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A Bill to amend the Maintenance Act, to place equal maintenance obligations on both sexes as spouses and parents, is now before the Upper House. Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Senator A.J. Nicholson, who piloted the Bill at Friday's (Sept. 23) sitting of the Senate, said that the existing Act, despite being amended seven times, did not reflect the...

The Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) has expressed confidence in its Electronic Ticketing Machine (ETM), which incorporates the smart card system, and is used on its fleet of buses. Brian Tulloch, Systems Engineer at the government-owned bus company, informs JIS News that the ETM utilises technology that is not easily susceptible to outside interference. "From our general perspective, I would...

Entrepreneurs in St. Thomas recently benefited from valuable information as to how to access loans to improve on and to start their own businesses at a mirco credit forum organised by the National Organizing Committee for the International Year of Micro Credit. The panel, which included representatives of the Small Business Association, National Development Foundation, Small Business Loan Foundation, and...

Liaison officers of the Jamaica Central Labour Organization in Washington, D.C., will meet with the management of a hotel property in Lake Charles, Louisiana tomorrow (September 27), to discuss the extent of damage caused by Hurricane Rita and how this would affect Jamaican workers. Some 63 Jamaicans employed under the Ministry of Labour and Social Security Overseas Employment Programme have...

Prime Minister P. J. Patterson has called on the international community to dedicate increased resources to fighting hunger, infectious diseases, genocide, terrorism and environmental degradation and to decrease expenditure on armaments.The Prime Minister, who was speaking at the Congressional Black Caucus' annual awards banquet held on September 24 at the Washington Convention Centre, noted that his personal quest over the...

A little more than a year after Hurricane Ivan hit, Jamaica along with five other CARICOM member states were last week presented with cheques totaling more than US$11,000 to repair damage caused by the hurricane in September 2004. The cheques represent part proceeds from a Caribbean hurricane benefit concert staged at the Riverside Interdenominational Church of New York City (Upper...

Increased irrigation systems, hydroponics, registration of farmers to insure them against natural disasters and the use of apiculture programmes to encourage youth involvement in agriculture are just some of the systems that the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) is putting in place as it continues to deal with the challenges of food security in the country. Director of Special Projects...

The Clarendon Health Department is organising a schools' poster competition to highlight the need for proper dental hygiene in celebration of dental health month, which is being observed from October 1 to 31. Health Educator at the Clarendon Health Department, Shelton Maxwell told JIS News yesterday (September 23) that the poster competition, which is expected to involve some 20 schools...

Governor General His Excellency, the Most Honourable Sir Howard Cooke has called on Jamaicans to take up their responsibility in helping the country to become a united nation and to do their part to ensure economic development. The Governor General was speaking at an entrepreneurial workshop and launch of a 'Food and Culture' festival hosted by Juici Patties as part...

The Travel Agents' Fly-in Blitz, targeting some 450 travel agents from the United States to be brought into the island over three weekends, for familiarization tours of the island's tourism product offerings, has been going well. This according to Regional Director of the JTB, Clive Taffe. With the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB), the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) and...

Jamaica's youth are being encouraged to constantly upgrade their skills and qualifications in order to keep abreast of the changing pace of the world economy. "Keep upgrading yourself to keep up with changing economies and look at each qualification as a means to an end," Robert Gregory, Chief Executive Officer of the HEART Trust/NTA implored a gathering of Youth Leaders...

The Senate yesterday (Sept. 23) gave the nod to a Bill amending the Larceny Act giving force to new legislative provisions specifically targeted at stemming the rise in extortion practices across the island. The Bill modified the parent Act to make it an offence for a person to make unwarranted demands with menaces in order to gain a benefit or...