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The operations and programmes delivered by Youth Information Centres (YICs) across the island are to be reviewed and improved under the Youth Development Programme (YDP). This was revealed by Project Manager, Project implementation Unit (PIU) in the Ministry of Youth and Culture, Marjery Newland, as she addressed a St. Catherine Stakeholders’ Participatory meeting on Thursday (June 7) at the St....

International Labour Organization (ILO) TACKLE Project Officer, Nasolo Thompson, is lauding the Government’s response to child labour, noting that the country leads the region in that regard. She said that the establishment of an entire unit in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, which is dedicated to the issue, is testament of the Government’s commitment to the elimination of...

The Government will award 50 scholarships to students at various levels of the education system this year to celebrate Jamaica's 50th anniversary of Independence. The Jamaica 50 Scholarship Programme, which was announced by Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller in her contribution to the 2012/13 budget debate in Gordon House on Tuesday (June 5), is estimated to cost...

There is no denying that for a nation as small as Jamaica, with a population of just 2.7 million, the country's rich musical legacy has had a colossal impact on the international stage. Over the last 50 years, Jamaica’s music has evolved into an international phenomenon - a movement that has garnered worldwide acceptance and praise, through the talents and...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller, has announced that a National Commission on Cultural and Creative Industries will be established. The Commission will assist the Government in establishing the enabling policy and legislative frameworks, to maximise the benefits of the cultural and creative industries, she explained.  Mrs. Simpson Miller was making her contribution to the 2012/13 Budget Debate,...

Government's efforts at safeguarding the welfare of the nation's children have been strengthened, with the signing of a $1.2 billion Action Plan with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller announced on June 5. Making her contribution in the 2012/13 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives, Mrs. Simpson Miller said the Plan,...

Chairperson of the National Child Month Committee (NCMC), Dr. Pauline Mullings, is appealing to Jamaicans to celebrate the nation’s children in this the 50th year of the country’s independence. “One thing I know, without a shadow of a doubt, is that our Jamaican children are packed with potential and all they need is for somebody to pull it out of...

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the  Hon. A.J. Nicholson is encouraging Jamaicans to participate in activities planned in celebration of the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Jamaica, which is part of the Commonwealth, has been involved in activities by the United Kingdom (UK) to mark the Diamond Jubilee, with His Royal Highness Prince Henry...

Minister of Youth and Culture, Hon. Lisa Hanna, has received a cheque valued at $5.5 million from Spanish Ambassador, Her Excellency Celsa Nuno, on behalf of the Spanish-Jamaica Foundation. The money will be used to refurbish the Seville Great House in St. Ann, and to develop the Seville Heritage Park Exhibition Centre. Accepting the cheque on behalf of the Jamaica...

Youth and Culture Minister, Hon. Lisa Hanna, says her Ministry has asked the Ministry of Justice to facilitate an audit and review of stipulated penalties for child abuse, outlined in laws governing the care and protection of the nation’s children. The move, she said, forms part of measures coming out of a recent meeting between both Ministries, during which representatives...

Four beacons will be lit at central points across the island on Monday (June 4), in celebration of the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth ll. The locations are St. William Grant Park in Kingston; Montego Bay Civic Centre, St. James; Seville Heritage Park, St. Ann; and at the Port Antonio town centre in Portland. The beacon lighting ceremonies,...

The Ministry of Health will be using World No Tobacco Day which is celebrated Thursday May 31 to educate young people about the harmful effects of smoking, including second-hand smoking. Under the theme: ‘Tobacco Industry Interference’, this year’s observance will also expose the nefarious tactics used by tobacco manufacturing companies to increase their customer base and profits. (Related Story: Jamaicans...