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Acting Director General, Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Everton McFarlane, says the government remains committed to implementing strategies to ensure Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth over the medium to long term. Central to this growth strategy, he said, are fiscal consolidation, social stability, structural reforms, and strategic private/public investments. Speaking at the PIOJ's quarterly media briefing at the agency's New...

The Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) is reporting an increase in the number of Jamaican workers with professional or vocational certification last year. Programme Director for the PIOJ's Plan Development Unit, Richard Lumsden, said that figures from the 2012 Statistical Institute of Jamaica's (STATIN) Labour Force Survey, showed that 23.7 per cent of the labour force has such qualification. The...

The Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) is projecting moderate growth in the region of one per cent for the January to March 2013 quarter. Acting Director General of the PIOJ, Everton McFarlane, said the economy is expected to record low growth, with most industries forecast to record positive performances. “This is predicated on a general recovery from the subdued performance...

Transport, Works and Housing Minister, Dr. the Hon. Omar Davies, says the Government has identified additional funding which will be used to maintain the Jamaica Emergency Employment Programme (JEEP) over the medium term. He made the announcement on Friday (February 15) during a media briefing at the Ministry’s offices in Kingston, where he provided an update on a number of...

The Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) will, on Friday, February 15, host several stakeholder partners at a workshop to review and finalize preparation of the Medium Term Socio-Economic Framework (MTF) for the 2012 to 2015 period. The workshop, scheduled for the Knutsford Court Hotel, New Kingston, beginning at 8:30 a.m., is a continuation of the series of consultations by the...

The economy and tourism are set to benefit from the staging of the 2013 CARIFTA Swimming and Water Polo Championships, to be held in the island from March 30 to April 3. The event will see some 800 athletes from approximately 16 countries across the region participating in swimming, water polo, and for the first time in Jamaica, open water...

Thousands are slated to be directly employed under the National Water Commission’s (NWC) K-Factor Programme. Some 5,000 persons are expected to work on the programme which will see the implementation of potable and waste water projects across the island. Speaking at the programme’s launch on Wednesday (January 23) at the Four Seasons Hotel in St. Andrew, Minister of Water, Land,...

The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) has launched a brand new data collection system, designed to make their services more efficient and transform the agency into a first-world data collection institute. The difference between the new system and the original one starts with the new system’s name – eDACS - which stands for Electronic Data Collection System. With eDACS, STATIN...

The Government’s logistics hub initiative will be a global asset of the scale and significance of the world’s other leading hubs in Rotterdam, Singapore, and Dubai. At a meeting with government communicators at Jamaica House on Thursday, March 28, Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Hon. Anthony Hylton, emphasized that the hub will have far-reaching economic benefits beyond basic transshipment...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller, has welcomed the official opening of a recycling plant in her South Western St. Andrew constituency, which she says, will bring gainful employment to the area while helping to keep the environment clean. “This environmental project… has the potential to create about 100 jobs. The owners and managers will be employing people...

The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) on Tuesday (January 15) launched its groundbreaking Electronic Data Collection System (eDACS), which promises to revolutionize the way the agency collects and processes data. Speaking at the launch held at the Knutsford Court Hotel in New Kingston, Director of Information and Technology at STATIN, Howard Hamilton said the new system will utilise portable/mobile devices,...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller, says the Government is aware that advances in socio-economic conditions must be anchored to a foundation of macro-economic stability and economic growth. “That is why we are moving apace with tax reform, public sector reform and pension reform. That is why we are making determined efforts to reduce our debt burden. We...