The Government is maintaining its position regarding speedier timelines for developmental approvals. Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Hon. Dr. Horace Chang, says this is necessary in ensuring that projects are not setback due to unnecessary administrative delays. He was speaking at the recent groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of 63,000 square feet of...

Director of Urban and Regional Planning, Ministry of Local Government and Community Development, Marsha Henry-Martin, says that development planning in Jamaica must incorporate disaster mitigation measures and strategies to address climate change. These considerations, she said, are imperative in light of the extent of informal settlements across the island, totaling approximately 700, which are home to a minimum of 15...

While Jamaica has recorded slow economic growth since independence, the social development of its people has improved significantly. This was the consensus among panelists participating in a discussion on: ‘Understanding Jamaica’s Economic and Social Development Since Independence’, at the Golden Jubilee Village, at Independence Park, on August 4. Director General of the Planning Institute Of Jamaica (PIOJ), Dr. Gladstone Hutchinson,...

Noted Attorney- at -Law, and Head of the Michael Manley Foundation, Delano Franklyn, has made a call for greater consensus among stakeholders around critical issues in order for Jamaica to gain developed status by the year 2030. “To develop and have greater consensus on matters in Jamaica, we must have the different stakeholders, including the political parties signing off on...

Minister of Justice, Senator Mark Golding, has stated the government’s intent to introduce legislation that will provide greater protection to the country’s innovators and inventors. He said that work has been underway on a new Patent and Designs Bill for some time, and the government is committed to “taking it as quickly as possible to the point where it can...

The latest key indicators of national well-being: ‘health status; education status and labour force quality’ under the Vision 2030 Jamaica - National Development Plan’, has revealed that tertiary level enrolment for 2011 recorded a 3.1 per cent increase over the previous year. Meanwhile,thelabour force quality quarterly survey, showed a 2 per cent improvement, while immunization coverage for children showed a...

A US$9.5 million grant to assist with poverty reduction and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals; environmental sustainability and energy security; and democratic governance, has been secured by the Government from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The agreement was formalised by Director General, Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Dr. Gladstone Hutchinson, who signed on behalf of the Government,...

A sum of $174 million, which has been added to the 2011/12 budget, should be enough to complete the 2011 Population and Housing Census this month, as targeted. After STATIN's Director-General, Sonia Jackson, explained that the agency had met a July 31 deadline to complete the field work, but needed to do some “mopping up”, census takers were sent out...

Director General of the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Dr. Gladstone Hutchinson, says continued progress towards the nation achieving developed country status under the National Development Plan, Vision 2030 Jamaica, is contingent on key Governance issues being addressed, particularly at the community level. A critical component, he argues, is the strengthening of local governance to ensure broad stakeholder participation in...