Squatter culture hurting Jamaica, says PM

Warning that “unplanned communities” are undermining productivity and straining public resources, Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness says the fight against squatting will not be won through enforcement alone and has urged private developers to provide more affordable housing options for Jamaicans.

“We need to build more houses at prices that people can afford to make it uneconomical for persons to go and squat and capture unplanned. Basically, that has to be the strategy,” Holness said.

He made the call on Friday during the official ground-breaking ceremony for the Wick Hall Estate housing development on Featherbed Lane in Spanish Town, St Catherine, where he argued that increasing the supply of affordable housing is critical to reducing the growth of informal settlements and unplanned communities.

According to Holness, the Government has committed to delivering approximately 70,000 housing solutions through agencies such as the National Housing Trust (NHT) and the Housing Agency of Jamaica (HAJ), but the private sector must play a larger role if Jamaica is to close its housing deficit, which is estimated at 150,000 units.

While acknowledging that many Jamaicans living in informal settlements have legitimate housing needs, the prime minister argued that unplanned development places significant burdens on taxpayers and often leaves residents without adequate infrastructure and services.

“What they’re doing is to capture it and give it a nice name called adverse possession. And they go and cut it up, and then people go on it and… some people put up a little zinc structure and they go and dig their foundation and they put one block and two blocks and they start, and before you know it, an entire community is there,” he said.

Holness said such communities are often established without proper roads, water systems, drainage networks, public transportation routes, or garbage collection services, creating long-term challenges for both residents and the State.

He argued that these patterns of development ultimately affect national productivity, as residents of poorly planned communities often face long commutes, unreliable transportation, and limited access to basic services.

“If you as a worker have to get up before daylight, catch water to do your domestic chores, and then walk from up the hill, come down in mud to reach the road, change your shoes by the time you reach, stand up and wait for intermittent transportation — because no bus route, no taxi was planned for that area, no water was planned for that area, no road was planned for that area — by the time you reach work, you’re cross, angry and miserable,” he said.

A man walks past the entrance of the Wick Hall Estate housing development on Featherbed Lane in Spanish Town, St Catherine, during the official ground-breaking ceremony on Friday. Naphtali Junior

Holness said the solution lies not only in stronger enforcement against squatting but also in expanding the supply of organised, affordable housing developments located near economic activity and existing infrastructure.

He challenged private developers to broaden their focus beyond high-end housing projects and invest more heavily in the affordable housing market.

“Help us to provide housing for the Jamaican who is struggling to find a house but can’t afford the $20 million, [but] maybe can do the $10 million with our mortgage support,” Holness said.

The prime minister pointed to the Wick Hall Estate development as an example of the type of project he would like to see replicated across the country. The development, being undertaken by Altruhomes, a member of the ARC Group, will provide 221 homes on 36 acres of land in Spanish Town.

The project is expected to include green spaces, recreational facilities and energy-efficient features, including solar-ready homes and solar water heaters.

Holness said the Government’s housing strategy is increasingly focused on ensuring that the formal housing market produces more solutions than the informal market, thereby reducing the incentive for people to occupy land illegally.

He maintained that organised housing developments, supported by proper infrastructure, are essential not only for improving living conditions but also for boosting economic growth and national productivity.

“The more communities are organised, the greater will be the productivity of the people,” Holness said.