Minister of Local Government & Community Development, the Honourable Noel Arscott has congratulated the St Catherine Parish Council and key partners for their drive and determination in building safer communities and planting the seed of success for local governance.

The Minister extended this commendation while speaking at the Launch of the St Catherine Parish Council’s Parish Safety and Security Committee (PSSC), a product of the UNDP’s ‘Enhancing Civil Society Participation in Local Governance for Community Safety’ Project. The Launch took place at the St Catherine Parish Council on Thursday, February 14, 2013.

Minister Arscott said that the project has served to broaden the extent of the progress of the local governance reform process by incorporating the key issues of community safety and security.  He also noted that this was an important issue that has been left solely to the Police for too long.

He said that ‘we-the-People’ must act as a collective to find solutions to issues of crime and violence and ‘build bridges of sustainable peace and harmony that eventually lead to a gentler and more caring society’. It is in this regard that the Minister applauded the efforts of the St. Catherine Parish Council and its partners, the police, the Social Development Commissions, the Jamaica Fire Brigade, the Parish Development Committee and others, for their participation in the UNDP’s community safety project.

“The St Catherine Parish Council has stepped forward in a real way to take charge, provide leadership and support and ensure that it takes its place as the true seat of government of the Parish by exemplifying the main tenets of effective local governance”. He said.