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MINISTRY PAPER ;)/

THE SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT COMMISS ION

The Soci a l Development Commission is r e sponsibl e f or administering t he Government's Community Development Pro gramme . For th e p eri od under r e vi e w the Commission c ontinue d t o e mphas i s e areas of work which would s e rv e to stimula t e self-he lp and community s pirit; raise th e st andard of living in a reas o f gr ea te st need; cr e a t e the climate for positiv e social dev e lopment of the Island's youth; and bright en v ill a g e life in the rural are as.

, 2. The Commission s st a ff, consisting of f o ur hundr e d and s e venty f o ur (4 74) p ersons, include s Administra tiv e and C l eri ca l Offic ers; Sp e ci a list Offic ers; sup ervisors and Community Off ic ers .

3. As usua l, Spe ci a list Offic e rs and supervisors vi s it e d the Community Centre s during the y ear to guide t h e Commun ity Officers in th e diff er ent activiti e s being undert ak en a t the centre s.

4. Th e programme in its en tire ty is impl em en t e d through two spe cia lis e d de partme nt s - Re s earch and Tra in i n g, as we ll a s t he four (4) agenci es o f th e Co mmission, which a r e t h e soc i a l De ve l opment Agency, Cr a ft Deve lopment Ag ency, Youth De v e lopmen t Agency, and Sports De v e lopment Ag ency. De tailed r e ports on th e work of these S e ctions an d Agenci e s f o llow.

RESEARCH SECTION - L968L69

The Section's work-l oa d incr eased, and during the p e r iod under r ev i ew t he Annual Re port and alL other ma j or documents an d r eport s of t h e Commission wer e prepar e d by the S e ction f or t h e Mini s try an d o t h e r Gov ernment De partment s . S e v e r a l vil l a g es wer G inv e stigo t e d f or the possibl e e s t a blishmen t of Community Cen tres 1 and t en (lO) wer e s e l e ct e d.

S o ci o logical studi e s were st a r t e d at uill a g es wh er e n e w centre s wer e l o c a t e d, and a lso a t thos e ta,ill a g e s wh e r e ngw c en tr e s wer e e xpe ct e d to b e e stablishe d.

~oposals_for t969j70

Plans for the n ew y e ar, include:

(Z) Th e continua ti on o f the abo~e menti on e d studi es.

(2) Th e analys is o f da t a fr om the fi e ld in orde r t o pro~ide th e me ans f or continuous e valuation of the Community De v e lopment Programme .

TRAI NING SECTION - l968j69

6. This S e ction is r e sponsibl e for the entire tra ining programme wit h in the commi ss i on a n d for the e sta blishment of n ew community c entre s.

c onsi s t ent with th e n ee d for t h e tra ining of th e Commissi on's sta ff and o f v o lunt ary leaders, r e sidentia l and n on-resid enti a l tra ining c o urs e s wer e conduct e d during the year as follows:

(a) On e 4-month training course f or sixt een (l6) n ewly appo int e d c ommunity Offic ers. Her e t he a c quisiti on of skills in ne-e dl e and straw cra f ts;

t he princi p l es of community S ervi ce ; the fun cti ons of communi t~ Or~an i s 0 t i ons ;

INSTITUTE OF JAMAIC

WEST INDIA REFERENCE LIBRARY

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and the commission's role in these respects were emphasized.

(b) Six (6) short courses for voluntary leaders (incLuding lit eracy teachers) from viLlages a t wh ich centres are established.

(c) Twenty two (22) 9-month non-residential courses , for persons participating in th e Household He l ps Scheme, at various centres throughout th e isl an d .

(d) In r ecognition of the need for advanced tra i ning of personnel, six (6) of.~icers of the Commission wer e granted scholarships ov erseas, to pursue stud i e s relative to their specialised fields.

Proposals for_l~69j70

The S e ction plans, during l969j70, to intensify t h e trai n -ing of voluntary lea ders, who will be drawn from centres alrea dy established, and al s o to initi a te training programmes for lea ders in villages where n ew c entres are to be established.

Re s i dential an d non-residential Home Ec onomics Course s ar e also planned for members of the Commission's st a ff.

The programm e for establishment of new c ommuni t y Centre s i n selected area s will c ontinue, and several new Centre s are expect ed to b e completed during the year.

