COMET II Final Report_FINAL.pdf

COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT &

TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II

(COMET II)

FINAL REPORT

DECEMBER 2, 2013 – DECEMBER 1, 2018

December 2015

This publication was produced for review by the United States Agency for International

Development. It was prepared by ARD, Inc., through its operating unit Tetra Tech DPK.

Contract: 267-C-00-10-00006-00

COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT &

TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II

(COMET II)

FINAL REPORT

DECEMBER 2, 2013 – DECEMBER 1, 2018

DISCLAIMER

The author’s views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the

United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government.

COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II (COMET II) | 1

ABBREVIATIONS & ACRONYMS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS & LESSONS LEARNED

COMPONENT ONE: COMMUNITY DRIVEN CRIME PREVENTION

Activity 1: Small grants to provide support for community-based organizations and community-based projects

Activity 2: Support and strengthen legitimate local governance structures including CBOs and community development committees

Activity 3: Supporting youth empowerment in communities and creating youth-centered spaces and activities

Activity 4: Enhance the adaptive capacity of selected communities to respond to the negative impacts of global climate

COMPONENT TWO: ESTABLISH AN ENVIRONMENT SUPPORTIVE OF THE RULE OF

LAW

Activity 1: Civic Leaders/Civil Society Organizations involvement in a culture of lawfulness

Activity 2: Mass media campaigns to foster a culture of lawfulness

Activity 3: Engaging police to promote a culture of lawfulness by example

COMPONENT THREE: ALTERNATIVE PROGRAMS FOR AT-RISK YOUTH

Activity 1: Prevention

Activity 2: Diversion/Alternative Sentencing

Activity 3: Rehabilitation

COMPONENT FOUR: COMMUNITY BASED POLICING

Activity 1: Continue support for the national rollout of Community Based Policing Strategy

Activity 2: Support for continued implementation and institutionalization of the JCF Anti-

Corruption Strategy

RESULTS

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE INTERVENTIONS

CONTENTS

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FINAL REPORT (DECEMBER 2, 2013 – DECEMBER 1, 2018) | 2

COMPONENT ONE

COMPONENT TWO

COMPONENT THREE

COMPONENT FOUR

ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS

FINAL FINANCIAL REPORT

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COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II (COMET II) | 3

ACB Anti-Corruption Branch of the Jamaican Constabulary Force

ADR Alternative Dispute Resolution

BBFC Bull Bay Football Club

BRACED Building Resilience and Capacity for Emerging Disasters

BTPYCL Barrett Town Police Youth Club Ltd.

CBP Community Based Policing

CBO Community Based Organization

CDA Child Development Agency

CDC Community Development Committee

CJSDI Central Jamaica Social Development Initiative

COJ Companies Office of Jamaica

COL Culture of Lawfulness

COMET Community Empowerment and Transformation Project (2006-2012)

COMET II Community Empowerment and Transformation Project II

CRC Community Resource Center

CRP Community Renewal Program

CSO Civil Society Organization

CSSB Community Safety and Security Branch of the Jamaican Constabulary Force

DRF Dispute Resolution Foundation

DoD Dean of Discipline

DRR Disaster Risk Reduction

DTC Drug Treatment Court

EMPR Environmental Mitigation Plan and Report

FPC Family and Parenting Centre

FSFL Forward Step Foundation Ltd.

FUFCL Fathers United for Change Ltd.

GBV Gender-Based Violence

GCC Global Climate Change

GIS Geographic Information Systems

GOJ Government of Jamaica

HEART Trust NTA Human Employment and Resource Training National Training Agency

HTCG Hannah Town Cultural Group

ICA Institute of Capacity Building and Community Affairs Ltd.

ABBREVIATIONS & ACRONYMS

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IIRQ Institute of International Recognized Qualifications

IR Intermediate Result

JAS Jamaica Agriculture Society

JASW Jamaican Association of Social Workers

JCF Jamaica Constabulary Force

JFB Jamaica Fire Brigade

JRC Jamaica Red Cross

JRIU Justice Reforms Implementation Unit of the Ministry of Justice

JSIF Jamaica Social Investment Fund

KSAFA Kingston and St. Andrew Football Association

MCLJHBS Mount Charles/Luna/St. Job’s Hill Benevolent Society

MNS Ministry of National Security

MOCA Major Organized Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency

MOE Ministry of Education

MOJ Ministry of Justice

MOU Memorandum of Understanding

NCDA National Council on Drug Abuse

NCU-MEC Northern Caribbean University – Morris Entrepreneurial Centre

NFJ Netball Foundation of Jamaica

NHCOM New Horizon Christian Outreach Ministries

NIA National Integrity Action

NIS National Insurance Scheme

NPYCC National Police Youth Club Council

NWA National Works Agency

ODPEM Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management

PALS Peace and Love in Society

PDC Parish Development Committee

PIOJ Planning Institute of Jamaica

PMP Performance Monitoring Plan

PSA Public Service Announcement

PYC Police Youth Club

PYIAL Positive Youths in Action Ltd.

