The government’s contribution to the Fund from taxes and revenues, is largely dependent on what is statutorily required. The government normally supports the larger portion of the administrative and operational costs as well as small counterpart contributions on the capital. Counterpart funding comes into play where a donor may stipulate that they will finance 65/70/80 percent of expenditure but the government must pay the pari-passu, that is, they must pay the counterpart. In that case, the government will make provisions for the expenditure.

Q: Is it project specific or an overall funding?

A: It is project specific. Here at the JSIF, we manage discrete Portfolios governed by various donor grant/loan agreements with different areas of focus. Currently, we are managing six (6) project portfolios. We have two portfolios i.e. Basic Needs Trust Fund Programmes 7 & 8, from the Caribbean Development Bank, two from the World Bank  - the Integrated Community Development Project and the Rural Economic Development Initiative, and then we have European Union funded Poverty Reduction Programme IV and the PetroCaribe Development Fund Portfolio.

The government’s planning arm i.e. the Planning Institute of Jamaica, will engage donors about our national strategies and priorities, with respect to the  types of investments that  are needed and the amount of resources required. This type of engagement and funds identification differs from foreign direct investment, or public private partnership as we are talking specifically about investments towards local community development.

Q: Does it mean that you spot the social need and then you invest the money?

A: The way it works, for example, right now through local and foreign direct investment, there has been an increase in the development of hotel rooms along the north coast, you have more migrations as persons pursue job opportunities and you find that a number of primary and secondary schools along the north coast are overcrowded. Consequently, the government has the need to invest in education infrastructure for the schools in that geographical area. That investment is needed to support the shift of jobs towards the north coast. This investment is not merely an economic investment; it becomes a social investment geared at among other things the development of human capital, because children have the right to go to school.

In the case of the rural parishes, especially persons who live in the high terrain areas have water supply issues. When one considers investing a half a million US dollars or a million US dollars to service a community or a village of 100 or 150 people it is difficult. The social impact is that women and children are often tasked to fulfill the household duties of catching water for the home before and after going to school or work. This is not only time consuming, it is a burden. Children have to be at school and in a similar manner, many women in these communities can’t pursue all occupations because their obligation to keep water in the home to care for the family. In instances such as these communities can appeal to the government for an investment in infrastructure. They can appeal and say we need an investment of a water supply system. They are allowed to write directly to the Fund, and then a team goes out and assesses the situation to determine whether or not the investment is viable

The donors also recognize that this vulnerability exists. Consequently, they say that as long as this project meets specified criteria, you are allowed to implement the required activities. That is why you need to have this concessionary fund, because of this social investment component. We work, for example, on vulnerabilities that exacerbate poverty. That is, the basis upon which we are funded. We currently have a portfolio that is addressing vulnerabilities surrounding economic initiatives, especially in the areas of agriculture and tourism. Under this project, we are developing community based tourism enterprises as currently communities and villages, are not benefiting from the tourism sector opportunities which are present in their communities. We have attractions - caves and hiking tours, and nature parks. Those types of investments right now, for example at the Blue Mountain, the highest point in Jamaica, where locals and tourists hike the trail to the peak, we are making an investment where we are rebuilding all the cabins that go up to Blue Mountain. This will allow those persons who work along the trail to improve their earning and livelihood opportunities. It is unlikely that private investors are going to come in and make those investments. As a result, those persons who live there and exist there will need this opportunity to earn, so we make those types of investment. Similarly, in agriculture, we introduce new technology to small farmers that will allow them to improve their yield and income earning potential.

The third area that we work in is related to crime and violence and youth at risk. In some urban communities, there are of neighborhoods where there is a lot of vulnerability and volatility, and a number of social problems. We have specific interventions that are address those problems. We therefore target the youth at risk with training and opportunities and at the community level, we improve the infrastructure so the police and other service providers have free and clear access to provide the required services. We also partner with other government services, and facilitate access to services or relevant documentation like providing birth certificates, civic documents and things that will allow them to become formalized. We don’t allow the community to fall into this sort of parochial or isolated space, so we facilitate access to government services within these communities. The government, for example, has a list of the top 100 most vulnerable inner city communities under its Community Renewal Programme (CRP) and we are working in approximately 55 of them. We are actually focusing on direct investment which will be geared at dealing with local vulnerabilities and reducing crime.

Then, there is disaster vulnerability. Jamaica is, considered to be, one of the most vulnerable countries in the world, from the point of view of the triple threat that is Earthquakes, flooding and Hurricanes. Historically our pattern of land settlement has placed communities in vulnerable situations, based on where they have chosen to live. Slavery is a part of our history and with that history, a number of our people chose to live in the hills and the higher terrains during and after slavery ended.

