Participatory budgeting and financial management for the forest sector in Jamaica

The Government of Jamaica (GOJ) undertook a programme to strengthen the public finance management (PFM) to improve covenants, governance, accountability, fiscal control, efficiency and effectiveness in resource use. Jamaica has a very active civil society network that is working on essential forest governance and management issues, including advocating for forest sustainable management, conservation, and restoration. There was a need for that civil society network to be empowered to advocate for participatory budgeting as a part of the nation’s embrace of PFM.

About the Project

In March 2024, CANARI and its implementing partners completed the Participatory Budgeting and Financial Management for the Forest Sector in Jamaica project, which built the capacity of a national coalition of Jamaican CSOs to engage in collective analysis, advocacy and dialogue with key government agencies to promote development of mechanisms for participatory budgeting/PFM for the forest sector. It enhanced capacity, built readiness and catalysed continued action by key civil society organisations (CSOs) working in the forest sector to engage in strategic budget formulation, budget analysis and debate, budget execution and reporting, and evaluation for accountability.

How has this project benefitted the Caribbean region?

The primary target group for the action was Jamaican CSOs which have interests, rights, and responsibilities in forest management, including co‐management of forested protected areas, research, and conservation activities, or as advocates for forest sustainable management, conservation and restoration. The secondary target group was public sector forest managers, policy makers and budget decision‐makers. This included two key government agencies managing state forested lands – the Forestry Department and the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA).

The final beneficiaries included direct forest users, the Jamaican public which is dependent on forest ecosystem services and see forests as part of their national cultural and ecological heritage, and government agencies managing delivery of services from forests to support national development.

What activities did we undertake to achieve this?

• Developed a national coalition of CSOs: A national CSO Coalition for Forests was established, with 27 members collaborating on knowledge sharing and learning, collective analysis, advocacy and dialogue with key government agencies to promote the development of mechanisms for participatory budgeting/PFM for the forest sector. JCDT serves as the convenor and secretariat. The Coalition collaborates with other CSOs in Jamaica and engages with government agencies and other partners working on forest conservation and management.

• Conducted a study on budgeting/PFM processes for the forest sector: A technical report was prepared mapping forest budget processes in the public sector and recommending potential mechanisms for stakeholder engagement. This includes recommendations regarding potential mechanisms for stakeholder engagement in budgeting for the forest sector. A Political Economy Analysis (PEA) was also initiated, drawing upon and complementing the technical study, to inform the selection of suitable mechanisms for stakeholder engagement in budgeting for the forest sector.

• Conducted national capacity building workshops: A capacity assessment survey was conducted with members of the CSO Coalition for Forests to identify priority capacity building needs relevant to the project, i.e., related to forest conservation and management generally and participatory budgeting and advocacy specifically. Priorities for capacity building suggested by the survey were: knowledge sharing and collaboration among Coalition members to build competencies and enhance work on forest conservation and management; strengthening access to financial resources to enhance capacity for effectiveness and sustainability; knowledge about national forest management priorities; knowledge about the budgeting process used by Government and opportunities for engagement; and capacity to lead advocacy initiatives. Coalition members participated in a series of webinars in 2022 to address these priorities and advocacy training was conducted from May-June 2023.

• Conducted action research and learning processes: Action learning projects were implemented by the Coalition to test mechanisms for civil society engagement in forest budgeting identified by the political economy analysis. Three action learning groups worked on: (1) building relationships with local government actors to get forest management issues on their agendas; (2) costing of the forest conservation and management activities by Coalition members to make the case for more active collaboration with and support from forest management agencies; and (3) political engagement with Ministers and Members of Parliament.

• The CSO Coalition for Forests has published three briefing books on participatory budgeting for the forest sector in Jamaica – for Ministers and Members of Parliament, for Government agencies involved in the forest sector, and for Local Government. These highlight the Coalition’s key messages on what it wanted considered during budget debates in Parliament for the 2024-2025 national budget. A case study on the value of Civil Society Organisations to forest conservation and management in Jamaica was also published in March 2024.

• Implemented a CSO-led and executed awareness and advocacy campaign: An awareness and advocacy campaign strategy was developed which identified communication objectives, key target audiences, messages, products and pathways, and indicators for evaluation. This strategy provided the framework for awareness raising on the findings and recommendations of the research and other information gathered, to promote stakeholder engagement in participatory budgeting/PFM for the forest sector.

• Video profiles of 6 CSO members of the CSO Coalition for Forests were developed highlighting the importance of civil society allyship in lobbying for more government resources to be allocated towards forest conservation and management in Jamaica.

• Profiles of each member organisation of the CSO Coalition for Forests were developed and shared via a social media campaign titled #ForestFridays. The entire campaign can be seen here.

How did this project tangibly benefit the Jamaican forest sector and overall, PFM policy and procedure in Jamaica?

The overall benefit to GOJ, Jamaica’s public and civil society sectors and the island nation on a whole were increased and strengthened citizen engagement in, and support for, sustainable management of forest ecosystems and biodiversity in Jamaica to benefit livelihoods, socio‐economic development, and human well‐being.

For more information about this project

• Download the project summary
• Contact Lehome Johnson, Senior Technical Officer, at lehome@canari.org