RADA Rural Agricultural Development Authority

RCPYC Race Course Police Youth Club

RDC Rockfort Development Council

RFA Request for Applications

SDC Social Development Commission

SJHCABS St. John’s Heights Citizen Association Benevolent Society

SMSMBL St. Michael’s Steppers Marching Band Ltd.

SRC Scientific Research Council

SRO School Resource Officer

COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II (COMET II) | 5

STTA Short-Term Technical Advisor

SWOT Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats

TA Technical Assistance

TOT Training of Trainers

USAID/Jamaica United States Agency of International Development/Jamaica

UWI University of the West Indies

WOO Window of Opportunity

WROC Women’s Resource and Outreach Centre

FINAL REPORT (DECEMBER 2, 2013 – DECEMBER 1, 2018) | 6

The Community Empowerment and Transformation Project II (COMET II) was implemented in Jamaica over a five-year period, from 2013 to 2018. The purpose of the program was to promote citizen security in selected Government of Jamaica (GOJ) Community Renewal Program (CRP) communities, addressing three major challenges to Jamaica’s development: economic instability, high levels of crime and violence, and vulnerability to natural disasters. It capitalized on existing United States Agency of International

Development (USAID) and GOJ work and fostered new community-based partnerships to prevent violence and crime, garner support for the rule of law, control corruption, and increase citizen participation and engagement of both youth and women in the community. COMET II also integrated global climate change (GCC) adaptation into the program, through activities to improve the capacity of both urban and rural poor communities to prepare for and react to extreme weather events. Youth, gender, and global climate change were priorities that cut across all four COMET II Components.

COMET II was designed to address lessons learned and recommendations stemming from the initial

Community Empowerment and Transformation Project, which was funded by USAID/Jamaica from 2006-

2012. COMET II implemented program activities under four interconnected, complementary components:

Component 1: Promote community-driven activities to contribute to improved crime prevention, intervention and enforcement by addressing underlying causes of crime and promoting improved communications and interactions between citizenry and police.

COMET II awarded small grants to support community based organizations (CBOs) to implement activities to improve crime prevention, intervention, and enforcement. These activities aimed to address underlying causes of crime and improve interactions between citizens and police. A significant focus of this component was assisting Community Development Committees (CDCs) and the Jamaica

Constabulary Force (JCF) to establish Community Resource Centers (CRCs) in selected communities.

Focus areas of this work included strengthening management and operations of CBOs and CDCs as established social enterprises (SEs). Component 1 activities prioritized constructive integration of youth and women, providing tailored workshops and trainings to ensure inclusion of diverse perspectives in

COMET II communities by civil society partners over the long term. COMET II monitored the progress of youth who participated in workforce development activities designed to facilitate new or better employment opportunities.

Component 2: Develop long-term champions supportive of the rule of law and through them promote public engagement strategies to foster a culture of lawfulness.

COMET II supported initiative conducive to the establishment of a culture of lawfulness (COL). The program trained community journalists and gave each specialist training in reporting on GCC matters. In association with the National Integrity Action (NIA) some were given advanced training in investigative journalism, social auditing, and reporting on GCC. Others were trained as identified Integrity Champions in each target community to design and implement integrity- and COL-focused projects at the local level.

COMET II produced and disseminated a series of public service announcements (PSAs) with partner

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II (COMET II) | 7

organizations to spread messages about anti-corruption, COL, integrity in local elections, and police engagement, among other topics.

The program also engaged police to promote a COL, working with the JCF Major Organized Crime and

Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA) and Community Safety and Security Branch (CSSB) to design workshops and messaging around human rights and accountability. The JCF used CBP materials and the

JCF Diversity Policy to spark discussions about handling issues related to LGBT, gender, marginalized youth, and individuals with disabilities. Trainings were well received by officers and community members, who learned about the training through media reports of COMET II’s work.

Component 3: Encourage alternative sentencing and other programs for at-risk youth.

This component constituted a youth-friendly, rehabilitative, integrated, and holistic approach to assisting other at-risk youth to become active citizens through engagement in educational, vocational, and social activities. COMET II built a portfolio of activities to prevent youth from coming into conflict with the law, including school-based crime prevention workshops, a diversion strategy in partnership with the

Drug Treatment Court, and rehabilitation and workforce development programs.

COMET II targeted first-time juvenile offenders and unattached youth, creating activities to channel them into programs that facilitate their rehabilitation and return to society as productive members of the community. The program worked closely with partners including the Institute of International

Recognized Qualifications (IIRQ), Dispute Resolution Foundation (DRF), and Family and Parenting

Centre (FPC) to identify, engage, and support youth to avoid risky behavior and pursue productive and lawful community engagement and employment.

Component 4: Continued support for the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s (JCF) Community

Based Policing (CBP) Program.

