Bauxite and alumina company, Jamalco, has been lauded for retaining its full workforce, despite a halt in production due to a fire that destroyed its powerhouse last September. Minister of Transport and Mining, Hon. Audley Shaw, who commended the company, noted that “insight and foresight” are being demonstrated in keeping its 1,000 employees, despite “the fact that you are not...

Business interests and residents of Montego Bay, St. James, are eagerly awaiting the start of construction of the perimeter road to bypass the city, pointing out that the resort “needs it now more than ever.” They add that traffic congestion has been worsening daily, affecting productivity and ease of movement. “The city has been growing and will continue to grow…and...

Ginger farmers are to benefit from the newly renovated hardening facility at the Bodles Research Station, in St. Catherine, which is expected to help increase production. Weaning and hardening is important for plant propagation, where plantlets are taken from the controlled laboratory environment in tissue culture, for gradual introduction to the outdoors. This requires a protected agricultural structure that prevents...

The National Family Planning Board (NFPB) is inviting adolescents and young people, ages 16 to 24, to participate in a Safer Sex Week Instagram Live session on Friday, February 18. The event is focused on bringing awareness to the issues surrounding adolescent sexual reproductive health and will seek to dispel myths and provide information about safe spaces. It will also...

Chairman of the Paint and Surface Coatings Technical Committee at the Bureau of Standards Jamaica (BSJ), Johann Antoine, is calling for partnership on research to determine lead exposure levels in Jamaica. He noted that such collaboration is one of the greatest needs in the fight against lead poisoning from paint. Mr. Antoine, who is a research scientist at the International...

Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, is calling for a more collective and inclusive approach among countries globally to overcome the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, particularly in relation to vaccine access. Speaking during a Global Tourism Resilience Forum at EXPO2020 Dubai on Thursday (February 17), Mr. Bartlett said countries have generally “not learned to respond together to global actions” citing the pandemic...

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries (MOAF) Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr., says the Government is committed to achieving food security on the island. “Our goal is to ensure that we can achieve the ultimate goal of food security, meeting our local production demand and getting to the point where we can be able to support the expanding hotel industry, as well...