A GROWTH-INDUCEMENT STRATEGY FOR JAMAICA IN THE SHORT AND MEDIUM TERM

proposals had widespread agreement across stakeholders in the public and private sectors.
Changes to the tax regime in these areas became effective in mid-May 2011.
2.6 The Community Renewal Programme (CRP) is a centrepiece of a holistic growth
strategy. There has been substantial progress in the preparatory work for its
implementation, notably:
establishment and full operation of a CRP Secretariat housed at the PIOJ;
selection of the 100 most volatile and vulnerable communities targeted for
intervention over the ten-year life of the project;
identification of a funding envelope for the life of the project;
initial allocation of approximately $3.9 billion in FY 2011/12 for the execution of
CRP projects.
2.7 In sum, we are encouraged by developments leading to the preparation and
adoption of the growth strategy and the early signs relating to implementation. In
particular:
1. The PIOJ has prepared, disseminated and received broad-based stakeholder buyin
for a Growth-Inducement Strategy for the Short and Medium Term, which is
fully aligned with Vision 2030 while addressing existing social and economic
conditions.
2. The Growth-Inducement Strategy was prepared utilizing careful economic
analysis and focused public scholarship through extensive and broad-based
consultations within the public and private sectors, including key civil society
groups and NGOs.
3. A highlight of the stakeholder engagement process was the hosting of a Public
Symposium, which provided reactions indicating general support for the Growth-
Inducement Strategy, even while highlighting areas of risk which require
continuous monitoring and further analysis.
4. Important elements of the Growth-Inducement Strategy have been incorporated
into the FY 2011/12 budget, notwithstanding continued fiscal constraints inherent
in the need to maintain the credibility of the GOJ’s economic programme agreed
under the IMF SBA.
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