COMET II facilitated continuation of the JCF’s community-based policing (CBP) program. The agency had made progress in the previous COMET project to implement CBP at a national level, but additional work was necessary to sustain advances that had been made in CBP and anti-corruption efforts. In Component

4, COMET II collaborated with JCF leadership to support ongoing CBP training and development initiatives. The project collaborated with the Ministry of National Security and the Ministry of Education to support safe schools by working with at-risk students and school-based officials; worked with Police

Youth Councils (PYCs) to facilitate positive relationships between community members and police officers; and sponsored a behavior change campaign, led by youth ambassadors who implemented youth-friendly values-based engagement initiatives.

Component 4 also contributed to the cross-cutting COMET II goals for GCC adaptation through collaboration with partners such as the Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) and the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM).

A Performance Monitoring Plan (PMP) was designed in Year 1 to measure performance toward achievement of COMET II goals, including quantitative and qualitative analysis. At program conclusion, nine of 12 life-of-project targets were met or exceeded. Notable successes included a decrease in violent crime in COMET II-targeted CRP communities, communities receiving training in GCC adaptation, youth and women completing workforce development programs, and government officials and police officers receiving anti-corruption training. COMET II fell short of targets in new or better employment for graduates of workforce training programs and in the number of employees working in COMET II-supported social enterprises.

Recommendations to build upon COMET II include: building on the successes of established community resource centers (CRCs) in partnership with community development committees (CDCs) and the JCF, who developed the CRCs into central hubs for community engagement and youth-friendly activities;

FINAL REPORT (DECEMBER 2, 2013 – DECEMBER 1, 2018) | 8

sustain GCC adaptation trainings, especially in rural communities, which were frequently oversubscribed;

support community journalists in investigative projects and social auditing to further a culture of lawfulness; and integrate skills-building for police officers to engage with marginalized youth, LGBT individuals, and people living with disabilities into standardized training curricula for incoming JCF officers.

COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II (COMET II) | 9

COMPONENT ONE: COMMUNITY DRIVEN CRIME PREVENTION

Component 1 was designed to promote community efforts to address the underlying issues of insecurity through training, technical assistance (TA), and introduction of the social enterprise model to targeted communities and civil society organizations (CSOs). The 2009 Assessment of Community Security and

Transformation Programs in Jamaica found that strengthening local governance and improving community policing are both essential to establish legitimate authority at the local level, act as a platform for social engagement activities, and foster sustainability of social interventions in a community.

A significant focus of this component was assisting Community Development Committees (CDCs) and the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) to establish Community Resource Centers (CRCs) in selected communities. A small grants program supported capacity building of local organizations and directly supported community-driven activities, especially to those aimed at strengthening cooperation between communities and the JCF in sustainable partnerships. Focus areas of this work included strengthening management and operations of community based organizations (CBOs) and the CDCs as established social enterprises (SEs).

The project prioritized constructive integration of youth, providing long-term opportunities for them to contribute to their communities. COMET II monitored the progress of youth who participated in workforce development activities designed to facilitate new or better employment opportunities. There was also a concerted effort to offer workshops and trainings specifically for women, in order to ensure inclusion of diverse perspectives in COMET II communities by civil society partners.

Global climate change (GCC) adaptation activities were built into each component of the COMET II project, in order to improve communities’ adaptive capacity to extreme weather events and climate change.

As the project came to a close, COMET II prioritized ensuring sustainability and impact for CRCs. In collaboration with the JCF, the project assisted CDCs in a planning process to integrate CRCs into their communities. Strategic work plans developed for each CRC included initiatives addressing identified key issues for the community, led by the JCF and by the CBOs operating out of the CRC. The strategic planning process also supported the JCF’s community based policing (CBP) approach by facilitating additional informal opportunities for JCF engagement with community members.

Activity 1: Small grants to provide support for community-based organizations and community-based projects

The COMET II grants program awarded cross-cutting grants to CBOs in support of sustainable activities, including social entrepreneurship initiatives and CRCs. The grants program provided direct support to community groups working to address underlying causes of crime. Awarded grants included non-

PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS &

LESSONS LEARNED

FINAL REPORT (DECEMBER 2, 2013 – DECEMBER 1, 2018) | 10

competitive, in-kind grants for the development of CRCs and sustainable livelihood grants to support implementation of community-based SEs through training and capacity building. Grantees were identified by COMET II and approved in partnership with USAID.

COMET II’s collaborating partners, SCD, PIOJ and JCF, worked with CDCs to establish the CRC model and assist with its progressive implementation in selected communities. The Social Development

Commission (SDC) was responsible for obtaining legal acquisition of proposed sites and local approval to build the CRCs. COMET II assisted the SDC and JCF to develop memoranda of understanding (MOUs) between COMET II and its partnering agencies—USAID, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of National Security, and the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development (through their representative agencies, the SDC, JCF, and the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ)—to support the establishment of

CRCs. Community consultations provided a venue for police and citizens to come together to plan and execute program activities, at times facilitating resolution of historically adversarial relationships as the two groups collaborate in pursuit of common goals.

