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The small and micro business sector is expected to benefit from the donation of $8 million from the Jamaica Bureau of Standards. The funds, which were garnered through the efforts of the 'Consortium' - a group comprising six projects and organisations dedicated to providing development support for small and micro businesses - will go towards providing constancy services for persons...

Thank you for your gracious welcome and generous introduction. As one who was involved in the Miami Conference at Ministerial level from the very beginning, I am pleased to contribute some reflections and perspectives to this distinguished gathering of Heads and Ministers of; representatives of the public sector, labour and the business community, academics and our critical social partners as...

Prime Minister P.J. Patterson will address the plenary session of the 28th annual Conference of the Caribbean and Latin America, which will be held on Tuesday, December 7 at the Miami Intercontinental Hotel. Other Caribbean leaders will also attend the three-day event titled "An Integrated Third Border" to discuss the key challenges faced by the Caribbean and Central American economies,...

Minister of Commerce Science and Technology, Phillip Paulwell is expected to travel to Houston, Texas on December 17, where he will formally launch another licensing round for the exploration of oil and gas in Jamaica's waters. The Texas call follows the successful launch of a licensing round in London last month. Minister Paulwell will be accompanied by Dr. Raymond Wright,...

The Executive Agencies Act has been amended to give legitimacy to those agencies, which were established before the Act was passed in 2002. Piloting the legislation during a meeting of the Senate last Friday (Dec. 3), Leader of Government Business and Information Minister, Senator Burchell Whiteman, explained that the Bill sought to validate all actions taken by the eight organizations,...

Vegetable farmers in Springfield and neighbouring communities in St. Thomas are being advised to "scout" their fields for pests at least twice weekly and take remedial action to prevent contamination. Timon Williamson, Senior Research Director for plant protection at the Bodles Research Station in St. Catherine, told the farmers attending a field day in the parish recently, that scouting was...

The Senate on Friday (December 3) passed a Bill amending the Coroners Act in a bid to minimize delays in the procedures for coroners' inquests, and further enhance the overall administration of justice. Piloting the Bill, Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Senator A.J. Nicholson explained that the legislation would serve to eliminate the "interminable delays" during pre-inquest procedures by...

Michael Thorny, Coordinator of Information Technology projects for persons with disabilities at the National Youth Service (NYS), views the move by government to amend the Road Traffic Act to allow deaf persons to drive, as a victory for the disabled community in Jamaica. "I think the amendment is long overdue. They (the disabled community) have been lobbying for over 30...

Key private sector organizations and support institutions have pledged their commitment to the 28.7 million euro Private Sector Development Programme (PSDP) scheduled to begin in 2005. The PSDP is a technical assistance programme jointly funded by the European Union (EU) and the Government of Jamaica (GOJ) and is geared at strengthening the competitiveness of the private sector. The Private Sector...

Shaneek Frank, student of William Knibb High School in St. Ann has been awarded first place in the Caribbean Organisation of Tax Administrators-sponsored Regional Tax Essay Competition. Director General of Tax Administration, Clive Nicholas went to the school on Tuesday (Nov. 30), where he presented Shaneek with a cheque valued at $90,000. She also received a computer on behalf of...

Under the theme 'Women and AIDS' the Clarendon Health Department focused on assessing the risk of women contracting the HIV virus in the parish as part of their celebration for World AIDS day on December 1. In a recent JIS News interview Health Educator for the parish, Shelton Maxwell, explained that an outreach activity was held in the centre of...

Farmers of the rural St. Catherine communities of Coolshade and Mexico will find it easier to transport their produce to market as some 3.4 km of the Coolshade to Mexico feeder road has been rehabilitated at a cost of $12.9 million. Financed by the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF), the project involved the reshaping and laying of a new road...