Tuesday, 29 May 2012

Food For The Poor & Heart/NTA To Provide Training For 500 Basic School Teachers



Ellerslie Pen, Spanish Town, St. Catherine | Tel.: (876) 984-5005 | www.foodforthepoorja.com




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FOOD FOR THE POOR & HEART/NTA TO PROVIDE TRAINING FOR 500 BASIC SCHOOL TEACHERS


Students from Feed My Sheep Day-Care, Pre-School and Basic School located in Kingston recently expressed their gratitude to Food For The Poor(FFP) for the donation of a new school building, after their old school was destroyed by fire in 2008. Sharing in the moment are (from left) Joan Bozeman, Administrator; Leslyn Ingram, Principal; Ingrid Stewart-Wint, Assistant Teacher and Clive Spencer, Senior Field Officer in the Construction Services Department , FFP.

Spanish Town, St. Catherine- (May 29, 2012): Food For The Poor-Jamaica has entered into an agreement with HEART Trust / NTA for the training of 500 early childhood education teachers, over five years. Plans for this scholarship programme are far advanced and at the end of the consultations a Memorandum of Understanding will be signed between both organizations.

Starting in September, FFP-Jamaica will be providing scholarships to Basic School teachers who need to upgrade their qualifications. FFP will disburse 50 teachers’ scholarships every September and January for the next five years. HEART Trust /NTA will be implementing the training. Scholarship recipients will be given the opportunity to pursue Certification Programmes in Level 2 Early Childhood Development or Level 3 Early Childhood Administration. Each FFP-Jamaica scholarship will provide tuition, travelling and meal allowances for the teachers.

Mr. Ron Burgess, Senior Director – Recipient Services, FFP-Jamaica, explained that the organisation is committed to improving the infrastructure of early childhood education, as well as advancing the quality of the training and human resources available to nurture the country’s youth. “We want our nation to have the best quality of teachers and the most caring teachers. That’s why FFP-Jamaica has decided to give scholarships to Basic School teachers employed in the system who want to be trained and certified, but do not have the means to support this activity.”

Mr. Burgess said that FFP-Jamaica would also be assisting those teachers who had been pursuing early childhood education programmes, but have had to discontinue their studies due to financial constraints.

This teacher training programme, initiated by FFP-Jamaica, will run simultaneously with the FFP ‘Jamaica 50 Campaign,’ which will see the charity building/upgrading 50 Basic Schools islandwide in 50 months in celebration of Jamaica’s Golden Jubilee. On April 18, the charity announced that this commemorative education project would be funded through local and international donations and FFP fund-raising activities. The first school in the project will be opened in September this year. In succeeding months, at least one school will open each month for 50 months. Each Basic School will have the capacity to accommodate between 40 and 100 children.

Since its inception, FFP-Jamaica has made significant contributions to the island’s education sector by aiding in the construction of schools and sanitation facilities. Additionally, for the past 13 years, FFP-Jamaica has distributed financial grants to students. In 2011, more than 300 students islandwide benefited from approximately J$5.5 million in back-to-school grants.

The charity has also been instrumental in providing schools with furniture and supplies. For example, during March of this year, FFP-Jamaica outfitted 18 educational institutions with much-needed school furniture.  The institutions were recommended by the Ministry of Education and included Mico University College, York Castle High, Green Park Primary, Manchester High and Kingston College.

Friday, 18 May 2012

Food For The Poor Jamaica Partners with Ministry Of Labour & Social Security To Provide Housing Solutions For Poor Families


Ellerslie Pen, Spanish Town, St. Catherine | Tel.: (876) 984-5005 | www.foodforthepoorja.com




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Food For The Poor Jamaica Partners with Ministry Of Labour & Social Security To Provide Housing Solutions For Poor Families

Kingston City, Kingston (May 18, 2012) – Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS), yesterday afternoon signed a partnership agreement for the provision of housing solutions for poor Jamaican families who are beneficiaries under the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH). The signing ceremony took place at the North Street Office of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security.
(L-R) Andrew Mahfood, Chairman, Food For The Poor Jamaica, and Derrick Kellier, Minister of Labour and Social Security, get ready to sign the Memorandum of Understanding for a Social Housing Project on Thursday May 17 at the North Street Office of the Ministry of Labour. Faith Innerarity, Director General in the Ministry also participated in the Signing Ceremony. Under the agreement housing will be provided for PATH families that are unable to provide suitable housing for themselves based on their socio-economic conditions.

Mr. Andrew Mahfood, Chairman, FFP Jamaica and Hon. Derrick Kellier, Minister of Labour and Social Security, were the major signatories to the agreement. During the Signing Ceremony, Minister Kellier announced that the value of the project this financial year is J$20 million and it will be implemented as a pilot venture across the island. Minister Kellier elaborated on the important features of the FFP -MLLS partnership: “Today represents an example of how public-private partnerships can create greater efficiency in service delivery as the Food for the Poor Jamaica has discounted the total cost for the units by 30% while also providing labour free of cost. The cost for the foundations will be absorbed by the Ministry.”
Derrick Kellier (centre), Minister of Labour and Social Security had the rapt attention of (L-R) Andrew Mahfood, Chairman, Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica, and Ron Burgess, Senior Director, Recipient Services, FFP Jamaica, as they engaged in discussions. Sharing in the occasion was Nicholas Ziadie, Director of Construction Services, FFP Jamaica. The group was at the Signing Ceremony for a Social Housing Project on Thursday May 17 at the North Street Office of the Ministry of Labour. The project is a partnership between FFP Jamaica and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, for the provision of suitable housing for poor families, who are PATH beneficiaries.

