TEF Provides $80 million to Purchase and Repair Police Vehicles

Kingston, Jamaica: July 30, 2015: The Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) has received $80 million from the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment, through the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), which will go towards purchasing and repairing JCF vehicles used in resort areas.

A portion of the funds have been used to purchase 10 new vehicles at a cost of $45 million and the remaining $35 million will be used to conduct repairs to over 100 vehicles currently in use.

For its part, over the past few years the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment has been collaborating with the Ministry of National Security to further boost crime fighting efforts island-wide. Minister of Tourism and Entertainment, Hon. Dr. Wykeham McNeill has stressed that “we must unite around the issue of national security. It has a profound and far-reaching social and economic impact.”

Over the last two years the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) has provided over $241 million to aid the JCF in securing additional resources. Some of these ventures have included the provision of $25 million to effect repairs to the Negril Police Station as well as $57 million to support the effort to fund the installation of a closed circuit television system in Ocho Rios.

This recent donation forms part of an ongoing initiative to boost the resources of the island’s crime fighters as they seek to boost the safety of visitors and citizens.

Minister of National Security Hon. Peter Bunting has expressed gratitude for the funds and the collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment, which has yielded benefits for citizens and visitors alike. “I am hoping that this cooperation and this example of ‘joined up government’ is really the start of a true integrated multi-disciplinary approach to improving citizens’ security … by reducing the threat of crime to citizens, improving public safety and public order, and to really create an environment where we don’t have to rely entirely on the police to make an intervention,” he shared.

The Commissioner of Police, Dr. Carl Williams has expressed thanks for the latest donation and emphasized that “the Jamaica Constabulary Force recognizes the symbiotic relationship between security and tourism and will continue to review current deployment and operational plans to address the issues identified by our stakeholders as they arise. We are thankful for this expression of confidence in our abilities and look forward to continued partnership.”

 “We are going to continue to implement measures to further enhance the safety of all Jamaicans as well as our many visitors and to tackle issues such as visitor harassment. Only then will we begin to see a wider cross section of Jamaica’s communities, businesses and individuals benefitting as they should from the tourism sector,” Minister McNeill said.