The Royal Ethiopian Trust has made a US$5,000 donation to support Jamaica’s Hurricane Melissa Recovery efforts. The disclosure was made by Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport Minister, Hon. Olivia Grange, at Wednesday’s (December 3) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House. Ms. Grange read a letter from Prince Ermias Sahle-Selassie, grandson of His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Haile Selassi, addressed to Prime...

Approximately 215,000 buildings sustained varying levels of damage from the passage of Hurricane Melissa, says Director General, Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), Commander Alvin Gayle. “Across the island, some 1.6 million buildings have been assessed by GeoAI. Of that number, we have now assessed 215,000 to have some level of damage. It is estimated that 156,000 of...

The Students’ Loan Bureau (SLB) is providing support for students enrolled in tertiary institutions and customers across the parishes of St. Elizabeth, Westmoreland, Hanover, St. James and Trelawny, which were most severely impacted by Hurricane Melissa. Addressing Wednesday’s (December 3) Post Cabinet Press Briefing at Jamaica House on Wednesday (December 3), SLB Executive Director, Nickeisha Walsh, announced that grants valued...

The National Water Commission (NWC) is reporting that water has been restored to 82 per cent of its customers since the passage of Hurricane Melissa on October 28. Addressing Wednesday’s (December 3) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House, Director General, Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), Alvin Gayle, said significant work continues to ensure that all Jamaicans will...

As the nation undertakes the repair and rebuilding of schools damaged by Hurricane Melissa, the National Education Trust (NET) has underscored the importance of embedding resilience in all new infrastructure. “After [Hurricane] Beryl, a lot of the focus was on getting our schools ready for [the 2024/25 academic year, beginning] September, which we did. Now we are trying to be...

Jamaica’s reconstruction strategy, being deployed across infrastructure, housing, digitalisation, logistics, agriculture and energy, will create thousands of jobs, improve national productivity and protect fiscal sustainability. Prime Minister, Dr. the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, made the declaration in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (December 2), where he provided details about the comprehensive financial package of up to US$6.7 billion over...

The Ministry of Health and Wellness has launched a Staff Welfare Initiative to assess the full impact of Hurricane Melissa on team members in the health sector and to support their recovery. Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Errol Greene, said the initiative is intended to provide psychosocial support for staff members, even as the health system continues to recover and...