Noel Thompson, Gleaner Writer

Residents from Trelawny participate in role play during a training/assessment seminar spearheaded by the Tourism Product Development Company at the New Forest 4H Centre in Duanvale, Trelawny, recently. - Noel Thompson/Freelance Photographer

WESTERN BUREAU:

Residents in sections of Trelawny and St James are to embark on a new way of life by earning their living from sustainable-livelihood projects that are environmentally compatible.

The residents have been undergoing training for several months in the areas of tourism, quality service improvement, business and environmental awareness programmes. The people in Trelawny recently concluded a two-week certification programme. Their counterparts in Flagstaff, St James, ended their leg of training in August.

Joint effort

The training sessions are aimed at providing the residents with the know-how to enter the fields of tourism and business with more confidence.

A joint effort by a number of agencies has seen costs being absorbed by these bodies to transform the Cockpit Country communities of Flagstaff and Bunkers Hill, Trelawny, into ecotourism districts.

These include the United States Agency for International Devel-opment Protected Areas and Rural Enterprise Project (USAID/PARE); the Nature Conservancy; the Forestry Department; the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) and the Small Businesses Association of Jamaica.

Commitment

Just under 30 residents from pockets in Trelawny were recently recognised for their commitment to staying the course of the two-week workshop undertaken by the TPDCo.

Special recognition was given to Kerra Brown, Ian Gordon, Asburga Harwood, Carla Ledgister, Henry Barnett and Shamani Nathan for their outstanding performance.

"The training shows us how we can sell Jamaica in a meaningful and progressive manner. I want to utilise the training and get more people involved," said 64-year-old Asburga Harwood, the eldest trainee.

Carla Duhaney, the USAID/PARE programme assistant, said her organisation was working with the residents in Flagstaff and Bunkers Hill to expand the projects to develop a complete tourism package to include cuisine, heritage and river tours.