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With the budget for public cleansing and garbage disposal amounting to $150 million per month, the Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Noel Arscott, is appealing to Jamaicans to stop littering. “Stop littering and throwing waste from the windows of our cars and throwing garbage wantonly in our gullies and water-ways. For far too long, we have taken...

Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Noel Arscott, says the administration is committed to fast tracking the entrenchment of Local Government in the Jamaican Constitution. “Already, in order to fast track this commitment to the Jamaican people, the Ministry of Justice has issued drafting instructions to the Chief Parliamentary Counsel and we await the draft Bill,” Mr. Arscott...

The Ministry of Local Government and Community Development has commenced an audit of the island’s street lights. The assessment process got underway two weeks ago in the parish of Clarendon. Speaking in the 2012/13 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (June 26), portfolio Minister, Hon. Noel Arscott, said the audit, which involves collaboration with the Jamaica Public...

Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Noel Arscott, says Parish Development Committees (PDCs) have played an integral role in broadening the decision-making process and mechanisms of inclusiveness at the local and community levels. “Despite the meagre resources, the PDCs have been bolstered through various initiatives and partnerships,” Mr. Arscott said, during his contribution to the 2012/13 Sectoral Debate...

Local Government and Community Development Minister, Hon. Noel Arscott, has announced plans to undertake a property revaluation exercise during the 2012/13 fiscal year. Making his presentation in the 2012/13 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives, on June 26, Mr. Arscott said the Ministry will partner with the National Land Agency (NLA) to implement the “long overdue” project during the...

Special focus is being placed on the development of early childhood education in South St. Andrew. Minister of Transport, Works and Housing and Member of Parliament for the area, Dr. the Hon. Omar Davies, has introduced a BASICS Initiative, which seeks to foster best practices throughout the 28 basic schools in the area. Speaking in the 2012/2013 Sectoral Debate in...

The Ministry of Local Government and Community Development, on June 18, began its series of two-day regional workshops to prepare the local authorities to embrace the new paradigm of local governance. This is a fundamental feature of local government reform, which the government is aggressively pursuing under a new phase termed “the revitalization of local governance”. At the opening session...

Work has commenced on the historic Clock Tower and its surroundings, located at the top of Barnett Street, in Montego Bay, with a view to giving that location the pride of place it once held in the city. Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Glendon Harris, said the St James Parish Council is carrying out the work and has classified it...

A $500 million beautification and rehabilitation project is to be undertaken in the town of Falmouth, in Trelawny. Attorney General and Member of Parliament for North Trelawny, Hon.  Patrick Atkinson, made the disclosure while delivering the keynote address at a Friends of Trelawny Association’s (FOTA) ‘Tribute in Gold’ gala, held recently at the Hilton JFK Hotel in Queens, New York....

A total of 270 grade six students from schools within the Trench Town, Hannah Town and Denham Town communities, downtown Kingston recently benefitted from life skills training, aimed at enhancing their socio-cultural skills and decorum. The training was conducted as part of a Kingston Restoration Company (KRC)/Citizen Security and Justice Programme (CSJP) project, being funded by the Inter-American Development Bank,...

Residents of the adjoining districts of Comfort Hall and Scarlett Hall near Falmouth in Trelawny, have joined together to establish a neighbourhood watch group, sending a clear message of zero tolerance against crime and all criminal activities in the area. The Comfort Hall/Scarlett Hall Community Development Association and Neighbourhood Watch was officially launched on June 3 during a ceremony at...

The St. James Parish Council has commenced a series of quarterly intersectoral fora, to bring together, representatives from all major state agencies, business and civic groups, for dialogue aimed at improving service delivery within the parish. Addressing the first quarterly meeting held on May 31 at the Oleander Restaurant at Sandals Montego Bay, Mayor of Montego Bay, Councillor Glendon Harris,...