Mr. Andrew Mahfood explained that FFP is delighted to be partnering with the Ministry on such an innovative, multi-million dollar social housing project, which would benefit the most needy and vulnerable in the society.  “It is our strong belief that as this project improves the living conditions of the most needy and vulnerable in Jamaica, it will make a significant difference to the country’s social infrastructure,” Mr. Mahfood stated. He pledged his charity’s commitment to ensuring that the houses are “built with the strictest adherence to ensuring equity, transparency and accountability.”

The FFP Jamaica Chairman said each recipient PATH family would receive a one or two bedroom home from FFP, with each home having a personal sanitation unit and a kitchenette. FFP will be providing labour and technical expertise for the construction of the houses.
Andrew Mahfood (left), Chairman, Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica, and Derrick Kellier, Minister of Labour and Social Security, exchanged pleasantries and commendation, after the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding for a Social Housing Project on Thursday May 17 at the North Street Office of the Ministry of Labour. Participating in the event were (L-R in background): Jacqueline Johnson, FFP Jamaica Senior Consultant, Ron Burgess, FFP Jamaica Senior Director - Recipient Services, and Nicholas Ziadie, Director of Construction Services, FFP Jamaica. The project is a partnership between FFP and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, for the provision of suitable housing for poor families, who are PATH beneficiaries.

Describing the collaborative housing initiative as a “life-enhancing project,” Mr. Mahfood added, “We at FFP are optimistic that this housing initiative will break the cycle of poverty in the lives of many Jamaicans.”

The man at the helm of FFP Jamaica said this latest social housing project, fits into the mandate of the charity, which has since its inception been building low-income houses for the poorest of the poor islandwide. He indicated that since the start of this year, FFP Jamaica has built 346 such homes. “Over 22,000 Jamaicans now have a secure and comfortable place to call home, thanks to these efforts.  In 2011 alone, we built 1,298 houses across the island for victims of fire and other distressed families, most including children,” Mr. Mahfood outlined.

Access to this social housing project will be facilitated through the MLSS’s 13 Parish Offices. FFP and the MLSS will jointly review the list of potential recipients, but FFP will make the final determination of the recipients.
A team from Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS) posed for the cameras, after the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding for a Social Housing Project by the two organizations on Thursday, May 17 at the North Street Office of the Ministry of Labour. The major signatories were (front: L-R) Andrew Mahfood, Chairman, FFP Jamaica; Derrick Kellier, Minister of Labour and Social Security;  and Faith Innerarity, Director General in the Ministry. Among those who shared in the occasion were: (background: L-R) Marlene Miller, MLSS Representative; Phyllis Mitchell, Special Consultant to the Minister; Jacqueline Johnson, FFP Senior Consultant; Alvin McIntosh, Permanent Secretary, MLSS; Dunstan Bryan, PATH Project Director; Ron Burgess, Senior Director, Recipient Services - FFP Jamaica; Nicholas Ziadie (partially hidden), Director of Construction Services, FFP Jamaica; Denzil Thorpe, Director of Social Security and Everton Pryce, Consultant, MLSS. Under the Memorandum of Understanding, housing will be provided for PATH families that are unable to provide suitable housing for themselves based on their socio-economic conditions.

The Minister views the Food For the Poor and Labour Ministry partnership as a necessary and effective step in making suitable housing solutions more accessible to those families which have serious socio-economic challenges. “We thank Food For the Poor’s Board, Management and Staff for their willingness and express our gratitude to them for their unwavering support and dedication to our mutual goal of breaking the intergenerational poverty cycle,” Minister Kellier pointed out.

Among persons witnessing Thursday afternoon’s Signing Ceremony were: Mr. Alvin McIntosh, Permanent Secretary, MLSS; Mrs. Faith Innerarity, Director General, MLSS; Mrs. Jacqueline Johnson, Senior Consultant, FFP; Mr. Ron Burgess, Senior Director, Recipient Services, FFP; and Mr. Nicholas Ziadie, Director of Construction Services, FFP; and representatives from the media. Mr. Dustan Bryan, PATH Project Director, gave an overview of the PATH Project during the Signing Ceremony.
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Food For The Poor (FFP)-Jamaica is the largest charity organization in the country.  Food For The Poor Inc., located in Florida, USA, was named by The Chronicle of Philanthropy as the largest international relief and development organization in the United States. It is an interdenominational Christian agency that does much more than feed the millions of hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. FFP provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 96% of all donations going directly to programmes that help the poor. For more information visit our Web site at www.foodforthepoorja.com