The program launch activity in 2014 featured a presentation to community stakeholders and potential

CBO grantees about the GCC elements of the grants program, including goals and expected outcomes.

These activities were expected to improve the adaptive capacity of citizens, CBOs, and CSOs to reduce their vulnerability to the impacts of climate change.

Accomplishments

Over the life of the project, 54 grants were awarded. Grantee community based groups gained experience in the grant application process, obtained legal registration for their organizations, successfully won grants from a US government agency, and implemented grant projects.

COMET II provided capacity building training for grantees in order to improve their compliance with grant agreements, monitoring and evaluation, and reporting of results. Community based groups competed for social enterprise grants, and 46 CBOs were trained and equipped as SEs over the course of the program. While some SEs were successful and others less so, all

SE grantees gained SE training and experience in attempting to start up such a business. Table 1 shows the number of employees working in social enterprises created with COMET II support throughout the life of the project.

A subset of grantees received construction of a

CRC as well, which served as a physical location for community events, celebrations, and trainings in leadership, advocacy, and local governance participation. CRCs included a CDC office, a community based policing office, operation space for SEs in those communities where they exist, a place for disaster risk reduction (DRR) equipment and training, and space available for community use. By the end of the program, 15 CRCs had been successfully established in target communities.

“Because of the USAID COMET II Project’s grant, the Kitson Town CDC has gained recognition from just being a fledgling group seeking endorsement from the community to becoming the premier civil society organization in West Central St. Catherine.

Here unattached and marginalized youth and vulnerable women in particular have now found an affirming physical space at the Community Resource

Centre (CRC) where they receive support and skills training. The capacity building training prior to and during the implementation of the grant has boosted our confidence in community advocacy and in creating social value. Soon we will be the proud producers of an exciting suite of products developed from the jackfruit under the social enterprise component of the grant. We are now a strong community group and the landscape of the community of Kitson Town has been changed forever.”

--Devon Thompson, Kitson Town CDC President

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II (COMET II) | 11

Table 1: Number of Employees Working in Social Enterprises Created with COMET II Support

Name of Social Enterprise Number of Employees

1. Four Paths Citizen’s Association, Clarendon 10

2. Kintyre Citizen’s Association, St. Andrew 3

3. Belle Plain Citizen’s Association, Clarendon 1

4. KSAFA/Rockfort Football Club, Kingston 11

5. Good Hope Partners Benevolent Society, St.

Andrew

6. Rockfort Development Council, Kingston 7

7. Fathers United for Change 2

8. Knollis Community Benevolent Society, St.

Catherine

9. Positive Youth in Action, Kingston 2

10. Forward Step Foundation, St. Catherine 33

11. St. John’s Heights, St. Catherine 9

12. St. Michael’s Steppers Marching Band, Kingston 4

13. Family & Parenting Centre 1

14. Beulah Seventh Day Church Organ., Clarendon 8

15. CJSDI, Clarendon 3

TOTAL 100

Lastly, seventy-five GCC activities were carried out by grantees over the life of the program. By integrating GCC adaptation activities, specifically

DRR, COMET II sought to address safety and security issues on multiple fronts, beyond just a reduction in crime and violence.

Lessons Learned

Grant Implementation and Technical

Assistance: In awarding grants and assisting grantees to manage those grants, COMET II found that more technical assistance than anticipated was needed for grant project initiation and implementation. The project learned that prospective and awarded grantees required continuous support from COMET II staff, suggesting a lower level of capacity to manage implementation and oversight of their grant projects than predicted.

Monitoring and evaluation specifically was a component of grants that could have benefited from collaboration with the Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, as early as during grant application. COMET

II also found that larger, more experienced organizations were more likely to submit applications in response to a request for applications (RFA). In order to attract the intended community-level applicants, RFAs should be written with these grassroots organizations as the target audience.

CRC Establishment: An October 2016 memorandum to USAID detailing the CRC initiation process noted several challenges and proposed solutions to be integrated into implementation for the remainder of the project. COMET II described unanticipated challenges and delays in CRC implementation, which led to a reduction in the expected number of CRCs to be established over the life of the project, from 25 to a total of 15.

ABOVE: Belle Plain CDC members review training material during a capacity building workshop

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Grantees encountered common obstacles in establishing CRCs and securing the legal registration status necessary to receive grant funds. Several grantees were unable to open new bank accounts to receive grant funds due to requirements for a financial statement of accounts and/or a letter of good standing from the Companies Office of Jamaica (COJ). Many grantee organizations, though in existence for years, had neglected to file requisite company annual returns and therefore were not in compliance with COJ requirements. COMET II worked with many grantees to file the requisite paperwork and all were eventually successful in opening their bank accounts.

