Director General at the Planning Institute of Jamaica, Dr. Wayne Henry, is encouraging management consultants to always strive for excellence. “Immediately as you think of consultancy, you are adding capacity, and sometimes you may be engaged with entities that may have the capacity, but don’t have the time. And at the end of the day, you have to add value,...

Work is apace on the development of a policy proposal and road map for the sustainable implementation of a National Health Insurance Plan (NHIP) for Jamaica. The proposal will address elements relating to the benefits package, which includes levels and sources of financing, legislative changes, provider network, and the requisite administrative and organisational structures. This is contained in a Ministry...

Minister of Health, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, has called for a “cultural shift” in how persons with mental illness are treated in the society. He said a significant number of persons suffer from mental illness, noting that many of them are often ignored by families and the wider community because of the stigma associated with the disorder. “We need...

Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Audley Shaw, says young people need to develop a passion “for doing what is right” and be wary of “traps and pitfalls” that could ruin their lives. Delivering the keynote address at the valedictory service of the Knockalva Agricultural School in Hanover on June 1, Mr. Shaw said he has seen over...

Transport and Mining Minister, Hon. Robert Montague, is inviting stakeholder input on the 15-point plan to overhaul the transport sector, which he presented in his 2018/19 Sectoral Debate presentation in the House of Representatives. Mr. Montague said a six-month window of opportunity is being opened to enable persons to make additional suggestions to his proposals, in an effort to instil...

The Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) has extended the deadline for the submission of entries to its ‘Every Child Deserves Protection’ jingle competition to Friday, June 15. The original deadline for the submission of entries was June 8. The competition, which was launched in May (Child Month), is aimed at ensuring that there is a strong and sustained...

The Ministry of Health has established a Medicinal Cannabis Unit (MCU) as part of measures to facilitate the medical marijuana industry’s development in Jamaica. This was disclosed in a Ministry Paper tabled by Portfolio Minister, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, in the House of Representatives on June 5. To date, the MCU has registered approximately 61 medicinal cannabis products, manufactured...