Jamaica has experienced a decline in the cases of tuberculosis (TB) over the past five years. In an interview with JIS News, Senior Medical Officer at the National Chest Hospital, Dr. Terry Baker, said Jamaica has seen a steady decline in persons being treated for the disease. “Over the years, we’ve seen an average of between 120 and 150 newly...

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says Jamaica remains in dialogue with key international partners in order to minimise the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the global industry. He told JIS News that the Ministry has been in talks with the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the European Union (EU), among others. He noted that the focus...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, revealed today (March 23), that two additional cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) have been confirmed, bringing the total number of infected persons to 21. Speaking at a press conference at Jamaica House, the Prime Minister said that beginning on Wednesday, March 25, there will be restriction on persons 75 years old and over,...

The Ministry of Health and Wellness is reminding travellers who, in the last week, have come into the island from countries where there is local transmission of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) that they are to self-quarantine for up to 14 days. Countries with local transmission include the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Germany, Spain, Italy, South Korea, Singapore,...

The Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry is imploring business operators to comply with the measures announced by the Government to curtail the spread of COVID-19. Chamber President, Janet Silvera, told JIS News that there has been “blatant disregard” for health and safety guidelines by many operators, particularly as it relates to social distancing. “We find that the behaviour...

Chief Executive Officer of e-Learning Jamaica, Keith Smith, says Cabinet has approved the procurement of 40,000 tablet computers for students and 25,000 devices for teachers, under the Tablets in Schools Project. “We are now finalising contracts with the vendors,” he told JIS News in a recent interview. A new phase of the project, which is to be renamed ‘Technology in...

Executive Director of National Integrity Action (NIA), Professor Trevor Munroe, has commended the island’s judiciary for exceeding local and international case clearance rates. Supreme Court statistics for 2019 indicate that Jamaica’s parish courts have a case clearance rate of 101.6 per cent. Three of the top-performing parishes are St. Mary, with a clearance rate of 125.6 per cent; St. Catherine,...