The Ministry of Local Government and Community Development will be spending hundreds of millions of dollars to provide indigent houses, construct water shops, and repair and upgrade markets, roads, and public cemeteries across the island. Outlining the various initiatives while making his contribution to the 2024/25 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on May 28, Portfolio Minister, Hon. Desmond...

The Government will, this year, employ 10,000 young people under the Youth Summer Employment Programme (YSEP). Making the announcement, Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, said this year’s intake will be the largest since the programme’s inception in 2017, adding that the 2024 renewal will be formally launched soon. He was making his contribution to the...

The Ministry of Education and Youth will be meeting with the Caribbean Examination, Council (CXC) on June 4 at 10:00 a.m. This follows the Council’s recent decision to discontinue four subjects at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) levels, due to low enrolment. The subjects are Agricultural Science – Double Award; Industrial Technology –Mechanical;...

Cabinet has approved an industrial minerals policy, which will capitalise on the development of the sector for the benefit of Jamaicans, says Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green. The policy will create the framework to attract investments in industrial minerals, which include Jamaica’s limestone. Minister Green said that industry consultations on the policy will begin before the...

The Ministry of Education and Youth, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Wellness, will observe National Child and Adolescent Mental Health Awareness Day, on Thursday, May 30. Liaison and Communication Director for the National Child and Adolescent Mental Health Committee, Dr. Michelle Campbell, informed JIS News that, typically, this Day is marked on the fourth Thursday in May....

The Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) says growth prospects for the economy during the April to June 2024 quarter are generally positive. In this regard, the Institute is projecting an out-turn within the range of 1.5 to 2.5 per cent for the period, relative to April to June 2023. Speaking during the PIOJ’s quarterly briefing on Tuesday (May 28), Senior...

The Government will be making former sugar lands in Clarendon available to expand farming, including the cultivation of non-traditional crops. Minister of State in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Franklin Witter, made the disclosure while on a tour of farms in Rhymesbury in the parish earlier this month. “This area was the old sugar area and we...