Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Audley Shaw, is appealing for microfinance institutions to lower interest rates on loans for small business owners. “I encourage microlenders to ensure that your (loan) products are not exploitative with high interest rates that, instead of lifting our entrepreneurs, push them into a situation of unproductivity and perpetual borrowing,” he said. The...

Five charities focused on addressing the welfare of the youth, homeless and needy, have benefited from donations totalling $3.05 million from the Kingston Chapter of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA). The entities, which received $610,000 each are Open Arms Development Centre, Missionaries of the Poor, Food For the Poor, Marie Atkins Night Shelter, and Alpha Boys’ School/Alpha Institute....

The Government has embarked on a Telemedicine pilot project for persons in remote areas to access medical specialists at the University Hospital of the West Indies, in conjunction with a major telecommunications provider. It is being done under the Telemedicine Proof of Concept (POC) project with Cable and Wireless Jamaica, with the aim of reducing the time to deliver patient...

Minister of National Security, Hon. Dr. Horace Chang, says tertiary institutions must contribute to nation-building by investing more research funds in the fields of robotics and artificial intelligence. The Minister, who was addressing a symposium on cybercrime at the University of the West Indies (UWI) Western Jamaica Campus in Montego Bay on October 11, said the Government will be depending...

Spain is now among the highest ranked investors in Jamaica, says Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Kamina Johnson Smith. Speaking at Spain’s National Day reception, held on October 10 at the Ambassador of Spain’s residence in Kingston, the Minister said that Jamaica has been able to attract investments from six of the top-10 hotel chains...

Minister of Justice, Hon. Delroy Chuck, says tourism has contributed to an increase in the sale of marriage licences. Speaking at the Ministry’s quarterly press briefing on October 11, the Minister noted that a total of 4,943 marriage licences were approved by the Ministry of Justice’s Criminal, Civil and Family Law Unit, for the first six months of the fiscal...

With violence-related cases clogging the courts, the Minister of Justice, Hon. Delroy Chuck, wants more persons to make use of dispute resolution avenues in order to settle disagreements. He says there is a propensity to resolve conflicts with violence, which is adding to the burden of the courts. “People are using violence, threats and brutish stupidity to settle arguments. And...