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY - ~968j69

7. The work of this Agency involves Adult Education partic ~~ l arly in Lit eracy; Community Organisation; Home Economics; Co-opera t i v e s ; co-ordinating the programmes of the Agenci e s of the Commission; and th e opera tion of community Centres.

8. Thi s programme continued to operate with increased clynan i sm, and during the year there were 5,400 students enrolled in 360 c l a ss es operated by voluntary teachers, with th e help of radio and t e levi s i on broadcasts which were beamed seperately.

The results of examinations held for 2,846 of the s t uden t s who were involv e d in the radio and television teaching, showe d tha t approxima t e ly 60% obtained grades of 80 - l00%1 were able to r ea d simple sentenc e s, and had a good mastery of phonetics. The use of thes e media stimulat e d interest among the students and also cr ea t e d in communiti e s a sense of awareness of the problems arising fro m illiteracy. consequently the demand for literacy classes an d the number of v o l un tary teach ers increa sed as the year progre ss ed .

9. UNESCO indicat ed its continue d intere st in t h e worh by providing the s ervic e s of a consultant for the t e chnical aspect s o f the programme, and by its continued efforts to secure sponsors of gift coupons for the Jamaican programme .

~0. The Section continued to produce all the basic teach ing mat erials used in th e course as well a s a grade d monthly paper c a ll e d "News for All "• Some issue s of the publication 11Jama ica News 11 , produced by the Jamaica Information Service, wer e also simplifi e d fo r the benefit of new readers.

ll. It is anticipat e d that over 30,000 students will partici pa te in the programme during the coming year and plans are bei ng made to r un two cycl es of classe s for television and radio. On e will i nc l ude mn t cri a l mare su it a b l e f or r ur a l s t uden t s wh il e the oth er

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Will be des igned primarily fo r urban students . There will be t wo (2) 6-month seri e s of each of the s e c l a sses during t he year , which will enable any student who has f a ll en out o f the first c l ass to r e j o in the second clas s withou t mis s ing any of the course.

Home Econ om ics:

l2. I n add ition to di r ec ting the Home Economics Programme a t all the Community Centres, work with the Household Helps Sch eme wa s intensifi ed . Twenty six (26) such tra ining centres were in opera tion ; @nd during the y ear two hundre d and forty eight (248) Household He l p trainees graduat e d. An add itional three hundred and e l even (3 ll ) girls wer e enrolled for training.

l3. The scope of th e training programme was widened to include educa ti on i n Family Planning, and the period of training wa s ex t ended ffomsix ( 6) to . nine (9) months in order to provide more comprehensive training for the participants. For the first time boys we re i nc l uded .

Z4. Th e sec tion also assisted in a surv ey of I nfant Feed i ng conducted by the Caribbean Food and Nutrition Insti t u t e .

Propo s als for l969j70

The fo llowing plans are envisaged for the coming y ear:

(l) the estab lishment of a Mother/Child Centre compri sing a Day Nursery, Basic School, and Home Economics Block, at th e Tivoli Gardens Complex;

(2) the equipment of t en (lO) mor e centres to oper ate the Househo l d He lps Scheme;

(3) int ensification of a ll aspec ts of Nut rition-Educ a t ion, inc[uding Practical Projec ts in the production and preparation of food.

CRAF'!__£EVELOPMENT AGENCY - l9 68 f69

Z5. Thi s Agency is r e sponsible for t he i s land-wide promotion of th e Craft In dustry; i nc luding training in craf t skills; c api t a l development and mark e ting o f the go ods produced.

l6. During t he year , officers o f the Agency did intensiv e promotiona l work , which r esu lted in a very high standard of product s manufactured at the Community Centres .

l7. The Agency encour aged i s land- wide cra ft work by extend i ng its services to crafts-men outside the boundaries of Vill ages whe re centres a r e es t ab li shed. To effect the consolida tion of the craft indus try and to pr ov id e a basis for . its viability, and Isl and Association of Crafts -men was organ ised.

lB. A show ro om and ma t er ials store wer e e st ablished at the Agency's Head-quart ers at Hanover Str ee t in King s ton.

i9. For the period under r evi ew , sales of finishe d goods a nd r aw materials tot a lled Eighteen Thousand, Sev en Hundred and Fift y Poun ds (£ l8,750).

