Effective 11:59 p.m. on Saturday, March 21, Jamaica’s airports and seaports will be closed to incoming passenger traffic for a period of 14 days. However, outgoing passengers and cargo will be allowed. This announcement was made by Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, during a press conference at Jamaica House on Friday (March 20), where he informed that Jamaica...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, announced on Friday (March 20), that three additional cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) have been confirmed, bringing the total to 19 in the island. The new cases pertain to a 38-year-old United States male citizen with a history of travel from Boston, who arrived in the island on March 14; a 30-year-old female...

The Court Administration Division (CAD) is advising the public that all sittings and hearings of Parish Courts will be suspended from March 23 to April 20, except for matters deemed by the judge to be fit for hearing during this time. The decision was made following a meeting with the senior judges of the courts out of concern for staff...

Principal Medical Officer and National Epidemiologist, Dr. Karen Webster-Kerr, is warning persons that incorrect use of masks could make them more susceptible to contracting the coronavirus (Covid-19). Speaking in an interview with JIS News, Dr. Webster-Kerr, noted that with the onset of the virus, many persons have been seen wearing masks and it is important to know how and when...

The revamped ‘Lengthman Programme’ will serve to absorb and repurpose labour from any temporary fallout due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic. This was noted by Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, during his contribution to the 2020/21 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives on March 19. He informed that a “modernised, technology-enabled version” of the programme, which...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, says he believes the Government has “taken all the necessary measures” to ensure that confirmed Coronavirus (COVID-19) cases are contained, and new infections minimised. These interventions include a $10-billion budgetary provision, identifying and establishing quarantine and isolation health facilities, quarantining persons suspected of contracting the virus and isolating confirmed cases, and equipping health...

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade is today advising that this morning, one of its employees at the Consulate General in New York tested positive for the Covid-19 Virus. She is a locally recruited member of staff born in Jamaica but a naturalized US citizen, and is presently receiving treatment within the US public health system. The Minister...