Page 54 - JSIF Magazine Approved-v2-web4

The Jamaica Social Investment Fund was formed in February 1996 as part of the Government of Jamaica’s
initiative to reduce poverty. The Fund was designed to provide investments in social sector projects across the
country and assist the Government in responding to the needs of underserved and vulnerable groups which were
not currently aided by existing poverty alleviation programmes. The Fund focuses on community-based projects
and overseen by an autonomous Board whose members are drawn from the public, private and non-governmental
sectors.
The financing of the Fund resulted from the collaborative efforts of the Government of Jamaica, and private and
international financial institutions such as, the World Bank and the European Union. Political leaders, including
then Prime Minister P.J. Patterson and Opposition Leader, Edward Seaga, representatives from international
agencies such as the Inter-American Development Bank, the European Union and the World Bank saluted JSIF in
its year of conception.

1996

“The introduction of the Jamaica Social Investment Fund at this time signals the intensification of
Government’s efforts to significantly reduce the levels of poverty within the society. This is a primary
goal of Government’s Social Agenda Development Programme. The Social Agenda Development Programme
recognizes the need to increase funding for the social sector which has been occasioned by the country’s
prolonged structural adjustment and the resulting pressure on the fiscal budget. My administration is of the view
that social development must take place alongside economic development and that people’s lives should not be
placed on hold while efforts are being made to come to grips with economic realities.
It is my sincere hope that community based non-governmental public and private sector agencies will utilize the
resources provided through this avenue to make meaningful improvements to the quality of life of the most needy
individuals and communities.”
RT. HON. P.J. Patterson, MP
FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF JAMAICA

(Excerpt from Official Statement- Launch of the Jamaica Social Investment Fund)

Published in the Jamaica Gleaner, November 27, 1996.

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