CRC grantees also encountered obstacles in initiating and maintaining legal registration as limited liability companies or as benevolent societies. While the benevolent society option is more aligned with the objectives of these organizations, the registration process is complicated, demanding, and more time-consuming than is manageable under the expected timeline of their grant projects. There were also strict limitations on the number of benevolent societies that could operate in a single community, limiting

COMET II-participating CBOs from the same community to pursue this option. COMET II had more success registering groups as limited liability companies, which tend to be processed more quickly;

however, due to a recent new law, this status requires annual maintenance fees, which can be unrealistic for many of these organizations.

Lastly, the memorandum described additional challenges faced by CRC grantees when initiating the CRC building process, from limited government agency capacity to complete necessary land surveys to delayed feedback from parish councils whose approval is required to proceed with CRC building plans. COMET

II had to reprioritize its resources to support CDCs in their efforts to establish building committees, facilitate geological and engineering assessments of the intended CRC sites before initiating the CRC process, and understand and comply with various parish council requirements in a timely manner.

CRC Management: Prompted by an event in Rockfort that was sparsely attended due to a miscommunication between CRC management committee members, COMET II evaluated the composition of management committees across all CRCs. Despite initial counseling by COMET II on recommended committee makeup, many CRC management committees were composed entirely of CDC members, demonstrating the CDC’s relative inexperience in such oversight and management. COMET II worked with CDCs to reorganize the committees to include a diverse array of community members including representatives from the JCF, local business people, and community leaders who could act as fundraisers and strategic planners, contributing to the longer-term priorities of the CRC.

Generational Discord: COMET II observed tensions between older and younger generations in communities and within CDCs in some areas. These tensions are not unique to the COMET II project, but provide a particular challenge because of this project’s focus on youth engagement. In some cases, the

CDC comprises only older individuals; in others, both generations are represented but the tensions prevent cooperation and therefore threaten the sustainability of the CDCs and CRCs. COMET II worked with the SDC to provide guidance and assistance to these community groups as they try to overcome these obstacles and remain relevant to the communities they serve. COMET II also stipulated that CRC management committees include at least one youth representative and recommended that CDCs do the same.

Untimely Obstacles to Implementation: The local Government elections in Jamaica of November

2016 affected all COMET II activities, but delayed Component 1 progress in particular. With little advance notice of the upcoming elections, COMET II and partner organizations were unable to make alternative arrangements to account for the government slow-down. At some sites, CRC implementation experienced a three-month delay. Also, the change in leadership in some cases resulted in setbacks due to a lack of awareness or support from incoming elected officials, even when the previous representative had promised the office’s commitment.

COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II (COMET II) | 13

Other unexpected events, like natural disasters and sporadic outbreaks of violence, disrupted the calendar for several grant projects. Many events had to be postponed including some grant activities, with a small number ultimately cancelled. The JCF frequently called on safety and security officers to respond to increases in crime, preventing them from continuing in the community engagement roles they committed to in pursuit of COMET II goals.

While these communities are prone to violence, the idea behind COMET II is to introduce projects that prevent some of this violence. While the resurgence of violent crime was at times a source of frustration in implementation, it also reinforced the need for COMET II in these communities.

Awarded Grants

Note: The asterisk (*) denotes in-kind technical assistance grants in the form of social enterprise training from the University of the West Indies (UWI) Mona School of Business – Office of Social

Entrepreneurship. Training included social enterprise awareness and capacity building training; a strategic capacity building plan; a business plan/project proposal; business development training; and development of an incubation plan for the grantee’s business model to ensure sustainability and social return on investment.

Grant 1: New Horizon Christian Outreach Ministries (NHCOM)

The NHCOM grant designed and implemented a youth skills and trade vocational program for youth ages

15 to 29. The grant aimed to empowering young people by providing them life skills and increasing their employability, enhancing their capacity to contribute socially and economically to their communities and furthering community safety and security.

NHCOM provided training and certification in electrical, welding, literacy, and recycling for 63 youth, in addition to a certificate for climate change and safety sensitization. These credentials, recognized by

Jamaica’s national training institute, Human Employment and Resource Training National Training Agency

(HEART Trust NTA), increased the group’s marketability for future employment. Since grant completion, 11 participants have obtained employment.

Grant 2: Netball Foundation of Jamaica (NFJ)

The NFJ grant project created opportunities for youth to contribute to community safety initiatives, by design and implementation of a sports program. The program’s aims were to increase youth participation in community security and safety, promote positive behavior change through sports activities, utilize sports as a vehicle to teach life skills such as conflict resolution and team-building, and create alignment between

CBOs and CDCs with increased capacity of community governance structures.

NFJ achieved legal registration of three indigenous parish netball organizations. These parish-based groups improved their capacity in grant application processes, resource management, and sustainability in their programs. Coaches received training and certification in a development program facilitated by NFJ in partnership with the University of Technology, Jamaica. NFJ also conducted training sessions at Sam Sharpe

Teachers College in Montego Bay, St. James, about topics ranging from human trafficking to theory and practice for umpires.

