11 Communities to Benefit from Pilot Grassroots Initiative

Eleven community organizations across Jamaica will be able to turn their activities into successful community businesses thanks to a partnership forged between the Digicel Foundation and the UWI Mona School of Business and Management - Office of Social Entrepreneurship (OSE). The initiative, operating under the theme, “Back to Roots—Stronger Roots, Stronger Communities, Stronger Nation” aims to help community organizations become more self-reliant by facilitating their transition to social enterprises, that is to say, by  teaching them how to run sustainable community businesses. As social enterprises, these community organizations will promote community development by the activities they carry out, as well as their increased capacity to generate wealth and employment. The 11 pilot projects, promote community development through education, skills training, sports or employment and income generation. They will receive funding totaling J$13 million from the Digicel Foundation. They will also receive support from the OSE in a variety of areas crucial to starting and running sustainable community businesses including entrepreneurial thinking and practice, preparation of business plans and models, proposal writing and assistance in cultivating and strengthening key partnerships. The Digicel Foundation’s partnership with the OSE will also allow for effective monitoring and evaluation of the social impact of the initiatives being financially supported, not just at the completion of each project, but also over time. “It is important that the UWI campuses play a pivotal role in the development of the Caribbean region,” noted Professor Archibald McDonald, Deputy Principal at the University of the West Indies, Mona.  “This programme gives us the opportunity to do so by investing in our communities. It also gives our students the opportunity to get some hands on experience and allows for quality research into effective ways to encourage entrepreneurship and growth in our communities.” Among the community organizations to receive funding are St. Thomas Bee Farmers Association; St. Mary Bee Farmers Association; Wickwar/Silver Grove Producers and Marketing Organization,  Colleyville Producers and Marketing Organization and Prospect Pig Farmers in Manchester and the Women’s Resource and Outreach Centres for projects in Spring Bank and Trinity Ville in St. Thomas. The Digicel Foundation has already begun to disburse the $13 million and it is anticipated that all eleven communities will receive their funding by March of this year. In summarizing the thinking behind the ‘Back to Roots’ project Samantha Chantrelle, Executive Director at the Digicel Foundation said, “The Digicel Foundation is happy to do our part in assisting community members to become self reliant by developing projects that foster sustainable growth and development.”