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Minister of Health Hon. Rudyard Spencer, says a number of measures will be taken to strengthen the capacity of the National Blood Transfusion Service. Speaking at his monthly press briefing on Thursday (January 21), Minister Spencer said the finding of the audit report ordered by Permanent Secretary, Dr. Jean Dixon in November last year pointed to weak inventory systems and...

Director of Emergency, Disaster Management and Special Services in the Ministry of Health (MOH), Dr. Marion Bullock DuCasse (2nd left) examines nutritional powder donated by ViSalus, while ViSalus Ambassador, Gaudia Chevannes Aquart (2nd right) provides information on its use. Looking on is head of the second MOH team of health and medical professionals to Haiti, Dr. Mark Minott (left) and...

Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw, said that after registering a decline during this fiscal year, real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is expected to rise by 0.5 per cent in the next financial year. "The growth outlook reflects both gradual pick up on activity in the mining sector, as global demands recover, and continued investment and growth...

Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Audley Shaw, has said that Jamaicans need to be more knowledgeable about financial matters, including how their personal financial choices affect the economic wellbeing of the country. "Financial literacy education is important to both the financial security of individuals and by extension our nation," Mr. Shaw stated. He was speaking at the...

More than 1,000 Jamaicans, who are awaiting corrective eye surgeries, will finally have these operations performed at the new Ophthalmology Centre at the St. Joseph's Hospital in Kingston, which opens on Wednesday (Jan. 27). "Patients have been screened and selected for surgery, but for various reasons they have not had it done," said Director of Health Services, Planning, and Integration...

The Senate, on Friday (Jan. 22), passed the Government Dematerialisation Act, 2010, with 27 amendments, during its sitting at Gordon House in Kingston. The Bill, which was tabled and piloted by Leader of Government Business, Senator the Hon. Dorothy Lightbourne, seeks to make it compulsory for every investor or owner to convert Government securities held into dematerialised or electronic format,...

Minister of National Security, Senator the Hon. Dwight Nelson, has said the Ministry will be seeking to accelerate its legislative agenda this year, as part of broader efforts to put a dent on criminal activity. This will include lending support to the Ministry of Justice in advancing the five proposed crime bills through Parliament, the Minister said in his contribution...

The Government is fully committed to protecting Jamaica's borders from infiltration by criminal networks seeking to engage in illicit activities under the guise of humanitarian appeals. Minister of National Security, Senator the Hon. Dwight Nelson, gave the assurance in the Senate on Friday (Jan. 22), which came against the background of concerns about the guns for drugs trade, particularly between...

A team from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) yesterday (Jan. 23) wrapped up three days of meetings with key disaster management agencies to assess the country's disaster management programme and determine the level of technical assistance that can be offered by the Japanese government. The team of experts, which began their work with meetings with the Office of Disaster...

An enrichment room, equipped with audiovisual technology to enhance the reading and mathematics skills of students, was opened on Wednesday (Jan. 20) at the Moneague Primary and Junior High School in St. Ann. The facility, which is sponsored by Digicel Foundation in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, boasts computers with literacy and numeracy software such as Hooked on Phonics...

Ground was broken on Friday (Jan. 22) for the rehabilitation of the 3.2 kilometres Greenfield Road in St. Elizabeth. The work will be carried out at a cost of $32 million, with the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) providing $27 million, and the remaining $5 million coming from the Constituency Development Fund (CDF). Addressing a brief ceremony held at the...

Minister of Health, Hon. Rudyard Spencer, has called on Jamaicans to get activity involved in the abortion consultations now underway. He said that the public's views and recommendations will inform the deliberations of the Joint Select Committee of Parliament, which is considering the final report of the Abortion Policy Review Advisory Group. "I want you to be actively involved, I...