Monthly Report: December 2015 - USAID/JAMAICA COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECT - PHASE II (COMET II)

Four grants were awarded in Year 3, with the most recent awards made to Mocho Citizen Association of Clarendon Ltd. and Race Course Police Youth Club. These awards are on hold pending USAID waiver for live animals, fertilizer, and various seedlings. Applications submitted by Linstead CDC Ltd., Kitson Town CDC Ltd., and Cambridge Benevolent Society for non-competitive, in-kind grants for the development of community resource centers (CRCs) and social enterprises have been recommended by the COMET II Review and Evaluation Committee (REC) and are currently in the pre-award phase. Non-competitive proposals have been received from the Kintyre Citizen Association and Four Paths CDC Ltd. for the renovations of local buildings to create CRCs and social enterprise projects. These applications have also been reviewed by the REC and are now in the pre-award phase. On December 3, 2015, the Kitson Town community hosted a groundbreaking for their CRC, with USAID Mission Director Denise Herbol presenting the keynote address. The event was attended by an estimated 700 persons, including residents, students, and civil society groups. COMET II also has six applications in the post-REC, pre-award phase, including Mighty Gully Youth Project Foundation Ltd., Enos Barrett Disabled Group, Good Hope Partners Benevolent Society, East Kingston Society/Link7teen Entertainment Events and Talent Management Agency, Knollis Community Benevolent Society, and Barrett Town Police Youth Club. The application for Enos Barrett Disabled Group is on hold pending company registration of the group and participation in capacity building training. Governance Training pre-assessments were conducted in St. James on December 14 and 21, 2015, for six community organizations: Mount Carey CDC, Ramble Hill Citizens Association, Lilliput Rovers Youth Club, Barrett Town PYC, Cambridge CDC, and Bogue CDC. The assessments were conducted by COMET II's Civil Society Coordinator and the St. James Community Coordinator. A final report of governance training pre-assessments across St. James, Clarendon, and St. Catherine is now being prepared for review and will determine the next steps for activities going forward. The SDC Kingston & St. Andrew Micro Business Fair was held on December 2, 2015, in the St. William Grant Park in the center of Kingston's business district. The fair saw over 30 community enterprises under SDC's Local Economic Development Program 'LED' being showcased. COMET II's Civil Society Coordinator Miguel 'Steppa' Williams brought greetings on behalf of Chief of Party Ian McKnight on the partnerships forged in social enterprise development and sustainable livelihoods programming. Additionally, COMET II was lauded for its strategic partnership and contributions to community development by both SDC and PIOJ. Other activities included a meeting held at the Rockfort Community Centre on December 8, 2015, to get an update on the status of the CRC since its opening as well as to discuss overdue deliverables and project output quality. The meeting was attended by persons from the Rockfort CDC Executive, SDC, Local Police, and COMET II Team. The Bull Bay Football Club had the official opening of their Club House on December 11, 2015. The facility will not only house the Football Club, but also the Bull Bay Community Development Committee. Specially invited guests and speakers were as follows: Keith Reynolds, President of the Bull Bay CDC; Sandra Goldbourne, Social Development Commission (SDC); Charmaine Muirhead, PIOJ; Inspector Sophia Perry, JCF; Ian McNaughton, Barita Investments Limited; Paul Hibbert, President of the Bull Bay Football Club; and Denise Herbol, USAID Mission Director to Jamaica. Under the COMET II project, the targeted CBOs and Community Groups have the opportunity to apply for small grants that are issued to undertake Sustainable Lively Projects in their communities. The Bull Bay Football Club was one such Grantee that was successful in their application and received a small grant of Three Million Eleven Thousand Six Hundred and Forty Eight Jamaican dollars (JA $3,011,648). This grant has been used to renovate a building that will house activities surrounding their Football Club. International Anti-Corruption Day Activities were also held in December 2015. COMET II's Civil Society Coordinator Miguel 'Steppa' Williams hosted a Youth Forum on Anti-corruption on December 9, 2015, at the Cornwall College in St. James. Simultaneously, COMET II participated in the Youth Forums in Kingston at Edith Dalton Secondary School. The Youth Forums were preceded by the unveiling of anti-corruption billboards in both Kingston and St. Andrew as well as on two public transport buses. The objectives of the Youth Forum were to identify and discuss corrupt practices within different segments of society, identify the relationship between gender and corruption, and discuss appropriate measures