Rapid Assessment of Squatting Report (NOTE: LARGE FILE)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This report is a response to the request of the Government of Jamaica (GoJ) to have a rapid
assessment of squatting carried out in order that policy can be developed and informed decisions
taken with respect to addressing the many challenging issues associated with the phenomenon.
The main focus of the assessment was various aspects of the informal settlements relating to
location, age, population estimate, physical infrastructure, environmental context and the general
level of vulnerability to natural hazards. A combination of field survey and Geographic
Information Systems (GIS) analysis was employed to arrive at various conclusions of the study.
A total of seven hundred and fifty four (754) settlements were identified. Of these, three
hundred and twenty (320) were surveyed during this exercise. GIS analysis was applied to five
hundred and eighty five (585) settlement for which spatial data was available.
The assessment revealed three types of squatting in Jamaica: agricultural, residential and
commercial, the most dominant type being residential. Sixty six percent (66%) of the
settlements surveyed have been in existence for more than twenty (20) years. Squatter sites
range from less than ten (10) units or households per site to in excess of two thousand
households in large settlements. An estimated twenty percent (20%) of Jamaica’s population
reside in squatter settlements.
Physical infrastructure (roads and drains) within squatter settlements are either poorly developed
or non-existent. There is access to water and electricity with regards to close proximity to the
mains but most of the connections observed were illegally done. Some squatter settlements
benefit from municipal garbage collection but the majority resort to a combination of open
dumps and burning. There is no infrastructure for proper disposal of sewage waste hence the
dominant methods identified were soak-away pits and pit latrines.
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