Q: Are we talking about the maroons?

A: Yes, the maroons to some extent, but even freed slaves and later generations. The maroons are really the slaves who escaped, but the freed slaves also went up into the hills. The colonialist would be here in Kingston and the other lowland areas. You find you still have persons living in the higher terrain that’s where they settled and still live. It’s difficult to build the best roads and water supply systems in those small villages up in the hills, consequently the vulnerability persists. However, as citizens of the overall population, you have to address their needs as that is where they live.

The JSIF is also seeking to address disaster vulnerability. Attention will therefore be directed at coastline protection, relocation of individuals who live in vulnerable areas, bridge constructions, the provision of fire brigades, rehabilitation of fire stations, and importantly studies and research to inform policy and decision making. We are known and have been recognized over the last 20 years for the quality of our infrastructural works. We are about 80% infrastructure based, and we complement the infrastructure with the soft projects (social projects), which includes maintenance training. This is geared at ensuring that the community not only owns the project but also that the investment is maintained and sustainable.

JSIF also uses decentralized operations to build the capacity of and empower community groups by allowing them to carry out and manage a number of the project activities. This is facilitated through the engagement of the community from the beginning of the project i.e. design through to project completion. We don’t simply go in and implement the project and walk away. From the beginning, when the project is requested, the community is engaged immediately and they are asked what are you thinking about, what kind of project are you requesting. We listen to what they are saying and we apply the technical know-how. Subsequently, communities are provided with infrastructure that they can maintain, not only within their skills, but also within their financial means and with the support of the government, of course. With a school, the government is expected to maintain the school after the JSIF’s investment. To safeguard against the probability of maintenance challenges we don’t leave them with schools with nice carpeted floors. They get something they can maintain - basic infrastructure. That is really what we do.

When you read for example that over 1,500 projects have been implemented, attention is not solely directed at the number of interventions but also at and the total the number of persons who benefited. As a result, beneficiaries are categorized into direct and indirect beneficiaries. Direct beneficiaries would include the child who sits in the classroom that was just built, or the teacher, therefore the persons being directly impacted by the investment. That child in many instances has two brothers and sisters at home and parents. They would be considered indirect beneficiaries as they can benefit from the knowledge that the child will gain and share with them by attending the school. It is estimated that our beneficiaries both direct and indirect, is approximately 2 million people,  about 2/3 of the population, have benefited in some ways from the Jamaica Social Investment Fund.


Q: What were the main reasons of establishing the fund?

A: We were established in 1996. The government had taken a decision to reduce and eradicate poverty. This was facilitated through the approval of the National Poverty Eradication Programme (NPEP) in 1995. The purpose was to enable specific investment to flow towards rural development (poverty is largely a rural phenomenon) and deal with the specific vulnerabilities that faced the poor. As a result of Cabinet’s approval of NPEP, in conjunction with the World Bank, a 4-year project was developed. That project was actually JSIF.

Q: How many projects were there at first?

A: The mandate at that time was to go across the island, find communities in vulnerable situations and address their needs. It was envisioned that this would last for 4 years. What has happened since then however is that when projects  are coming to an end, donors upon  assessing the success that was garnered continue to provide support. We have been doing that for the past 20 years, rolling from project to project. We still remain a project of the Government of Jamaica.

Q: JSIF seems to be a successful entity. How do you explain that?

A: Yes. It is, in 3 ways. It is a success because when the project was initially conceived, there was mistrust relating to a number of issues including: whether the project was another political arm of the government, whether it would  be plagued by of corruption and scandal, and whether or not, there would be transparency and accountability with respect to  how projects would be chosen. These were some of the risks which had to be considered and mitigated against. We have always been held by the IDPs in developing an international standard of accountability in the selection and targeting. It’s a success in the sense that we are recognized as an efficient government agency.

JSIF has been is a successful as we have been able to fulfill requirements of our IDP partners.  Additionally success can also be measured in terms of how the public perceives us, i.e. that we are not, in any way, biased, or not delivering on our commitments. Those are some of the things we hold as strong measures of accountability. You saw that over 1500 projects have been completed, I think, that in our entire history, there may be 3 projects that were incomplete. That was simply because community dynamics broke down to the point where we just could not complete the intervention. We always complete our projects because that is a big part of how we assess our integrity and accountability. We have never had any adverse findings in terms of the management of the money or anything of a similar nature, nor has any IDP had to ask the government to repay money or give back money as a result of funds being misappropriated. Currently, our portfolios are valued at approximately 150 million US dollars slated for implementation over the next 6 years i.e. until 2023. We are currently financed until 2023, but certainly our history has shown that approximately every 2 years there is additional resource inflow.


