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A sum of $25 million is to be used this fiscal year to upgrade and refurbish sporting facilities at the Independence Park Limited in Kingston. The project is being implemented by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), under the Sports portfolio. As contained in the 2012/13 Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of Representatives, the allocation will cover:...

Work on the construction of the Simon Bolivar Cultural Centre at North Parade, downtown Kingston, will be completed this fiscal year.   This will be done under the Development of Sports and Recreational Facilities project for which a sum of $88 million has been allocated in the 2012/13 Estimates of Expenditure currently before the House of Representatives. Work on the...

Commissioner of Police, Owen Ellington, says there is a growing involvement of students in cyber crimes, such as the lotto scam, and is appealing to parents to take greater responsibility for the supervision of their children. He was addressing a forum on national security staged by the Montego Bay business community on May 15, at the Ritz Carlton Golf and...

Youth and Culture Minister, Hon. Lisa Hanna, says the Ministry is seeking to recommit the National Youth Service (NYS) to its core mandate of engendering voluntarism among the nation’s youth, who are involved in the agency’s programmes and activities. “What we are doing is enhancing your (youth) workforce skills, while at the same time, encouraging those characteristics of voluntarism. As...

The National Child Diversion Programme has received a total allocation of $33.36 million in the 2012/13 Estimates of Expenditure, which is now before the House of Representatives. The money will go towards sensitising 240 prescribed professionals on the need to report child sexual abuse cases; solicit Cabinet’s approval and implement the National Child Diversion Policy; establish implementation standards, codes and...

The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) has received an allocation of $300 million to fund the ‘Jamaica 50’ celebrations in the 2012/13 Estimates of Expenditure, which is now before the House of Representatives. The aim of this project is to establish a legacy that will spur Jamaicans to the kinds of actions that will assure the country of future sustainability...

A cheque valued at $1 million has been handed over to the Ministry of Youth and Culture by Jamaica Broilers Group Limited, to repair the monuments in  National Heroes Park, in Kingston. Youth and Culture Minister, Hon. Lisa Hanna, who received the contribution, expressed appreciation to President and Chief Executive Officer of Jamaica Broilers Group, Christopher Levy, at a recent...

United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Representative in Jamaica, Robert Fuderich, has made an appeal for the region to "break the silence" surrounding child abuse to end the scourge, which is affecting a significant number of children. He informed that an estimated six million children in Latin America and the Caribbean suffer severe abuse, including abandonment, and 80,000 children die each...

A total of $410.9 million has been allocated to the Youth Development Programme in the 2012/13 Estimates of Expenditure, now before the House of Representatives. The programme, which falls under the Ministry of Youth and Culture, seeks to facilitate the transition of unattached youth to adulthood and the world of work through training, on the job experience, information dissemination, labour...

Minister of Youth and Culture, Hon. Lisa Hanna, says the government has demonstrated its commitment to the nation’s children, increasing the allocation for children’s services in the 2012/2013 budget. The amount, she said, is a “major amendment in the re-current expenditure and certainly the allotted sum." Miss Hanna was speaking on May 14 at the opening ceremony of the Sub-regional...

Mayor of Portmore, George Lee has indicated that a special effort will be made to develop Legacy items and historical monuments in the Municipality as part of the activities to mark Jamaica’s golden jubilee. Speaking with JIS News Mayor Lee said a special Jamaica 50 commemoration committee had been established for Portmore, headed by President of Portmore Community College, Karen...

Some 83 unattached youths have completed a year-long vocational skills training programme under the Citizen Security and Justice Programme II (CSJPII), in collaboration with the HEART Trust/NTA. The participants, who were trained from February 2011 to February 2012, now have Level Three certification in the areas of food preparation, AC refrigeration, welding and electrical installation/maintenance. A graduation exercise was held...