Managing Director of the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF), Omar Sweeney, says $260 million has been allocated for the removal of zinc fences in communities throughout sections of the island. The project, which falls under the Integrated Community Development Project and is funded jointly by the Government and the World Bank, aims to provide a general framework for integrating the...

The Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) now has two command units, which will boost its capacity to respond to emergencies. The vehicles, which are valued at more than US$407,000, were donated by the Government of Japan under its Non-Project Grant Aid for the Provision of Industrial Products. Designed to operate as mobile offices, each unit can accommodate six persons and boasts...

Director General of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), Major Clive Davis, is assuring citizens that the agency is always in a high state of readiness to respond to disasters. “The ODPEM is ready to face all adversities,” he said. “We have a mandate to keep the nation in a perpetual state of readiness. This is a...

Debate on the Building Bill, which seeks to establish a modern legislative framework that will serve to reduce the vulnerability of Jamaica’s built environment and ensure public safety, began in the House of Representatives yesterday (June 6). In his remarks, Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, who piloted the Bill, said it not only creates and...

Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, says he will be inviting architects and engineers to a meeting to discuss issues they have raised about the new Building Bill. He made the disclosure while addressing a national building policy workshop at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston on Tuesday (June 6). The Minister, who is scheduled...

The Meteorological Service of Jamaica (Met Service) says Jamaicans must prepare for above-normal activity for the 2017 hurricane season, which runs from June 1- November 30. Director of the Met Service, Evan Thompson, said some 11 to 17 tropical systems are expected for the season. He said it is predicted that five to nine hurricanes will develop, with two to...

Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, is imploring councillors to put service at the centre of everything they do. “We want to take local government where the people not only respect you because of your political persuasion… (but) must also respect you because of the kind of representative that you are, the kind of service that...