Traffic congestion leading into the city of Montego Bay should be eased soon, following a commitment from the Government to build a bypass at an estimated cost of US$200 million. Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Audley Shaw, made the announcement at a Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry luncheon, held at the Montego Bay Convention Centre,...

The Government is to partner with local fertiliser manufacturer, Newport Fersan (Jamaica) Limited, to establish 186 gardens in public schools across the island. This was disclosed by Minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. J. C. Hutchinson, during a tour of the company’s Wherry Wharf complex at Newport East, in Kingston on June 14. He...

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Jamaica National Agency for Accreditation (JANAAC), Sharonmae Shirley, is calling for more local medical laboratories to become accredited. “We want you as consumers to agitate so that your medical practitioners...will request medical tests from accredited laboratories,” she said. Ms. Shirley was addressing the World Accreditation Day dinner and awards ceremony at the Knutsford Court...

Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Karl Samuda, says the work of the Jamaica National Agency for Accreditation (JANAAC) is crucial in the national thrust to build an export-driven economy. “This organisation is designed to create a level of branding of the Jamaican products that will make us competitive, not only to satisfy the domestic scrutiny of our...

The Jamaica National Agency for Accreditation (JANAAC) is being hailed for facilitating trade between Jamaica and its international partners through the provision of laboratory accreditation services. Director of Science and Technology at the Bureau of Standards Jamaica (BSJ), Dr. Dwight Ramdon, said the JANAAC seal “is like a passport” for local goods to enter the export market. “To have the JANAAC...

A Micro, Small and Medium-size Enterprise (MSME) Division is to be established within the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries. Portfolio Minister, Hon. Karl Samuda, said the department will focus on policy development, coordination and consultation. He informed that an organisational specialist has been engaged to prepare the necessary submissions to the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service...

The Government will be conducting a review of the 2013 Micro, Small and Medium-size Enterprises (MSME) and Entrepreneurship Policy. Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Karl Samuda, said the review will be undertaken over the next three months. Among the objectives are to update the policy, create a standard definition of MSMEs in order to improve reporting of...