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In the upcoming fiscal year, the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) will be undertaking a knowledge, attitudes and practices study with farmers and users of protected wetlands in the Negril Great Morass. With a sum of $40 million, which has been provided in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure, the agency will be engaging the services of a communications specialist...

The Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation will be engaging the services of technical consultants as it works to develop and implement strategies that will enable the country to become more climate change resilient. A sum of $86.6 million has been provided in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure to undertake this activity through the Ministry’s Climate Change Division. The...

The Meteorological Service of Jamaica will be developing a multi-criteria model for bush fire prediction in the upcoming fiscal year as it seeks to better manage this natural hazard. A sum of $15 million has been provided in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure to carry out this and other initiatives under a project to develop a comprehensive bush fire warning...

The Government has allocated $88.84 billion in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of Representatives, for debt repayment this year. Of this sum, the lion’s share of $58.6 billion will go towards repaying Jamaican dollar benchmark investment notes issued under the Jamaica Debt Exchange/National Debt Exchange (JDX/NDX) initiatives. The second largest provision of $17 billion is earmarked...

The Government will be spending $12 billion to improve road infrastructure across the island in the upcoming fiscal year under the Major Infrastructure for Development Programme (MIDP). The funds have been provided in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of Representatives. Among the projects is the widening of Hagley Park Road in Kingston to four lanes. Improvements...

Work will continue on the Palisadoes Shore and Road Project in the next fiscal year, with additional budgetary support of $5 million. The money has been set aside in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure and will be used to undertake the continued monitoring of mangroves under the environmental sub-project. The overall project aims to protect the integrity and viability of...

The National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) is expected to acquire 12 garbage trucks in the new fiscal year. A sum of $300 million has been set aside in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure for the undertaking. The Estimates were recently tabled in the House of Representatives by Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Audley Shaw. The new...

The Government is moving to strengthen the system of communication during times of disaster of other emergencies. A sum of $10 million has been allocated to the Emergency Communication System in Jamaica project in the Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of Representatives. The project, which is being implemented by the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM),...

Construction for two drop-in centres for homeless persons in the parishes of St. Thomas and Trelawny is expected to be completed in the 2018/19 fiscal year. To facilitate the undertaking, a sum of $28 million has been allocated in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of Representatives. The project is being financed from the Consolidated Fund and...

A sum of $735.5 million has been allocated to continue the Strategic Public Sector Transformation Project this year. This is outlined in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of Representatives. The project, being implemented by the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, is seeking to strengthen public resource management and provide support for select State institutions...

The fleet of the Jamaica Fire Brigade is expected to be increased in the new fiscal year, following an allocation of $232 million. Details of the project are outlined in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure, which were tabled in the House of Representatives by Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Audley Shaw, on February 15. The money will...

Essex Valley in St. Elizabeth is to benefit from the development of its irrigation infrastructure in the upcoming fiscal year. A sum of $457.6 million has been provided in the 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure to undertake this work and other activities. These include the development of lands; construction of access roads; and the construction of a pump-house, and well drilling....