The Government is actively considering removing the guarantor requirement for Students’ Loan Bureau (SLB) applicants. This was disclosed by Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, while responding to a question posed regarding higher education during his rap session with students at the Guy’s Hill High School in St. Catherine on Thursday (January 18). “Let’s start with what is generally...

The Students’ Loan Bureau (SLB) is affirming its commitment to customers by providing various loan-repayment options. Executive Director of the SLB, Nickeisha Walsh, told JIS News in an interview that the lending agency has the lowest interest rate for any form of educational loan repayment across the country. “There's a notion for persons coming up in our older generation that...

The Educate to Elevate community outreach programme, a back-to-school initiative of the Hope Gospel Assembly, will be the beneficiary of the proceeds from the 44th staging of the National Leadership Prayer Breakfast (NLPB). This was disclosed by Secretary, NLPB, Rev. Major (Ret’d) Canute Chambers, at a press briefing held on Thursday (January 11) at the Victoria Mutual Group Training Room,...

The Ministry of Finance and the Public Service will host its third Staff Health Expo on January 12. The event, which is slated for the Ministry’s parking lot at National Heroes Circle in Kingston beginning 10:00 a.m., is intended to cater to the overall well-being of the Ministry’s staff complement of approximately 600. Corporate Communications and Public Relations Director, Shelly-Ann...

Ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) are encouraged to contact the Strategic Workforce, Planning and Improvement Branch at the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service for assistance in developing workforce plans. Director for the Talent and Knowledge Management Portfolio, Collette Cummings McCausland, told JIS News that although the branch is “fairly new” it is on hand to provide the necessary...

Bank of Jamaica’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), at its meetings on 18 and 19 December 2023, unanimously agreed to maintain: (i) the policy interest rate (the rate offered to deposit-taking institutions (DTIs) on overnight placements with Bank of Jamaica) at 7.0 per cent, (ii) tight Jamaican dollar liquidity conditions, and (iii) relative stability in the foreign exchange market. Jamaica’s annual...

At its meetings on 18 and 19 December 2023, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) noted the following: 1.      Jamaica’s annual headline inflation rate at November 2023 of 6.3 per cent, which was outside the Bank’s target range of 4.0 to 6.0 per cent, was above the 5.1 per cent recorded at October 2023 but was much lower than the peak rate...