20. On r e ques t from the Cayman Islands Gov ernment, an officer fr om the Agency's staff was s e conded to tha t Government to h e lp i n the e stablishmen t and develo pment of a cra ft industry in that country ,

Proposals ••••••••••/

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Proposals for l969j70

2~. Because the degree of projici 0ncy in the sev eral aspec ts of craft work v ari e s amon g the c entres, it is plann e d that craft work at th e various centres w il~ be more specialised puring the ensuing year.

22. The Agency also plans to intensify training in Busines s Principles, Pr a ctices and Techniques; as well as in improving standards of existing craft skills and teaching new ones.

23. To increase sales, the Agency p~ans to do house-to-house marketing and displays during l969j70.

24. Th e Agency envisages a wider scope for the development of craft work through the island-wide co-operation of aLL craft workers in the estabLishment of a national craft industry.

IOUTH_Qf~§LOPMENT AGENCY - L96Bj69

25. The Agency continued its island-wide administration of Youth Camps, Youth Centres, and Youth CLubs.

Youth Camps:

26. Three (3) Youth Camps continued in operation - Cobbla in Manchester; Chestervale in the st. Andrew HiLLs; and Kenil worth i n Hanover. Membership at these camps was 627, ~3-.5.5 ·and ~55 ibqys respectively - a total of l,2l7.

27. All Camps were engaged in agricultural pursuits; construction; and work-shop activities which included shoemaking , tailoring, barbering, radio servicing etc. During the year Cob b l a grossed approximately Nine Thousand Pounds in revenue (£9,000) fr on agriculture; while approximately Twenty Tho usand Pounds (£20,000) and Four Thousand Pounds (£4,000) were earned from workshop act-ivities at Cobbla and Chestervale respectively.

28. The need for more academic training resulted in a gre a t e r emphasis on academic subjects and an increased numb er of quali f ied teachers in theoretical work. More class room facilities were aLso provided.

Youth Clubs:

29. The number of affiliated clubs rose to jour hundred an d five (405) during the year, with a total membership of seventeen thousand, seven hundred and eightyjive (l7,785). Club members continued to participate in all the sports activiti e s, and in leader-ship training programmes. There was increased involvement in community projects, and club work seemed more meaningful.

Summer Camp~:

30. Four residential and jive non residential camps were h eld in various sections c f the Island. These had a total attendance of tliree hundred (300) and two hundred (200) boys and girls respectively.

Youth Centres:

3l. The eleven (ll) established Youth Centres served over t wo thousand five hundred (2,500) boys and girls. Members exhibit e d keener interest in games and in such projects as steel bands an d beauty culture. There was evidence of a growing need for more equipment f or development of the latter project.

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Proposais f~r t969/i0

PLans for the new year include the holding of -

(l) three residential In-Service training courses and one L-day Seminar for staff members;

(2) lec rl ers training courses for senior Youth Club members and voluntary leaders throughout the isLand on the basis of the four existing zones (apart from the teaching of skills in various games, training in swimming and life saving will also be gi~Qn in these courses);

(3) Four residential summer camps for boys and girls; and

(4) Athletic meets and competitions in cricket and foot~ ball on local and national levels.

Work will continue on the construction of Kenilworth Youth Camp, which is expected to be nearly, if not quite, completed by the end of thQ year; and preliminary planning will be initiated for the first Girls' Youth camp, to be established in the near future.

The programme for establishment of new Youth Centres in Kin gston and in main towns will also continue, and two new Centres are pZanned for establi s hment in l969j?O.

SPORTS DEVELOPMENT AGENCY - Z968~2

33, As in previous years, the activities of this Agency included coaching schemes; disbursing of funds; providing equipment for the development of sports; planning and evaluating coaching programmes; supervising the maintainance of playing fields and preparing new ones.

34. Allocations of grants totalling Twenty One Thousand, Seven Hundred and Sixty pounds (£2Z,767) were made to various sporting bodies to assist their participation in competitive sports on national and international levels.

35. The Agency supplied Youth groups, through the Youth Develop-ment Agency, with sports equipment totalling Two Thous and, Six Hundred and Eighty Five Pounds (£2,685). In making this equipment av a iLable to the various groups, the Youth Development Agency supplied it at a subsidised price of about 50% of its value.

36. The supervision of playing fields was continued, with emphasis on the establishment of new fields at Tivoli Gardens. There was marked improvement of the playing fields at Community centres. This was largely due to a competition held during the year by the Agency.

Ministry of Youth and Community Development

27th May, l969. -----------------

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