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KINGSTON – The Ministry of Education is reporting that all is in place for the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT), which is scheduled for Thursday, March 24 and Friday, March 25. Approximately 43,000 students across the island are slated to sit the examination. Minister of Education, Andrew Holness is encouraging parents and guardians to play a supportive role in the...

Approximately 180 public sector employees, representing 42 Government departments and agencies, are to participate in the inaugural staging of the Customer Service Monitoring and Evaluation System (CSMES) training programme. The course, which is being undertaken by the Cabinet Office and the Management Institute for National Development (MIND), is designed to provide training to Government employees in implementing the CSMES within...

Recommendations aimed at inducing short and medium term economic growth in Jamaica, have been included in a strategy developed within the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ). The document, a Growth Inducement Strategy for Jamaica in the Short and Medium Term, was developed through a special secretariat established within the PIOJ. It establishes a strategic framework for robust economic growth, aligned...

KINGSTON – The final phase of the Cuba-Jamaica Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) Project, commonly called the Cuban Light Bulb Distribution Programme, will commence on Saturday March 26. The distribution of the bulbs in North West St. Andrew will be preceded by a launch at the Meadowbrook High School, Kingston on Tuesday, March 22. Re-commencement of the programme, which will involve...

KINGSTON – Minister of National Security, Senator the Hon. Dwight Nelson has reiterated the Government's commitment to weed out corruption, to continue implementation of the Jamaica Constabulary Force's  (JCF) anti-corruption strategy, and to heighten focus on wrongdoers within the Force. “Corruption is a major hindrance to sustainable development with a disproportionate impact on the poor and dispossessed. In developing countries...

KINGSTON – There was a 27 per cent drop in citizens reporting that they had been asked for bribes by public officials, or in the workplace, a 2010 Latin American Public Opinion Project Americas Barometer poll has revealed. This was down from 2006, when data showed that some 35 per cent of Jamaicans had been asked for bribes by public...

MIAMI – Oasis of the Seas, described as the world's largest cruise vessel, is en route to making its inaugural stopover at the newly constructed Falmouth pier in Trelawny today, March 22. The Royal Caribbean Cruise liner’s call will coincide with the celebration of the official opening of the Falmouth Cruise Ship Pier.  The vessel will make stops in Haiti...

KIGNSTON – Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Marlene Malahoo-Forte, says there is urgent need for more attention to be paid to forest protection and management. “There is an urgent need for conservation, and there is urgent need for us to find the right balance and perspective in sustainably using this resource as...

PORT ANTONIO – The Port Antonio Eagles Youth Marching Band was presented with approximately US$10,000 dollars worth of musical instruments, by U.S. Ambassador Pamela Bridgewater, on behalf of the United States Department of Defense Humanitarian Assistance Programme, at a ceremony at the Errol Flynn Marina on Friday March 18. The equipment included antique trumpets, snare drums, professional marching bass drums,...

KINGSTON – The Commission of Enquiry into the extradition of Christopher "Dudus" Coke heard its first "off camera" testimony Monday morning March 21, when the television crew was barred from filming civil servant, Verna McGaw. Mrs. McGaw, a former Executive Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Senator Dorothy Lightbourne, is said to reside in a volatile area...

LONDON – Mayor of Port Maria, His Worship Richard Creary has said that Jamaican local authorities should be allowed to utilise more local state resources to kick-start local economies and improve the living standards of their citizens. Councillor Creary, who participated in the Commonwealth Local Government Conference in Wales from March 15 to 18, said Jamaican parish councils should adopt...

KINGSTON – Wife of the Governor-General, Her Excellency the Most Hon Lady Allen, wants more volunteers, particularly those with educational expertise, to assist patients of the Bustamante Hospital for Children, in Kingston. She said this is critical, as some of the patients are unable to attend school for extended periods, due to the severity of their illnesses, resulting in the...