The government, in partnership with the National Water Commission (NWC), held a water commissioning ceremony for residents of Runnit and Middle Quarters who were without access to potable water.

At the ceremony, on Friday, March 14, Herman Fagan, acting vice president of operations at NWC, said it was a great pleasure to be in the parish of St Elizabeth another time to commission the water project.

“At the NWC, one of our core objectives, one of our strategic objectives, is to improve coverage and operational efficiency, and projects of this nature will go a long way in terms of ensuring that our objectives are met,” Fagan said.

He also outlined a few crucial areas in St Elizabeth that are scheduled to receive water by the end of 2025, which will benefit residents and the business community. “For Old Pepper to Gutters transmission pipeline, that project is valued in excess of $331 million, and that is just a part of the larger project, which is $2.9 billion. That is significant. That phase of the project is slated for completion in December 2025. Importantly, 110 residents and businesses in Greater Mandeville will benefit as a result.”

Additionally, Fagan emphasised that the scope of this project includes the installation of 6 kilometres of 24-inch iron pipes from Old Pepper wells to the Gutters facility. “You might ask the question, why does this matter? It matters because the people of Mandeville and its environment will experience more stable water access with reduced disruption and more consistent supply times,” he added.

Member of Parliament for St Elizabeth South Western Floyd Green further expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Andrew Holness for his commitment to the upliftment of residents in rural communities through his support of water projects.

“I want to thank our Prime Minister for continuing to focus on rural development. Some people talk about rural development; others do action to make our rural communities better. For a long time, people have said we have to help rural; we have to do more for our country communities. But when you ask them what they have done, they are unable to show you what they have done. We can say that this prime minister has led the greatest transformation around access to water than any prime minister in the history of Jamaica,” he said.

Green expressed that this initiative is very important for residents in St Elizabeth because some areas in the parish have been without water for a very long time. “In 2011, a study was done about the water supply in St Elizabeth, and the study showed that only 50 per cent of our parish was supplied with water. In fact, only 44 per cent of the households in St Elizabeth had access to potable water, but you know what made it worse? Of the 50 per cent that had pipes, 50 per cent of those pipes were laid before I was born, were laid over 40 years ago, and they were not maintained; they were not changed,” he added.

He emphasised that having come to the constituency, everybody and every area that he went to said they had water problems. “You heard MP help us with the water, and I can tell you we haven’t looked at the water and left it; we have made things much better than we found it.

“We do this not for power, but we do this to ensure that our people are better. We do this to ensure that our communities are better. We will always choose Jamaican people; we will always choose to develop our rural communities. In fact, one thing you know about this Andrew Holness-led government [is that] we will always choose Jamaica; we will always put Jamaica first,” he continued.

Furthermore, Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation Matthew Samuda outlined that there are 13 major capital projects under contract to be commissioned.

“That is J$7.3 billion procured, under contract pipes in Jamaica… but I wish to assure residents in two other parts of St Elizabeth that your calls and cries have not gone unheard. Two of the major projects that will see significant investments starting in April from the National Water Commission include the installation of pipes from Maggotty to Newton… that is under contract already for $44 million of works in addition to the pipes already purchased,” he said.

He further outlined that Black River Town Centre to Arlington is already under contract; pipes are purchased and in stock, and $80 million of capital works is ready to be deployed in that area.

Samuda also emphasised that these plans are not announcements or empty promises, as have happened in the past.

“This is the revenue of the National Water Commission being supported by the Consolidated Fund to implement water projects at a faster rate than has ever been done in Jamaica, and this isn’t investment for investment’s sake; it is investment in your quality of life; it is investment in our commitment to Vision 2030, our Jamaica Vision 2030, to ensure that every man, woman, and child has access to potable water by 2030, and every man, woman, and child has access to suitable sanitation by 2030,” he said.

He also reported that 21,213 Jamaicans who had accounts disconnected because of unpaid bills reached out to his ministry after the prime minister’s announcement in November. “They have come in and are at varying stages of the process. I am happy to report that $3,200 of these Jamaicans who were suffering without their water connection have had their debts written off because your government cares. I am happy to report that they are reconnected.

“5,135 customers are in the queue to be reconnected on top of the 3,271 Jamaicans who have already benefitted. This is because your government cares; it is also because we understand how to manage the water commission. It is why we have not used it and run amok as others have done in the past; it is because we have built financial buffers both with the NWC and with the central government that we are able to do these things, and for those who didn’t qualify for full write-offs but qualified for 50 per cent we have also ensured that we earned $207 million that we wouldn’t have earned for the water commission through this exercise,” he added.