NFJ collaborated with local universities to offer development training workshops in sports governance for parish-level associations. NFJ held one-day leadership workshops for young leaders and organized multiple summer camps to engage youth in sports development and training, information technology, behavior change, life skills, and mentorship.

Grant 3: Peace and Love in Society (PALS)

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COMET II awarded PALS a grant to design and implement a prevention program for at-risk youth. The purpose of the project was to discourage unlawful activity and encourage positive behaviors such as conflict resolution using a constructive curriculum and integrating social workers into the program. The project also included a focus on issues of global climate change and HIV/AIDS.

PALS arranged four school-based sessions for a group of youth and five community based sessions for parents from the community. The curriculum for both groups included problem-solving skills, teamwork, conflict resolution strategies, decision-making, and other topics. A team of social workers and guidance counselors completed risk profiles for youth participants, assessing their likelihood of perpetuating gang violence or community violence by measuring risk factors such as exposure to family conflict, low parental education and income, and sexual abuse, among others. Youth whose profiles showed high risk for violence received one-on-one tailored counseling sessions. The community based group integrated police officers into each session in order to foster trust between community members and the police.

Grant 4: Institute of Capacity Building and Community Affairs Ltd. (ICA)

ICA received a COMET II grant of JMD 1, 107, 066.52 to increase awareness and understanding of the culture of lawfulness within the JCF by augmenting current ethics training programs and increasing police officer capacity to engage with the community.

ICA conducted four workshops at the Police Training Academy in Twickenham Park, St. Catherine, with members of the Community Safety and Security Branch (CSSB) and the Major Anti-Corruption Agency

(MOCA) of the JCF. This grant provided training sessions designed to address officers’ tendency for illegal behavior for 27 members of the MOCA and CSSB departments. After the training was completed, officers returned to the field, using what they learned while interacting with community members in Gregory Park and Cumberland. Trainers observed and debriefed with officers after these interactions, discussing how to apply their training and continue to build their community engagement skills.

Grant 5: Women’s Resource and Outreach Centre (WROC)

COMET II awarded WROC a grant to work with individuals ages 15-29 experiencing extreme poverty and violence in their surroundings. The aim of the program was to promote youth reintegration into society through skills training and employment, offer mentorship to help youth becoming productive members of the community, discourage unlawful activities, and utilize social workers in psychosocial youth counseling.

The program offered 21 participants from St. Andrew and Kingston parishes customer service skill-building, animation training, and remedial math and English. Supplemental workshops facilitated conversation about special topics, such as global climate change. Sessions on gender-based violence (GBV) included discussion of the various types of GBV, causes and effects, GBV and socialization, and GBV and the media; participants were trained to share their learnings with peers in their schools, churches, and communities.

Grant 6: Forward Step Foundation Ltd. (FSFL)

FSFL received a grant to support community based sustainable livelihood projects in Gregory Park. FSFL implemented grant activities through the “Liveli Up Yuhself” program, which utilized four modules to engage youth: creative arts (studio engineering & artist development), jewelry craft, carpentry, and life skills development.

20 youth (16 males and 4 females) completed the entire training program, which was designed to build life skills and create employment opportunities. Participants demonstrated improvements in behavior, outlook, and drive at post-program assessment, and many were making concerted efforts to follow their five-year plans. Craft jewelry operations continued after the grant ended. The team participated in several

COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECT II (COMET II) | 15

trade shows as invitees of the St. Catherine Social Development Commission Local Economic

Development team, and continued craft sales continue via mobile corporate visits and local music shows.

Despite an increasing in gang violence in the Gregory Park community, FSFL continued to operate its social enterprise in studio recording, craft jewelry, and carpentry after the grant ended. FSFL later received a social enterprise grant from the Digicel Foundation under the Queens Young Leaders Program, which was used to expand the social enterprise to include a weekly web show about current events, aired on

YouTube. FSFL also took on the culture of lawfulness (COL) activity for the Gregory Park community, with a focus on using social media to generate conversation among residents. FSFL later further diversified its social enterprise, providing internet access, photography and videography services, and a small event/party rental service. The FSFL is still operating its SE out of the Gregory Park CRC, continually expanding its services, and is working on retrofitting a sea container as office space with grant support from the Digicel foundation.

Grant 7: Northern Caribbean University – Morris Entrepreneurial Centre (NCU-MEC)

The purpose of this grant was to design and implement a project targeting at-risk youth in St. Andrew and

Clarendon, engaging them in skills training that will increase their prospects for employment and livelihood sustainability for their families. The program aimed to provide entrepreneurship training to 50 unattached youth ages 15-29, reduce their engagement in illicit activities, and build awareness of existing opportunities to create sustainable livelihoods.

