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The proposed Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) is currently being reviewed by the Chief Parliamentary Counsel (CPC), to amend contents of the draft, based on recommendations from the Attorney General’s office. Labour and Social Security Minister, Hon. Derrick Kellier, who will table the Bill in Parliament, says the review aims to ensure that its provisions conform to stipulated legal...

Jamaica is to host a Caribbean Growth Forum (CGF) on May 2, aimed at facilitating private sector led growth and job creation. The forum will be held at the University of the West Indies, and will see participants from the public and private sectors, academia and the media; decision makers, business leaders, policy makers, young people and other stakeholders discussing...

Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Hon. Phillip Paulwell says he intends to start granting licences for electric power wheeling in July. In his Budget Debate presentation in Parliament on Wednesday, April 24, the Minister, noted that this is another policy initiative of the administration “to make our energy sector more robust and realise efficiencies”. He explained that “wheeling”...

Young Jamaicans are being encouraged to do something for their communities through schools and youth groups on National Children’s Action Day, as part of activities to celebrate Child Month 2013, to be observed in May. The Day, being organised by the National Child Month Committee (NCMC), will be observed on Friday, May 10, and the main project is the St....

The Jamaica Cancer Society is inviting members of the medical fraternity to attend and support the inaugural staging of its Cervical Cancer Medical Symposium on Sunday, April 28, in honour of Dr. Joseph St. Elmo Hall. The forum, which forms part of activities to mark Cancer Awareness Month in April, will be held in the Basic Medical Sciences Building on...

The Rural Electrification Programme (REP) will be renamed Jamaica Ener­gy Solutions Limited (JESL), and given a new mandateto develop renewable energy solutions. In his contribution to the 2013/14 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives on April 24, Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Hon. Phillip Paulwell, explained that the REP has largely achieved its mandate, wiring 80,000 homes,...

The Government is moving forward with the divestment of the Petroleum Company of Jamaica (PETCOM). Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Hon. Philip Paulwell, in his Budget Debate presentation on April 24, said that an enterprise team headed by Chairman of Petrojam, Erwin Jones, has been established to handle the process. He informed that a valuation of the company’s...

Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Fenton Ferguson, has emphasized the need for the effective and efficient use of resources in the health sector, especially in light of the country’s economic challenges. The Minister said that with the pending agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which calls for belt tightening, no sector will be exempt from this scenario. He noted,...

The Ministry of Finance and Planning wishes to advise that the delayed payment of salaries to Teachers, Education Officers and the Police was due to problems experienced in the banking operation at a local bank and not the Central Treasury Management System (CTMS) as was reported in the media. The bank has promised that with the restoration of their system,...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller will on Friday, April 26, attend the 5th Summit of Heads of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) in Haiti. Among the issues before the Summit are trade, transport, sustainable tourism and natural disasters. The establishment of the ACS is aimed at deepening and strengthening regional relations within the Caribbean and in...

Minister with responsibility for Information, Sen. Sandrea Falconer on Thursday, April 25, met with a team from the Press Association of Jamaica (PAJ) on the matter of protocols governing relations with the media and in particular the conduct of interviews with the Prime Minister. The PAJ was firm in its position that the Prime Minister was inaccessible to the media...

Leader of the Opposition, Andrew Holness, says projects such as the Global Logistic Hub Initiative should bring growth for the Jamaican economy. Mr. Holness made the comment on Thursday, April 25, during his contribution to the 2013/14 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives. He also cited work on the North/South Highway as another initiative that will boost the economy....