Prime Minister Dr. Andrew Holness has urged Jamaicans to think more carefully about climate and disaster risks when deciding where to build or purchase homes.
His comments come as Jamaica continues to examine how communities and critical infrastructure should be rebuilt following Hurricane Melissa, with resilience increasingly becoming part of the national reconstruction conversation.
Holness said homeowners and prospective builders should pay closer attention to the physical conditions surrounding a property, particularly in areas vulnerable to flooding, erosion or unstable terrain.
“Every day, Jamaicans are making decisions… about where they are going to build. I am reaching out to those people who have chosen to go and build houses in riverbeds, on unstable gully banks, on slopes that are known to be unstable, that we now must consider that the investment that you are making in your home in these areas that are prone to disasters, that we must reconsider them,” he said.
He also encouraged Jamaicans to consider whether their homes are designed and constructed to cope with increasingly severe weather.
“I would encourage everyone to consider the climate issues, whether it is the storms that will come, the shifting soil on which you may be building, the heat; consider all these factors in where you choose to live and choose to build,” he appealed.
The Prime Minister made the remarks during the September 22 signing of a US$5-million grant agreement involving the Government, European Union and World Bank.
The funding will support the Jamaica Hurricane Melissa Reconstruction Implementation Support Project, which is intended to strengthen the country’s ability to carry out its wider reconstruction and resilience programme.
Holness said the damage caused by Hurricane Melissa should also prompt a broader rethink of how Jamaica plans communities, transport networks and public infrastructure.
“It may mean bigger drains, new gully courses, converting roofs from zinc sheeting to concrete, stronger building codes, new building systems and moving our roads from the coast more inland. It may mean building a new airport because both our airports are at sea level on the coast,” he pointed out.
He said resilience planning could extend far beyond housing, including roads, hospitals and emergency services.
“It may mean building a road network, a highway network, passing through all the parishes that keep the country connected regardless of what natural disaster may come. It may mean moving hospitals that are on the coast to safer, higher ground and building them to a new standard. Same thing for our police stations, our fire brigade, our parish council offices,” Dr. Holness said.
The remarks underline a growing policy focus on not simply replacing what was damaged, but rebuilding in ways intended to reduce Jamaica’s exposure to future disasters.
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