Address

 

to the

 

JAMAICA DEVELOPERS ASSOCIATION LTD.

Pre-Christmas Luncheon

at

Devon House, Kingston

 

AN ENHANCED ROLE FOR THE JAMAICA DEVELOPERS ASSOCIATION IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE JAMAICAN ECONOMY

 

Presentation by

 

Gillian Lindsay-Nanton

Resident Representative

United Nations Development Programme

 

Wednesday, 6th December 2000

Let me say that I am very pleased to have been asked to address such a distinguished group of professionals and private sector personalities and who have a major responsibility for assisting in the development of Jamaica.   It is my view that the Jamaica Developers Association has a significant role to play, given that you are the guardians and stewards of a finite resource – land – whose use must be optimized, particularly when there is intense competition between land-use options in small, island developing States.   You also have a responsibility for developing that land, thereby providing shelter/human settlements, as well as, infrastructure at the local level.

 

As you would know, the promotion of shelter construction and improvement not only satisfies a basic human need, but also promotes economic growth and employment.    And this is fully recognized in the Global Strategy for Shelter to the Year 2000, which was approved by the General Assembly of the United Nations in December 1988.   More recently, these issues were reinforced in the Programme of Action for Small Island States agreed to by 111 governments in 1994.

 

It is true to say that, in Jamaica, over the past 30 years or more, there have been important shifts in population, technology, macroeconomic structures, occupational patterns, income distribution and international financial links.    In turn, a wide range of governmental policies, public-sector programmes, planning interventions, and administrative reorganizations, has been implemented to deal with such changes.    While the majority of such policies, plans, and programmes have been related to economic, social and political questions, they have had an indirect impact on human settlements and the utilization of land.  

 

As I understand it, the Jamaica Developers Association came into being owing to the delays in administration processes related to approval and conditions of approval for development control.   This unsatisfactory operation of the Town Planning Department brought about much frustration on the part of developers who also suffered financial loss.  

 

Today, one can take some satisfaction in that a proposal for fast track approvals for development is being actively considered and it has in large measure informed the Development Approval Project which is already paying dividends.   Other accomplishments over the 30 years or so since the Association was established, include the Split Contract which has resulted in considerable saving of government fees and the support for the introduction of the Real Estate Dealers and Developers Act 1987; and the Fair Trading Commission Act.

 

I wish at this juncture to applaud the successes of the Jamaica Developers Association and other professional groups that have lent support to these causes.  

 

What I want to do today however, is to offer a broader perspective on how I believe that we ought to perceive development, that is, in a more integrated, holistic and sustainable manner.

As you would no doubt be aware, the concept of sustainable development that was defined by a United Nations commission in 1986, and which was further elaborated by the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development and Agenda 21, is becoming a widely accepted principle and an appropriate strategy for economic development worldwide.   The most commonly accepted definition says that it “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs”.   

 

As you may know, from a sustainable development perspective, land has various conflicting features.   On the one hand, land as a scarce and fragile resource, is an object for environmental protection.    On the other, land is equally an asset for economic and social development.   It has the capacity for wealth creation, (and this is the dimension that most in this room are familiar with), for attracting and locating investment, and for opening up vital opportunities for the development of the financial sector.   Of course, this latter aspect is somewhat troublesome at this time in Jamaica owing to high interest rates levels.   

 

But I think that the point that I am trying to make is that there are inherent tensions and conflicts between these two perspectives that require appropriate awareness and understanding of land tenure arrangements, as well as, appropriate land information systems for informed decision-making.

 

Any integrated approach therefore to land management would need to optimize the combination of economic and environmental benefits to society that are provided by the land’s soil, mineral, and water resources, while preserving or increasing the capability of the land to provide these and other benefits in the future.  

 

I am raising this as an issue for I am quite convinced that the major long-term land management problem in Jamaica is the degradation of the limited land area due to a variety of factors, including overuse on account of high population pressures; deforestation; and events such as fires.   

 

If we agree with this, then the question that I ask is, as land developers, what is the responsibility of the Jamaica Developers Association in relation to such issues?   Or put differently, does the Association have a responsibility to weigh in on these matters?

 

Surely, the Association can contribute by helping to facilitate the matching of land resources and land uses at every level, in such as way that the satisfaction of human needs and human rights is maximized on a sustainable basis.  

 

More broadly, I do believe that all related professional groups – planners, architects, engineers, land surveyors, quantity surveyors - all have a critical role to play in the future development of Jamaica, particularly in this area.

 

It would not be an overstatement if I say that your imprint is all over Jamaica with the thousands of dwellings, town houses and condominiums, and in the many infrastructure projects such as roads, airports and telecommunications over the years, in which you have been involved.    And it is my view that professional groups have contributed immensely to the progress and development of Jamaica over time.   Now, the challenge of course is how to assist in resuscitating growth in the Jamaican economy.  

