The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved the withdrawal of $406.5 million from the Capital Development Fund (CDF) to finance bauxite development programmes.
Finance and Planning Minister Peter Phillips said $200 million of the amount will go to the Jamaica Bauxite Institute (JBI) to deal with pollution control, red mud disposal and water treatment. The institute will also undertake work to identify and protect Jamaica's mining resources and to support sustainable development.
The Bauxite Community Development Programme has also been provided $200 million for greenhouse projects at eight sites, and for water harvesting and crop production technologies in drought-prone bauxite areas.