Q: Would it be normal for me to think that the government might not do their job, if you guys are doing it for them, in a way?

A: There is that risk, but there is a constraint factor. We are constrained by how much money we have.  If you look at the reality of the economy, government revenue inflows pays mostly for salaries or recurring expenses, there is not a lot of money in the government’s capital expenditure for education projects. On the contrary, with respect to JSIF, close to 50% of our total portfolio directs attention at  education projects. Consequently, it is really not a matter of them not doing their job.  The net effect is that, as an agency of Government, our job is to provide where it is needed.

Q: Perhaps, they are just not able to do it?

A: We also serve as an entity which mobilizes  resources. The JSIF has the opportunity of being an organization which can mobilize concessionary resources to build social infrastructure for example schools, which are not regarded as economic investments. It can be argued that you should not borrow to build schools. You should build schools, from your own revenue. Where you can borrow to build roads, or the infrastructure that you think will give a return, it’s more difficult to justify borrowing to build schools or other types of social infrastructure. In that respect, it is imperative that we use concessionary resources to deal with that type of investment. Consequently, measures have to be put in place to ensure that the organization manages our portfolios in a way that ensures that 90% of the budget is not education related as there are number of other vulnerabilities which need to be addressed.



Q: What is the spread of your social impact?

A: I will show you the map. One of the things we struggle with is that we are not as well known in Kingston due to what has predominantly been a targeted focus on selected communities and as a result, our reach in that parish is not as wide as that of other parishes. If you go into rural areas of Portland, St. Mary and St Elizabeth for example, everybody knows about the JSIF because of the infrastructural works which have been undertaken.

Q: But Kingston also has some criminality issues?

A: Yes.

Q: So you could actually open some project helping maybe poor districts and reducing crime?

A: In the Inner city of Kingston, we are well known.  Currently, our largest project is the Integrated Community Development Project. It is a 42 million US dollar loan which targets 18 communities located in seven parishes. As the name suggests, the organization is seeking not merely to make one-off investments but instead to provide a holistic package of services which is integrated in several ways with attention being directed at the key issues relating to the environment, infrastructure development and skills training. We are well known in these communities because we have a presence there, due to the work that has been done over the years. If you walked over to the Pegasus Hotel in the center of our business district in Kingston, and mentioned JSIF to people, most won’t know because that cohort is not our target beneficiary.


Q: Have you been able to measure the social impact and economic impact of your operations?

A: If you want to measure our impact we are able to provide the evidence. Two points clearly demonstrate the impact that we have had over the years. Firstly, for you to receive a second opportunity to receive funding, you must be able to show the impact. Consequently, a number of studies have been conducted to measure the impact of our projects. Every program starts with baseline assessments, midterm reviews and there is a final review. Internally, I have a Monitoring and Evaluation department here and that’s what they do, they advise us in terms of if and how ongoing programs and interventions are meeting the desired objectives. If aspects of the intervention do not work as well as envisioned we get a bit hard on ourselves, to ascertain how to address the gaps. Notably, we have received several recognitions for the work that has been done over the years. We won the Gleaner Honour Award twice for Outstanding Service. In terms of environmental standards, we are the only public entity in the Commonwealth Caribbean that has ISO 14001 certification. This is a risk because our work environment is not restricted to these four walls. To maintain that accreditation and enforce strong environmental practices is a significant achievement.

The World Bank’s environment management framework and their land resettlement framework are based on systems we developed together that meet and exceed their requirements. We get waivers from the bank in terms of these things. We have received a lot of international assistance. A number of international experts and professionals have been brought in to build the capacity of the organization alongside similarly capable local professionals, economists, engineers, quantity surveyors, social service persons, attorneys, and financial advisors. JSIF  therefore is specialized organization. That is one of the strengths of the organization. As a government entity, we also provide expertise to the government. The CCRIF, the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility is a regional insurance facility that addresses vulnerabilities relating to hurricanes and other disasters, when they occur. When this type of facility was being designed, even though that was not our core area, because of our systems, we provided those services to the government which allowed for the establishment of the facility followed by the handing over.