 

I submit that one important strategy lies in achieving competitiveness through science and technology.   Of course, this would require keeping pace with the global trend towards a knowledge-based economy – an economy in which relevant knowledge and skills are the key resources, more so than the traditional production inputs, namely labour and capital.  

 

It is the case that most of the basic scientific knowledge and applied technologies needed for integrated land management are already available.    However, effective use of many of these technologies is hindered by a number of factors.   I have earlier referred to current unsustainable land use practices.   But others factors include limited access to appropriate information and technology; lack of appropriate institutional infrastructure to use science and technology effectively; and unresolved conflicts between different land use goals.    Jamaica is faced with most of these challenges.  

 

As you would know, accurate information in a form useful to all stakeholders is essential for integrated land management.   While overtime progress has been made in upgrading the Town Planning Department, a comprehensive computer-based data management system which is equipped to process land-development applications more speedily and to respond more promptly to information requests from the public on land-use and land-development matters, is essential.    The use of computers in planning will enhance the quality, relevance and timeliness of land-related information inputs into decisions on the location of economic activity, the development of human settlements, the location of infrastructure and the conservation of the environment.    

 

 In Jamaica, as I understand it, in certain quarters, use is made of technologies such as the GIS, but this is uneven as information technology platforms are not integrated into a network that provides for easy access to or the flow of needed information in a usable form.   Beyond this, where printed maps exist, many of these require updating and hence do not provide accurate information on which policy measures and integrated land use management decisions can be based.

 

This situation must be improved as a matter of urgency.    That is, adequate financial resources to acquire the technology and to put in place the necessary infrastructural and educational base to support the technology is critical, if an integrated land management strategy is to be pursued.   

 

As regards unsustainable land use practices, Jamaica, like the rest of the Caribbean, has for years over-exploited and destroyed its natural resources.       Examples are the sand mining which is taking place in the upper Rio Minho Valley, the St. Catherine plains and the lower Rio Cobre areas and the mushrooming of “informal” shelter settlements in Kingston, Ocho Rios and Montego Bay, that are independent of the formal market and often outside the law.    I note that many of these situations arise when people are forced to use marginal lands and where there is lack of long-term tenure and no incentive for users to improve or conserve resources for the future.    Given that these matters have implications for sustainable development broadly and the land market in particular, again, I ask the question ‘does the Jamaica Developers Association have a role to play in bringing their collective knowledge to influence action on such matters?’

 

I believe that you have an obligation to more effectively participate in and provide solutions for addressing the constraints to sustainable development.     

Specifically and in addition, I should note that science and technology could be helpful in determining or assigning land tenure and in overcoming many of the barriers to integrated land management.

 

The private sector, of which you are a part, can make major mutually beneficial contributions to technology development and infrastructure building in many different areas that support an integrated approach to land management and in turn sustainable development.  

 

However, political and economic decisions, which support the principle of sustainable development would have to be taken, as well as, the resources committed, if the associated problems are to be overcome.   In addition, a framework for meaningful dialogue and participation that acknowledges diversity and as well, utilizes the dynamism of people would have to be established.  

 

Admittedly, the performance of the Jamaican economy over the past several years has placed constraints on developers and in turn domestic private investment.   While many initiatives aimed at resuscitating growth; protecting the vulnerable; improving governance and ensuring sustainable development, are being pursued by the government, considerable challenges lie ahead.

 

In order to overcome these challenges, it is my view that increased collaboration is required among all stakeholders.  On the one level, enhanced collaboration among professional associations is essential.   At another level, and perhaps more importantly, cooperation and partnership between the public, private and community sectors is a sine-qua-non for national economic development.

 

With regard to collaboration among professional associations, beyond the need for a larger critical mass, it is the case that, there is considerable overlap between the functions of related professional groups in most industry sectors and which would support the case for coordination among such bodies.

 

Concerning the closer partnerships which must be built between the government, private and community sectors, experience has shown that this will depend on the particular institutional, social and political circumstances.  

 

I submit that in Jamaica, the potential for enhanced cooperation and partnership between the three sectors lies mainly in new forms of public-sector support that will enable private-sector and community-sector actors to contribute their distinctive capacities and resources.    Further, any strategy for sustainable development must of necessity be “participatory” and the matter of human settlements management has to become “developmental”, concerned with resource allocation to meet priority needs for strengthening the economy and aware of increased opportunities to raise economic and social standards through cooperative effort.     

 

I do believe that the time has come to deepen and broaden the relationship between these three sectors and to more carefully redefine and recast roles between the public, private and community sectors.    Perhaps most important of all, improved co-ordinated national and international action is needed in providing support for training and institutional development of both public and community sector institutions.   

 

The Jamaica Developers Association and related bodies are well placed to assist in this endeavour.    In addition, I submit that you have an obligation not only to continue to support the redesigning of existing procedures, practices, and legislation, but as well to advocate for sustainable development practices and for the management of human settlements as a dynamic, efficient and participatory process.

 

I thank you.