The Government is providing a $200 million down payment to endow a Fiscal Research Institute within the Department of Economics at the University of the West Indies (UWI). Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Dr. the Hon. Nigel Clarke, made the announcement while opening the 2023/24 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives, on Tuesday (March 7). “This will...

A Fire Suppression System, which automatically extinguishes a fire within the engine of a bus, has been introduced at the Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC). The system, which does not allow fires to be reignited after being smothered, is aimed at protecting passengers, the drivers, and the mechanical interior of the buses. It was installed and demonstrated by the contractors...

The Government continues to take a deliberate approach to dealing with the matter of gender and gender equity, says Prime Minister the Most Hon. Andrew Holness. “Gender is now a part of the matrix of consideration for whatever policies we put in. I would even say, in contemplation of the budget, gender is a specific parameter that we consider,” he...

Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Dr. the Hon. Nigel Clarke, is again urging public sector groups not yet signing the new compensation scheme, to come forward to settle wage agreements. Dr. Clarke explained that, inclusive of amounts allocated in the first to fourth supplementary estimates, approximately $79.4 billion is provided for in 2022/23 to pay the incremental amounts...

Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie (left), in discussion with Japan’s Ambassador to Jamaica, His Excellency Yasuhiro Atsumi, during a courtesy call at the Ministry’s Hagley Park Road offices in Kingston, on Tuesday (March 7).

The Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) conducted thousands of routine building inspections during the 2022 calendar year, to ensure conformity with fire prevention regulations. A total of 7,795 buildings were examined by the Fire Prevention Department, representing a 16 per cent increase over the 6,718 structures inspected the previous year. Additionally, 2,021 buildings were certified last year, which is 447 more...

Jamaica’s constitutional reform process is designed to be deliberately slow, to allow citizens time to think about the kind of changes they want. Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs, Hon. Marlene Malahoo Forte, indicated this as she spoke about the procedure for Jamaica to become a republic, during a recent Ministerial briefing with diplomats at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs...