SALIENT Joint Programme Closure 2025
Thursday April 17, 2025 | Terra Nova Hotel
 

Salutations 
•    Mr. Dennis Zulu, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Jamaica
•    Mr. Delroy Simpson, Chief Technical Director, Security Risk Reform and Transformation Policy Division, Ministry of National Security
•    Mr. Richard Troupe, Director, Safety and Security in Schools, Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth & Information 
•    Mr. Jermaine Loutin, Principal, Kingston High School 
•    Students of Kingston High School
•    Other specially invited guests, members of the media, ladies and gentlemen
 

Good morning.

UNDP proudly stands with the United Nations family in support of the Government of Jamaica as you resolutely lead the charge towards a secure, cohesive and just society, in fulfilment of your Vision 2030 national goal number two.

On this foundation, every citizen will enjoy the rights and freedoms associated with peace – free to follow their dreams and free to live without fear. 

On this foundation, Jamaica will unlock its greatest development potential, attracting the best minds and investments to secure a sustainable future.

Two critical issues, among several, stand in the way: 80 percent of crimes are perpetrated with the gun, and the social acceptance of violence remains at intolerable levels. This is why the strategic disruption of the supply of weapons and the societal transformation of conflict resolution norms are crucial to eliminating key barriers to the achievement of peaceful and non-violent societies. 

Designed to address these critical issues in Jamaica, the 750 000 USD SALIENT Joint programme reflects a strategic approach to leveraging partnerships in advancing evidence-based policies and strategies. Furthermore, it represents a perfect alignment of the strategic philosophies of the UN team and the Government of Jamaica, rooted in an integrated approach to citizen security.   

As the lead implementation agency for SALIENT, UNDP can report significant achievements over the two phases 2022 to 2025, led at the activity level by UNODC, UNLIREC, UNODA and UNESCO working in collaboration with the Ministry of National Security and the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information. Our partnerships have strengthened the regulatory framework governing weapon supplies; built expert capacities to disrupt the illegal importation of weapons at ports of entry; generated important data and recommendations for dismantling community violence; and generated promising signs of behavioural change among students in select schools.

As the UN lead on Governance, UNDP assumed specific responsibility for supporting Jamaica in advancing preparations to ratify the Inter-American Convention against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and Other Related Materials – CIFTA. To this end, Jamaica’s Gunpowder and Explosives Act and the Explosives (Control of Manufacture) Act were reviewed, leading to recommendations for a modern legislative framework. With these developments, SALIENT has taken Jamaica further along the ratification process – an important step in modernizing Jamaica’s regulations to world standards, ensuring effective interception of guns at every step of the supply chain. UNDP also urges careful reflection on the results of two violence audits in four volatile communities which offer key insights and evidence-based recommendations to address gaps which may foster the necessary conditions for reducing violence.                                          

By linking education reform, youth empowerment, violence prevention, and policy engagement, the SALIENT partnership has addressed both the symptoms and root causes of gun violence. 

One of the programme’s most important legacies is how it brought together diverse actors around a common table—government ministries, UN agencies, civil society organizations, schools, parents, and youth. It wasn’t always easy, but our collaboration created ownership, sustainability, and innovation.

This has been an outstanding experience for UNDP, one that has proven the power of partnerships to effectively drive integrated approaches to security. The SALIENT way, along with its tools, partnerships, and community relationships now stands as a framework on which broader national policies and interventions can be further strengthened.

Our sincere gratitude to the Government of Jamaica, our UN partners—UNESCO, UNLIREC, UNODC, and the RC Office—and all our community champions who helped make SALIENT a model intervention that we can proudly recommend for replication across parishes, countries, and other areas of social transformation. All that we have accomplished together would not have been possible without the kind financial support of our donor partner countries, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Sweden and Switzerland whose continued development investments are helping us to realise our aspirations for people and planet.

Together, we have shown that integrated action and shared responsibility are the keys to sustainable peace. At UNDP, we remain deeply committed to continuing this work in partnership with all of you. Thank you.