Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, says Jamaica’s business process outsourcing (BPO) industry has recorded a 15 per cent increase in employment, despite the economic fallout resulting from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.  Speaking during the opening of the IBEX BPO facility at the G-Tech Park in Portmore, St. Catherine on Friday (July 23), Mr. Holness said approximately 44,000 persons were employed across the sector as at June 2021, relative to 38,400 for the corresponding period last year.     ...

The Government is providing approximately $70 million in loan funding assistance for the island’s dairy farmers.  Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Floyd Green, says the funds are being provided through the Jamaica Dairy Development Board’s (JDDB) Dairy Concessionary Loan Programme.  “Through this financial scheme, farmers can improve the quality of [their livestock and] increase [their] herd numbers,” Mr. Green said.  He was speaking during a ceremony for the hand-over of silage to the St. Elizabeth Dairy Development Co-operative, on Friday (July 23), at...

Residents of Brown’s Town and its environs in St. Ann, on Friday (July 23), participated in a major plastic bottle collection drive organised by Recycling Partners of Jamaica in collaboration with several key stakeholder entities.   More than two truckloads of bottles were collected, as personnel highlighted the importance of separating plastics from other disposables and recycling these items in order to better preserve the environment.  Other participating partner entities included the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo), and Forestry Department.  General...

Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, is urging persons who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus (COVID-19) to maintain strict adherence to the stipulated protocols and safeguards.  He says while inoculation will help in reducing the possibility of serious illness, it does not guarantee that individuals won’t contract the disease.     “There are [approximately] 300,000 Jamaicans who have had at least one [COVID-19 vaccine] dose. [But] the fact that you are [among that group] does not mean that...

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange (right), presents High Commissioner for the Republic of Nigeria to Jamaica, Her Excellency Dr. Maureen Tamuno, with a copy of the book entitled ‘Usain Bolt Legend’ during a courtesy call at Gordon House on July 20.

Executive Director, Social Development Commission (SDC), Dr. Dwayne Vernon (right), presents Stacy Ann Gordon with her diploma in Events Planning and Management, during a graduation ceremony held at the SDC’s St. Catherine Office on July 22.

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Floyd Green, is encouraging farmers to utilise more climate-smart technology and practices in order to minimise crop loss from more frequent and extreme weather events.   He said that as a small island developing state, Jamaica is very susceptible to the effects of climate change.   “We have seen it; no one has to convince us in agriculture about the realities of the longer dry periods, shorter and more intense rainy periods...