President of the Global Services Association of Jamaica (GSAJ), Gloria Henry, says that the incubator concept aimed at kick-starting business operations in Montego Bay is achieving success. Speaking with JIS News in a recent interview, she said that eight firms have emerged from the concept and they have all since moved into their own long-term office space, with some 2,000...

Parliamentary Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister, Senator Robert Morgan, says once the Forestry Department has completed its 250-kilometre ground-truthing exercise, specific legislation will be promulgated to safeguard the Cockpit Country Protected Area boundary. Making his contribution to the 2019/2020 State of the Nation Debate in the Senate on February 7, he pointed out that the Forestry Department...

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. J.C. Hutchinson, says the agro-economic zone being established at the Holland Estate in St. Elizabeth will ring in a new era for farming in Jamaica. The 2,400-acre property will comprise farms as well as grading, packaging and processing facilities, which will provide opportunities for employment. There will...

The Global Sector Services (GSS) Apprenticeship programme, aimed at equipping some 400 personnel for higher value-added jobs in the local industry over a four-year period, was officially launched on Tuesday (January 28). One hundred apprentices will benefit from in-house training per year at GSS firms, beginning in April. The objective is to promote the growth and expansion of the sector...

Chief Executive Officer of the Trade Board Limited, Douglas Webster, says the recently reinstated bimonthly meetings with the Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association of Jamaica is a part of the Trade Board’s efforts to improve responsiveness to issues while conducting trade. Speaking with JIS News, Mr. Webster noted that the significant increase in the number of vehicles being imported...

Minister of State in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Floyd Green, says the Government will be expanding incubator spaces for the small business sector this year. “We have to bring these [services] closer to the people. I have already tasked the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) team to work with the Factories Corporation of Jamaica. We...

The Jamaica Special Economic Zone Authority (JSEZA) today (January 27) hosted its first sensitisation session for 2020, targeting developers and occupants of Special Economic Zones (SEZs), at the Spanish Court Hotel, Kingston. The session focused on the importance of regulation and monitoring by JSEZA and the roles of Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ) and Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA) in the operation...