NCU-MEC succeeded in conducting coaching and mentoring sessions for participants from the Rae Town and Four Paths communities. Over the duration of the program, discord in Rae Town led to a decline in participants from that community.

Grant 8: Kingston and St. Andrew Football Association (KSAFA)

KSAFA, the selected implementer and parenting body for the Rockfort Football Club, was awarded a grant to establish sustainable livelihood projects as a vehicle to prevent and/or rehabilitate at-risk youth from engaging in illicit activity.

KSAFA constructed chicken coops to raise live chickens, which are sold to people in the Rockfort community. This venture created jobs for at-risk youth within the community. Ten youth were trained in raising the birds and managing business operations, and the revenues were used to pay for football gear and training for Club members.

As of this report writing, KSAFA continues to operate its social enterprise and is actively seeking new funding to grow the business.

Grant 9: Family and Parenting Centre (FPC)

The FPC received a grant to offer sustainable livelihood training for at-risk youth in Cambridge, St. James.

The grant aimed to rehabilitate a group of 30 youth ages 15-29, building skills for sustainable livelihood and discouraging deviant behavior.

Activities included identifying and recruiting youth who were first-time offenders or otherwise unattached for the program; teaching youth entrepreneurial and life skills in collaboration with HEART Trust NTA and their established Community Intervention Skills Program; and providing entrepreneurial skills training in employable and sustainable livelihood projects such as hairdressing, barbering, and dressmaking, and small business management. Life skills training—including self-awareness, emotional needs and gratitude, happiness and balance, empathy and anger management conflict resolution, etc.—was a major component of the project, offering youth the opportunity to examine their behavior, foster respect and empathy for their peers, and improve their own well-being.

FINAL REPORT (DECEMBER 2, 2013 – DECEMBER 1, 2018) | 16

The trainees quickly improved in punctuality, discipline, and social behavior. They exhibited high levels of confidence, approaching tasks with a more positive attitude. They discussed and demonstrated conflict and anger management skills, showing improvement in interpersonal relationships over time. The literacy rate for the group of youth participants increased from 50% to 60% over the life of the program.

Grant 10: Dispute Resolution Foundation (DRF)

DRF was awarded a grant to introduce the Community Based School Suspension Program in COMET II’s five target parishes (described in more detail in Component 3). This grant activity aimed to build respect for the rule of law; facilitate positive relationships between suspended students, the school community, and the school resource officers (SROs); and equip SROs and deans of discipline (DoDs) with youth-friendly alternative dispute resolution (ADR) techniques.

The DRF implemented this program in COMET II’s target parishes and communities to approximately

3,033 at-risk youth between the ages 14-18 (1,933 more youth than originally proposed). Approximately

65 SROs (usually police officers present to discourage students from causing trouble) and DoDs received training in youth-friendly ADR techniques—more than double the grant’s goal of 30 school-based professionals.

DRF implemented a five-day Peer Mediation Training to equip students with peace building, communication, leadership, and critical thinking skills. Approximately 50 peer leaders were selected by

DRF and received this training. Community stakeholders including police officers, school administrators, parents, and the Ministry of Education and Youth all contributed to this program’s success by referring students to participate.

Students also were selected by their school administrations to receive training in conflict resolution as a final intervention attempt before suspension or expulsion due to behavioral challenges. DRF introduced

“In-School Rap Sessions,” a practical approach that maximized the participation of DoDs, guidance counselors, and students. DRF facilitated 34 in-school rap sessions with schools across the five COMET

II parishes. These sessions facilitate open dialogue about issues to improve the relationships between students and school-based professionals, ultimately strengthening the National Safe Schools Program.

DRF’s summer camp program helped 120 participants build their peace-building, communication, leadership, anger management, conflict resolution, social, and critical thinking skills. SROs and officials from the Gun Court and Family Court have systems in place to refer students to the DRF summer program.

Grant 11: Mount Charles/Luna/St. Job’s Hill Benevolent Society (MCLJHBS)

MCLJHBS received a grant award to offer sustainable livelihood programs for at-risk youth in Stony Hill, St. Andrew, through honey harvesting. The grant aimed to create opportunities for youth to gain work experience, foster their financial and personal independence, and provide them an avenue for providing value in their community.

MCLJHBS conducted beekeeping training sessions and prepared a beekeeping best practices manual with support from the Agriculture Ministry and the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA).

Twenty-five youths participated.

Grant 12: Central Jamaica Social Development Initiative (CJSDI)

CJSDI received a grant to offer sustainable livelihood programs for at-risk youth in Four Paths, Clarendon.

The purpose of the project was to address unemployment and poverty among youth in Four Paths by engaging them in entrepreneurial opportunities in red peas farming, generating farming skills and financial earnings. This project provided 26 participants (mostly youth) with entrepreneurship training and farming opportunities.