We work within six sectors of the government. We work in health, education, security, agriculture, tourism and water. We are also able to provide our technical expertise. Procurement represents one of our areas of strength. We are one of the strongest procurement entities in government and the donors have certified all our systems. It provides a strong capacity and focal point for the government. A lot of times when you read about JSIF, you may think of an agency that is only helping people with poverty, but we are much more than that. We don’t want to be perceived as an agency that just helps with process of poverty; we are actually a highly capable, technical agency that is an arm of the government that mobilizes resources and implements interventions.

Q: NGOs in Jamaica are not as numerous like other emerging economies. Why is that?

A: I am disappointed that we don’t have as many NGOs as we should. The first thing is that, in the rural areas where we do a lot of work, it almost does not exist. One of the things we have had to do over the last 20 years is build NGO capacity in rural areas. We call them Community Based Organizations (CBOs). We have had to, over the years facilitate the process of registering groups to become legal entities. The government has a mechanism where you can become registered as a benevolent society which allows groups to act for the good of the community. It’s not a closed group and the initiatives that are undertaken are for the benefit of the community. A Credit Union is considered a benevolent society. They are similar to that and they are legal. The important thing about them being legal is that they can now enter into agreements, open bank accounts and manage funds. For example, we implement summer camps for children. If I had to go now and run 50 summer camps, I don’t have the staff to do that, however I am able to use community based organization to implement the project. I don’t have the required number of NGOs to undertake the initiative either. I am however able to use this legal entity. I can sign up a contract, transfer funds to their account, and then they are legally bound to carry out a stipulated number of activities.  We positively impacted on the capacities CBOs. Over the years, we have trained and developed close to 60-80 legal entities, sometimes you have to create what you need to succeed. We needed this to succeed. Many other countries have a strong NGO network; agencies like ours are normally decentralized. I have been to Romania and Moldova, when I went there, the organizations could consist of approximately 10 employees who are actually implementing projects valued at the same amount of money. They however do not need as many people working in their offices because they have a network of NGOs and CBOs who they sign agreements with and they carry out all the work. Our organization requires more staff because we don’t have a CBO or NGO community that is similar in number to those countries that were mentioned.

Q: You create your own subsidiaries in the way that these CBOs are JSIF membranes working for the good and sake of community.

A: Right, they are operatives in the communities. It is an organic way of doing things because you don’t have to go and create relationships and build trust because they are known in the community. That is a benefit of an NGO. NGOs typically are already operating in the community. You need that entry point of trust. Sometimes, especially in a volatile area you have to build trust, it can take as long as 3 years for some communities to trust you. Given the level of crime and violence that affects some our communities behavior change will not be realized immediately. You have to go, sit there with them and build relationships. If an NGO is present, then you are able to have that entry.

Q: Have you had any success story that you generally like to talk about? Projects? Moving from all the projects that were successful are there like two or three that comes up to mind?

A:. It has to do with an agriculture project, after 20 years of being in communities with a great focus on the provision of infrastructure the conversation always goes back to jobs. “Yes, you are giving me a road, water supply, but I need a job. I need income.” We formed a partnership with the Jamaica Bauxite Institute to facilitate access to mined out lands and establish greenhouses on the land for the farmers because much of the land is not usable. Many of those farmers have now been affected by the slowdown of the industry. In the earlier days, it didn’t matter because individuals were earning. Now, they have no earning potential. In order to address some of these issues, we have instituted the typical system of clustering and as such farmers have been placed into clusters of up to 20 greenhouses. A lot of resistance was faced because greenhouses are normally aluminum frame structure. The construction  of one of these greenhouses cost somewhere in the region cost 50 or 60 thousand US dollars, which will not be affordable to a poor farmer. This situation is further exacerbated in times of  disaster, if the greenhouse gets damaged as replacement costs are generally high. As a result, we decided that we are going to continue to use our methodology of giving them a solution that recognizes their specific capabilities and realities. The solution included the use of 2x4 or 4x4 wood structures breakaway sheeting, an introduction to greenhouse technology farming which is a little different from what they are used to. In Jamaica, for example, we have farmers and they are not growers. I make that distinction and say that they are farmers and not growers because it’s something that is passed down from generation to generation individuals don’t have a formal training. A grower would know that he needs to grow 50,000 pounds of a particular crop and they are calculated in their efforts to ensure that this happens. Individuals were introduced to the technique of greenhouse farming versus open-field farming. Focus was placed on areas such as  fertigation, pesticides and pest control. Farmers are now seeing yields which are 3 fold what they were seeing before. Additionally, they are able to become more reliable providers to the hotel sector, we have been able to give them training and exposure to global GAP, HACCP which many of the international chains will require. These standards require that all production meet international standard for entry into local hotels. We have been able to really change their thinking and behavior under the project, which is what allows them to earn. Of note, there was great demand for the first crop that was reaped because the Jamaica food import bill, which is mostly for hotels, is more than a billion US dollars. Import substitution is something that we are trying to use technology and new techniques to address. That represents a big area for us. We are moving people away from poverty.

