Representatives of the parish’s Community Development Council’s (CDCs) benefitting from the SDC’s initiatives conveyed their satisfaction with the agency’s work during the organisation’s parish forum at the Calvary Baptist Church in Montego Bay on Wednesday (March 27).
“The SDC has been doing a great job. We commend them and ask that they continue to do so, and that other bodies help them to facilitate us, as a community. We have been taught a lot of things and they are working with us to achieve our goals,” declared Joan Calvin, public relations officer, I-Can Initiative Youth Club, in Rose Heights.
In his comments, president of the Glendevon CDC, Kevin Coy, said that the SDC helped his organisation to initiate a domino tournament which is serving to unify the community. He noted that the endeavour, which has been pivotal in stemming conflict among rivals, has been well supported by residents since its inception in February.
“We have decided that we (CDC) want to (positively) impact the community, and we are doing so through the domino tournament,” Coy said
SDC Parish Manager for the St James, Randy Hayle, said the agency is focusing on training community leaders in efforts to foster development within their districts.
Key activities highlighted include: general infrastructural improvements; provision of skills training; and implementation of activities resulting in significant crime reduction.
“We are strengthening the knowledge base of persons within communities, and over the period we have strengthened the governance framework in the parish. Some 588 community representatives from 48 groups have been trained in advocacy, leadership, meeting management, proposal writing, fundraising techniques, conflict resolution, and working with other agencies,” said Hayle.
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