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Grant 13: Bull Bay Football Club (BBFC)*

BBFC was awarded a grant to offer sustainable livelihood programs for at-risk youth in Seven Miles/Bull

Bay, St. Andrew. BBFC used the funding to renovate the existing BBFC club house. Upon completion, BBFC launched a document shredding business, the profits from which are used to purchase refreshments, healthy snacks, and equipment for club members.

Grant 14: St. John’s Heights Citizen Association Benevolent Society (SJHCABS)*

SJHCABS received a grant to offer sustainable livelihood programs in Kitson Town, St. Catherine. The grant aimed to engage youth in entrepreneurship club activities, such as regular business training and think tank sessions, in order to identify novel business opportunities. New income-generating ventures in the community would create employment opportunities and support community activities.

SJHCABS provided business development and landscaping training, procured landscaping equipment, and established its social enterprise, a landscaping business. Young entrepreneurs in St. John’s Heights received business and financing instruction and landscaping technical training. As of this report, the grantee is no longer operating its SE.

Grant 15: Fathers United for Change Ltd.

(FUFCL)

COMET II awarded FUFCL a grant to implement sustainable livelihood programs in Trench Town, Kingston. The grant was used to retrofit a sea container and establish a wholesale retail business selling food and household items for the community, with an aim to help reduce food prices. Profits generated are distributed to reinvest in growing the business as well as to support the organization’s community programs.

FUFCL hosted a parenting workshop, organized a soup kitchen for the elderly, and launched its social enterprise. While the enterprise is managed by FUFCL group members, several young people from the community are involved in the enterprise, receiving mentoring and entrepreneurial skills training from

FUFCL staff.

FUFCL continues to operate its wholesale retail SE as of this report writing.

Grant 16: Kingston and St. Andrew Football

Association (KSAFA)*

KSASFA received an in-kind grand for its subsidiary, Rockfort Football Club, to receive social enterprise training from COMET II. The Club implemented a football program integrating mentorship and coaching in football and life skills.

Grant 17: Central Jamaica Social Development Initiative (CJSDI)*

CJSDI was awarded an in-kind technical assistance grant to receive social enterprise training to support implementation of a sustainable livelihood program in the Four Paths community.

Grant 18: Mount Charles/Luna/St. Job’s Hill Benevolent Society (MCLSJHBS)*

“The social enterprise changed/enhanced our work in the following ways: The social enterprise of Fathers United for Change

(FUFC) is fully operational. In 2017, more than

70% of the net profit was re-invested into the community based on our social mission. The balance was re-invested into the social enterprise itself to ensure that it experienced a higher level of growth potential as it moves to become more sustainable. This significant growth has come to boost our involvement in the many community based activities, and the many different groups that we collaborate with.”

--Winston Williams, Director, Fathers United

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHT

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COMET II gave the MCLSJHBS an in-kind technical assistance grant to receive social enterprise training to support implementation of a sustainable livelihood program in the community of Stony Hill.

Grant 19: St. Michael’s Steppers Marching Band Ltd. (SMSMBL)*

SMSMBL was awarded a grant to offer sustainable livelihood programs to at-risk youth in Rae Town, Kingston. The organization completed social enterprise training from UWI, and established a Juice Depot venture in the community, selling a variety of beverages. Profits generated from this business were to be used to reinvest in the business and support the organization’s community programs. However, SMSMBL encountered difficulties in pricing the juice products and effectively promoting their sale, which hindered its ability to maximize profits. Ultimately, the organization was unable to sustain its operations.

Grant 20: Race Course Police Youth Club Ltd. (RCPYC)*

RCPYC received a grant to offer sustainable livelihood programs for at-risk youth in Race Course, Clarendon. The grantee experienced delays initiating its social enterprise training from UWI, which led to challenges in recruitment of its club members due to conflicts with the school calendar. COMET II deobligated the remaining funds of the grant.

Grant 21: Positive Youths in Action Ltd. (PYIAL)*

COMET II awarded PYIAL a grant award to offer sustainable livelihood programs in Springfield, Kingston.

The organization completed social enterprise training from UWI and established a block-making business venture in order to contribute material to housing solutions in the community. The profits generated were meant to be distributed in order to reinvest in growing the business as well as to support the organization’s community programs. However, the engine for the block-making machine was stolen, and

PYIAL was unable to replace the expensive equipment.

Grant 22: Hannah Town Cultural Group (HTCG)*

HTCG received a grant to offer sustainable livelihood programs in Hannah Town, Kingston. The grant was intended to expand the operations of Hannah Town Cultural Group and establish a wellness enterprise, with an emphasis on the solar dehydration and sale of tropical fruits. The organization completed social enterprise training from UWI, and launched environmental education and training focused on CCR and DRR, with an emphasis on food and nutritional security. However, ongoing violence in the community resulted in repeated delays opening the grantee’s social enterprise, and eventually, COMET II and HTCG determined the grant would not continue.

Grant 23: Rockfort Development Council (RDC)*

The RDC received a…