Q: Are you managing to create a different mindset?

A.    Right, and we are showing persons that the opportunity is right where they are. The paradigm shift for me is not simply about giving beneficiaries an intervention  – ‘I am going to build the school because that is going to make you better”, then you walk away for 5-10 years and come back and say ,” Are you better or still the same?”. As part of the shift we also look at where the opportunities are, because opportunities are everywhere. We can’t walk into the communities and say,” You are experts and we are going to give it to you”, and go. We have to also leave them with some opportunities to grow and be more able to meaningfully contribute to the solution.  With our cabin solutions in Blue Mountain, we are not going to walk in and say we are only going to fix the cabins. Individuals are trained to be tour guides, and to have relevant first aid items and skills. We are proud about that type of intervention.

Karst topography where you have underground rivers and caves exists in Jamaica and few other parts of the World. Here, the attraction is for tourists to go under and look. We have a beneficiary, who has one such attraction on his property and he is struggling as he has developed it. He says this, “If I got one bus load of persons for the month, I would break even.” Yet, tourists are sitting in the hotel, saying, “I don’t know how to get to another attraction except for the beach.” You could get these tourists to walk around at a local attraction for a day and get back to the hotel. This kind of opportunity is what we are trying to foster.

In Jamaica, we have, I think, approximately 11 ship terminals, that is we can take 11 cruise ships in a day, but we also need to have the attractions. Jamaica has the best potable water in the Caribbean and it is a secret as to also why the ships come to Jamaica that is because they have to come here for potable water, we have to take advantage of that. We have to develop more attractions, create more organic opportunities for persons because you now have ships, with around 6,000 passengers on it, one which is coming next month,  and this guy says, ”I just need one bus load for a month”. Nobody is supposed to be poor in this country. All of these opportunities are there. But prior to the cruise ship saying to the passenger, you can go to these caves, you need to be licensed by the government and certified and adhering to the required standards.  That’s what we do, because who is going to invest in that guy to get him to that standard? He doesn’t have the money to do it. The government has to do it, to create that opportunity. These are the types of interventions that we are now investing in.

Q: You have studied in Florida and you have got extensive professional experience in engineering and project management, IBM, Mills, World Bank, EU… Out of all of these achievements, what are you most proud of?

A: I am a Civil Engineer by training. I really did do some great projects, engineering wise, working in the United States. I have been working here now at JSIF for more than 10 years. I think when I returned to Jamaica, it was  a patriotic act, you want to come back and contribute to your country’s development. This work is important to me because I don’t see why anybody in Jamaica is poor. I don’t understand it. I do consider, certainly, much of the work that I have done here to be a great achievement in terms of being able to influence community development and being able to apply my skills and ensure that, from a technical standpoint, that sustainable infrastructure is being developed and there is good value for money. I was reading the newspaper this morning and it says, a government agency just lost 2 billion dollars developing some housing projects. That doesn’t make me feel good because we are too vulnerable to reap negative returns on investments.  I always speak about the fact that we must, as a country, get value from infrastructure development because we borrow money to do these things. If you don’t get that positive return, it’s wasted. I can speak about great projects that I have done, but I don’t think, in relation to impact, that they would compare. I think my work here has had more impact on human life and national development.

Q: Tell us about Jamaica and why come and invest here?

A: It’s an easy question for me because I am Jamaican. When I look at Jamaica I don’t see poor; I see Jamaicans, I see a country of wealth and potential. Jamaica for example, is the seventh most recognized brand in the world. The global economy and the information economy give us global presence. Our culture, influence and global presence are amongst our natural resources and it’s with those assets that we can attract investments. What we are doing is now creating a more enabling environment for that investment to flow in and that’s what we work on every single day. JSIF works, at the base of the pyramid, at the community level, in human capital development, to support persons who would be working to create that enabling environment. So that’s a big part of our role in this function because let’s say you walk into a restaurant or hotel, you expect that the person who will engage you will treat you with a certain standard of service, that person is really coming from the base of the pyramid. They need to have the skills so that they support the investment, because today you have to be competitive. We will create that enabling environment, compete to our advantage and mobilize investments to maximize returns to investors and realize our potential as a strong nation.