Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal (JAMP), in partnership with the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ), officially launched their ‘procurement tracker’ and ‘national budget tool’ on the JAMP website on Thursday (December 8) to allow the public an easy method of keeping government officials accountable.

The project was funded by the European Union with co-financing from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), UK AID, and the Open Society Foundations and launched at an event themed ‘Mind Yuh Business Ja: Strengthening Citizens’ Role as a Partner in Governance and Accountability’ at the Liguanea Club in St Andrew.

JAMP Executive Director Jeanette Calder pointed out that Jamaica has everything that is needed to make change.

She listed Legislation, Press Freedom, Oversight Agencies, Parliamentary Oversight, Civil Society Organisations, Development Partners, Technology, Responsive Leaders and a self-driven generation of intrepid young Jamaicans as being more present within the society, compared to other countries in the region.

While the finance ministry has made the budget available, it is not suitable for the average Jamaican to peruse.

The national budget tool, called the ‘Budget Tracker’ on the JAMP website, gives citizens a chance to clearly dissect different parts of the National Budget in a more understandable way and monitor more closely the work of public officials.

The procurement tracker gives access to a database of public contracts awarded between April 2006 and September 2020, valued at more than $800 billion, and allows users to explore what contracts for public procurement have been awarded, by who, to who, when and with what methods.

“This shows you which private companies are getting the most contracts in terms of value, and it shows you which private companies are getting the most contracts in terms of number of contracts. If there is a specific private-sector entity that you want to have a better understanding about their ties with the government, particularly as you look at their contracting over time, there’s a filter there that will produce those results,” Calder explained.

Both tools are now available for use on the JAMP website, jampja.org.

Calder also introduced the sectoral governance scorecard, the first in an annual series, which will highlight the achievements in each sector.

JAMP examined all the sectoral presentations for the 2021-22 financial year and analysed the 108 commitments made.

According to the summary findings, 41 commitments were kept, 33 are in progress, and 34 were not kept.

She noted that a more detailed card would be released in the media on Monday (December 12).