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Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw. (FILE)
Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw. (FILE)

Reduction in Property Taxes

Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Audley Shaw, has announced a reduction in the property tax rates. Speaking in the House of Representatives, today (April 11), Mr. Shaw said the Government has listened to the concerns expressed by...
Newly appointed World Bank Caribbean Country Director, Tahseen Sayed.
Newly appointed World Bank Caribbean Country Director, Tahseen Sayed.

World Bank Country Director Cites Critical Areas for Growth
Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Fayval Williams (centre), in discussion with Immediate Past President of the Jamaica Association of Private Pharmacy Owners (JAPPO), Stephen Delapenha (left). Also pictured is Chairman of the Pharmacy Council of Jamaica (PCJ), Dr. Norman Dunn. Occasion was the inaugural Retail Pharmacy Business Conference at The Jamaica Pegasus in New Kingston on Sunday (April 9). The conference was staged by JAPPO under the theme ‘Opportunities and Threats: Retail Pharmacy’.
Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Fayval Williams (centre), in discussion with Immediate Past President of the Jamaica Association of Private Pharmacy Owners (JAPPO), Stephen Delapenha (left). Also pictured is Chairman of the Pharmacy Council of Jamaica (PCJ), Dr. Norman Dunn. Occasion was the inaugural Retail Pharmacy Business Conference at The Jamaica Pegasus in New Kingston on Sunday (April 9). The conference was staged by JAPPO under the theme ‘Opportunities and Threats: Retail Pharmacy’.

Finance State Minister Invites Pharmacists to Meeting
Newly appointed World bank Caribbean Country Director, Tahseen Sayed.
Newly appointed World bank Caribbean Country Director, Tahseen Sayed.

World Bank Technical Team Coming
Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw (2nd left), and Japan’s Ambassador to Jamaica, His Excellency Masanori Nakano (2nd right), display signed copies of a grant agreement for the provision of J$1.6 billion (¥1.39 billion/US$12.58 million) by the Government of Japan to fund the implementation of Jamaica’s ‘Improvement of Emergency Communication System Project’. The signing took place at the Ministry’s National Heroes Circle offices in Kingston on Thursday, April 6. The project will be implemented by the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM). Looking on (from left) are: Local Government and Community Development Minister, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, who has portfolio responsibility for ODPEM; and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Resident Representative in Jamaica, Kenji Tobita. In the background is the Ministry’s Senior Director for Negotiations, Nadine James.
Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw (2nd left), and Japan’s Ambassador to Jamaica, His Excellency Masanori Nakano (2nd right), display signed copies of a grant agreement for the provision of J$1.6 billion (¥1.39 billion/US$12.58 million) by the Government of Japan to fund the implementation of Jamaica’s ‘Improvement of Emergency Communication System Project’. The signing took place at the Ministry’s National Heroes Circle offices in Kingston on Thursday, April 6. The project will be implemented by the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM). Looking on (from left) are: Local Government and Community Development Minister, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, who has portfolio responsibility for ODPEM; and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Resident Representative in Jamaica, Kenji Tobita. In the background is the Ministry’s Senior Director for Negotiations, Nadine James.

Japan Provides $1.6-Billion Grant to Boost Disaster Communication

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Mrs. Velma Ricketts Walker
Finance & Public Service

New Customs Head Appointed

PRESS RELEASE - The Ministry of Finance and the Public Service wishes to announce the appointment of Mrs. Velma Ricketts Walker as the new Chief Executive Office/Commissioner of Customs for the Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA). She will assume duties as Chief Executive Officer/Commissioner of Customs on Monday, April 10, 2017. Mrs. Ricketts Walker has over 17 years of experience in...
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Finance & Public ServiceTourism

Revised Tariff Regime for Tourism Ground Transportation Operators

Changes have been made to the Customs Tariff Regime, which will enable ground transportation operators in the tourism sector to diversify, upgrade and replenish their fleets. This was disclosed by Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, while opening the 2017/18 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives yesterday (April 4). The new framework will see an increase in the upper cost,...
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JDIC Public Forum Flyer
Finance & Public Service

JDIC Hosts Public Forum in St. Thomas April 6

The Jamaica Deposit Insurance Corporation (JDIC) and the St. Thomas Chamber of Commerce will host a Public Forum in the parish on Thursday, April 6, to educate residents of systems in place to regulate the financial sector and to protect consumers of financial services. It is being held under the theme ‘Protecting Your Money in Today’s Economy’ at the Anglican...
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Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and Leader of Government Business in the Senate, Kamina Johnson Smith (right), addresses the Senate. To the Minister’s right is Minister of Education, Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, and in the background is Senator Kerensia Morrison.
Finance & Public Service

Legal Authority Given For Collection of Telephone Call Taxes

Members of the Senate approved two pieces of legislation on March 31 giving legal authority to the Government to collect taxes imposed on certain telephone calls since 2012. The Bills, the Telephone Calls Tax Act, 2017 and the Telephone Calls Tax (Validation and Indemnification) Act, 2017, were piloted by Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, and Leader of Government...
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Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw (right), greets Jamaica Employers’ Federation (JEF) President, David Wan (right), during a JEF Breakfast meeting at The Knutsford Court Hotel in New Kingston.
DevelopmentFinance & Public Service

Business Leaders Welcome Indirect Taxation

Several business leaders have welcomed the Government’s policy shift from direct to indirect taxation. The move is consistent with the Administration’s tax reform programme, aimed at implementing a more efficient and effective system of compliance and collection, resulting in increased revenue inflows. It is partly underpinned by the increased income tax threshold for Pay as You Earn (PAYE) employees to...
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Chief Corporate Communications Officer at Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ), Meris Haughton (right), outlining the payment options available for property tax as of April 1 at a JIS ‘Think Tank’ today (March 30). Others (from left) are Director, Revenue Enhancement and Resource Mobilisation at the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development, Calvert Thomas, and Director/Commissioner, Land Valuations, at National Land Agency, Eric Allen.
Finance & Public Service

Relief for 272,000 Property Owners

More than 272,000 property owners will benefit from a reduction in property tax, or experience no change to what they paid in 2016, when the new property tax regime takes effect on April 1. The reformed property tax system, recently announced by the Government, increases the value band from the previous three to nine, with reduced tax rates from a...
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Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw. (FILE)
Finance & Public ServiceHealth & Wellness

Gov’t Moves Ahead with Plans to Build New A&E Unit at Percy Junor Hospital

The Government is proceeding with plans to build a new Accident and Emergency (A&E) unit at the Percy Junor Hospital in Spalding, north-east Manchester. Finance and the Public Service Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw, who is also the Member of Parliament, says the National Health Fund (NHF) has committed approximately $30 million to undertake the project. He has given the undertaking...
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