Christopher Burgess | Landlessness and crime – case for regularisation

One in five Jamaicans, over 600,000 people, live in informal communities lacking tenure, services, and safety. Yet, the 2021 National Squatter Management Policy focuses on evictions that would worsen poverty, homelessness and crime.

Regularisation of communities has big benefits. Land ownership builds generational wealth, encourages investment in communities, and reduces violence. There is a spillover effect on adjoining formal communities of a 15-to-25 per-cent increase in land values after regularisation. Regularisation makes sense for formal communities too.

And it’s not just about money, it’s about safety too. Murder rates in informal areas are five-to-10 times higher than in formal communities. The families of Old Braeton, Naggo Head and Lakes Pen are more likely to experience homicide than Portmore Gardens, Greater Portmore and Portsmouth.

Yet, HAJ current Operation PRIDE programme only plans to issue a meagre 208 titles in 2025, in comparison to 58,000 in the 1990s. As informal settlements grew from 50,000 in 1930 to over 574,000 in 2021, Jamaica’s murder rate surged, pointing to a plausible link between landlessness and rising violence. Clearly the focus should be on regularisation.

The solution? Mass land titling and infrastructure upgrades. Regularising settlements can reduce crime and build more secure, prosperous communities. CAPRI says this approach could be a game changer in their assessment of ZOSOs and they question the effectiveness of the “hearts and minds” approach that overlooks gangs entrenched in informal settlements. Small infrastructure projects fail to address how unplanned settlement patterns enable gang control.

HOMELESSNESS ON THE RISE

Minister Desmond McKenzie had informed that Jamaica’s homeless population has tripled from 1,057 in 2012 to over 3,000 in 2024. While crime is a key factor, targetted interventions remain weak. Shelters and reunification efforts are temporary fixes. Real solutions require disaster-resilient housing and secure land tenure to reduce crime and homelessness.

Jamaica’s housing crisis isn’t just about land, it’s about social welfare.

EVICTION POLICIES WON’T FIX THE HOUSING CRISIS

The government’s current approach, outlined in the National Housing Policy (2023), focuses too heavily on eviction rather than solutions. Settlements are divided into three tiers: Tier 1 (unsafe and to be evicted), Tier 2 (on non-residential land and to be evicted), and Tier 3 (on undeveloped land, possibly eligible for regularisation).

A better strategy is to prioritise regularisation of Tier 2 and 3 settlements while relocating Tier 1 squatters into low-income housing. Long-term solutions require land redistribution, affordable housing policies, and community partnerships, rather than short-sighted eviction strategies that perpetuate land insecurity.

MISSING LINK

After Emancipation in 1838, land remained out of reach for most Jamaicans. Elites held the best land, while freed men were pushed to marginal plots. Government-led reforms, such as the Yallahs Valley Land Authority (1950s) and Operation GROW (1970s), aimed to improve agricultural productivity and provide land access.

My grandfather, a Yallahs Valley land recipient, thrived as a farmer, supporting his family of 11 children, and would later become a champion farmer for St. Thomas.

But, progress stalled in the 1980s. IMF-led reforms prioritised large-scale, export-driven agri-business over local farming. For example, Agro 21, Sugar Industry Restructuring, and Spring Plains Project failed due to poor planning, neglect of small farmers, high costs, inadequate infrastructure, debt issues, and neglecting local food production.

These failed programmes pushed small farmers off the land and sparked a new wave of rural-to-urban migration. The result? More squatting, more poverty, and more crime.

Foreign agri-businesses take profits overseas. Jamaican farmers reinvest locally. Land policies must empower local people.

GOVERNMENT HOLDS THE KEY

Since the 1990s, when 15 per cent of Jamaicans lived in rent-free or informal communities, the rate of informal settlement has steadily worsened. Driven by rural-to-urban migration, and weak housing policies, the informal population grew to over 21 per cent by 2021, highlighting systemic inequality and need for land reform.

The current system for regularisation is too complicated, with legal and fixed-boundary survey requirements for many families. Outdated laws and the 60-year Crown land possession rule further limit access, while many settlers see little value in formal titles. Since 2014, NLA reports, title registration has only improved by six per cent, leaving 37 per cent of parcels still untitled.

A simplified adjudication programme is needed. Community-based surveyors could verify claims through local testimony, replacing slow court-like processes. Yes, risks exist, but GPS-based surveys are cheaper, and probate/subdivision fees could be waived. Reducing the 60-year rule to 25 would also help.

Getting a title often requires meeting strict planning rules many settlements cannot achieve. Planning standards shouldn’t block titles for long-term residents, especially when safeguards and upgrades are possible.

If the government is the largest landowner, it must use that land for the people. The Government of Jamaica, through the Sugar Company of Jamaica owns over 90,000 acres, much of which is idle. For historical background, the South St. Catherine police division occupies the former estates of Twickenham-Park, Dove Cot Park, Bushy Park and others.

The 12 estate owners of this area received a cumulative sum of over £29,100 or about J$1 billion (in 2025 money) for reparation of their estates, while the enslaved received nothing. Less than 15 per cent of government lands could provide 90,000 affordable homes. If the government is the largest landowner, it must use that land for the people.

Jamaica’s housing crisis is rooted in history, weak policies, foreign interests, and evictions. The path forward is mass regularisation, use of idle government lands, and investment in affordable housing.

Christopher Burgess, PhD is a registered civil engineer, land developer and the managing director of CEAC Solutions Company Limited. He is currently a Jamaica Institution of Engineers council member. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com