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Jonathon Rowe is among the estimated 400,000 Jamaicans, representing 15 per cent of the population, living with some form of disability.  The 28-year old St. Catherine resident has cerebral palsy, and a severe speech impediment, which he struggles to cope with daily.  Cerebral palsy is a disorder that affects muscle tone, movement, and motor skills, and is usually caused by...

The latest financial statements of the Executive Agencies (EA) Pension Scheme show that the entity has accumulated assets totaling more than $1 billion. This was disclosed by Pension Fund Manager at NCB Insurance Company, which manages the fund on behalf of the Trustees, Desmond Johnson, while delivering the Fund Manager’s Report at the EA Pension Scheme’s Annual General Meeting (AGM),...

The Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)-World Customs Organisation (WCO) Container Control Programme that is expected to result in improved security at the nation’s ports. "This MoU establishes and recognises that a funded and enhanced partnership now exists between the Government of Jamaica, through the Ministries of Finance,...

MONTEGO BAY - Minister of Finance and Planning, Hon. Dr. Peter Phillips, says the Government's economic imperative is to reduce the debt burden and put the country on a solid path for future generations. He stated that measures such as the Public Debt Management Act, which was passed in the House of Representatives recently, will ensure that "no future generations...

Member of Parliament for North West Manchester, Mikael Phillips, is suggesting that the Government utilise more than one pension fund manager to administer public sector pensions when the new pension scheme is implemented. In making his contribution to the debate on the report of the Joint Select Committee on Pension Reform in the House of Representatives on November 20, Mr....

Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, on November 20 tabled the White Paper on Tax Reform in the House of Representatives, which outlines the main tax-related initiatives to be undertaken over the medium to long-term. He said the document, which has had the benefit of a thorough consultative process, seeks to facilitate economic growth and development....

Finance and Planning Minister, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, says the Government’s economic reform and transformation programme is proceeding “at an appropriate speed." He said that the programme, aimed at “restarting the engines of progress,” addresses a number of critical areas including debt management, containing wage-related expenditures, and growth promotion. The Minister was speaking at Mayberry Investments Limited’s monthly investor...

Secretary General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi, says social protection programmes are pivotal in safeguarding the welfare of vulnerable groups, particularly where International Monetary Fund (IMF)austerity programmes arepursued and imposed. “We need to be able to protect those who will be the losers in this. There are families, there are people, who...

Finance and Planning Minister, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, says effective April 1, 2013, overall management of public sector finances will be undertaken through the newly instituted Central Treasury Management System (CTMS). The CTMS is a critical component of the Government’s Economic Reform Programme (GERP), which will be used to effect the management of: cash; Government's bank accounts; financial planning...

Parliamentary debates on several pieces of legislation related to tax and pension reforms, are expected to either commence or continue in the House of Representatives next week. Finance and Planning Minister, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, who made the announcement while addressing  the weekly luncheon of the Kingston Rotary Club at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel, New Kingston, on November 15,...

Finance and Planning Minister, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, says sustained investments are needed to underpin economic growth, if the targets under the Government’s medium term programme, for which financing is being negotiated with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), are to be achieved. Addressing the weekly luncheon of the Kingston Rotary Club at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel, New Kingston, on...

Finance and Planning Minister, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, says the process of economic and public finance reform, as outlined in Jamaica’s Medium Term Programme, would have to be pursued, even if a new International Monetary Fund  (IMF) was not being negotiated. The administration’s commitment in this guard, he notes, is to ensure the country’s survival in the face of...