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Cabinet has approved the award of a contract for repair work to be carried out at the May Pen Hospital in Clarendon. Economic Maintenance Products Limited has been contracted to rectify defects at the hospital over a 12-week period, at a cost of some $58.4 million. Information Minister, Senator Burchell Whiteman, who gave details of the contract at yesterday's (January...
Cabinet Approves Compulsory Land Acquisition for Simon Bolivar Cultural District
Cabinet has given its approval for the compulsory acquisition of parcels of land at 2 and 4 Love Lane in Central Kingston for the development of the Simon Bolivar Cultural District. Information Minister, Senator Burchell Whiteman, who made the disclosure to journalists at yesterday's (Jan. 23) post Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House, explained that the cultural district was being...
CARICOM Places Focus on ICT for Development
CARICOM is placing increased focus on Information and Communications Technology (ICT) as a critical part of human and social development in the region, and as such, has placed the ICT development agenda and its myriad of activities, directly under the portfolio of the Deputy Secretary General. According to Senior Project Officer for ICT Development at CARICOM, Jennifer Britton this move...
Blowing of Abeng to Highlight Maroon Celebrations
The blowing of the abeng, the traditional "war horn" of the maroons and the beating of the gumbay drum, will highlight activities at the 267th annual celebrations of the Accompong maroons in St. Elizabeth. Held under the theme: 'Celebrating our African ancestry.the Ghana connection", activities will begin on Sunday (Jan.1) and culminate with the big celebration on Friday (Jan. 6),...
JSIF to Build Basic School in South Clarendon
Children in the community of Springfield in South West Clarendon will be the beneficiaries of a Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) project, under which a new basic school is to be constructed. The contract for the basic school is valued at J$5 million and was approved at the October sitting of the Board of JSIF, where a total of J$48.8...
NSWMA Working to Restore Residential Garbage Collection
Director of Enforcement and Compliance at the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), Ann-Marie Rodriquez has assured that the Authority is working to restore normalcy to its residential waste collection operations. Speaking with JIS News, Ms. Rodriquez confirmed that the NSWMA had doubled its efforts and had instituted night collection, which should last for two weeks. This is being done...
UNCTAD Report Critical to Investment Strategies – JAMPRO Head
President of Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO), Patricia Francis, has said that this year's United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) World Investment Report is critical to aiding the direction of JAMPRO's investment strategies. This was necessary, she said, as the Corporation's recent dynamic foreign investment programme and performance had plateaued this year. Mrs. Francis was speaking at the launch...
Companies Benefit from Fiscal Incentives for Research and Development
A number of local companies and organizations are benefiting from state funding, among other fiscal incentives, to undertake research and development projects under the government of Jamaica's programme to encourage innovation in science and technology for competitiveness and employment creation. Commerce, Science and Technology Minister Phillip Paulwell, who made the announcement as he addressed the launch of the 2005 United...
Jamaicans in South Florida to Assist Two Schools
Jamaicans in South Florida have undertaken to repair two schools in Jamaica, as they return home to participate in Homecoming Week, to be observed from October 15 to 22. The first project is to repair the Woodford Basic School in Kingston, that was damaged by Hurricane Ivan in 2004. Funds are also to be provided to pay at least one...
More Developers Registering with Real Estate Board
More real estate developers have registered with the Real Estate Board in the first six months of this financial year when compared with the two previous financial periods. According to figures from the Board, 32 developers were registered from April to September. In 2003/04, only nine new developers were registered, while in the 2004/2005 financial year, 27 persons applied and...
Local Govt. Ministry Hosting Workshops to Improve Service Delivery in Parish Councils
The Ministry of Local Government, Community Development and Sport is hosting a series of workshops aimed at enhancing the job skills of the parish councils' staff, in the government's bid to improve service delivery at that level. These workshops, which got underway in March of this year, target various personnel within the parish councils, ranging from Mayors to Secretaries, and...
Boost for Fire Service
Minister of Local Government, Community Development and Sport, Portia Simpson Miller has said that the first batch of eight fire trucks for the Jamaica Fire Brigade should arrive in the island within eight months of the signing of the contract with Rosenbauer America LLC. A date is to be set for the signing of the US$9.2 million contract, which will...
