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The Jamaican community in Washington D.C. has donated $440,000 to two local institutions that provide general assistance as well as hospice care for children with HIV/AIDS. The institutions are the Paediatric-Prenatal HIV Programme at the University of the West Indies, which received $290,000 and the Spanish Town-based Dare to Care Home for Children Living with HIV/AIDS, which got $150,000. Health...

Angler, Voston Sewell, made the biggest catch, a 130-pound marlin, in the 19th Port Antonio canoe fishing tournament, which was held yesterday (October 1). The catch, which was made on board the canoe, 'Shabba', earned him the Magnum Tonic Wine trophy, and a Yamaha boat engine donated by Supreme Ventures Limited. Second place went to Frederick Smith, who landed a...

The House of Representatives on Tuesday (Sept. 30) approved the Tax Committee Report by a vote of 24 to 23 in favour of the Government, with 12 members of Parliament absent at the time of the vote, which followed a lengthy debate. The tax Committee, which was chaired by Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Omar Davies, made several recommendations,...

A health insurance scheme for NIS pensioners is to be introduced by Government, said Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Omar Davies. This initiative is one in three, which Dr. Davies said would address the concerns raised by Opposition spokesman on Health, Dr. Ken Baugh, who has called for the removal of the 15 per cent General Consumption Tax (GCT)...

The Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS) yesterday (Oct. 1) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Jamaica Manufacturers' Association (JMA) to collaborate for the design and development of technical assistance programmes relevant to the needs of both organisations. At a press conference held at the JAS' Church Street offices in Kingston, President of the JAS, Senator Norman Grant, explained that...

New floodlights are to be installed at western Jamaica's premier sporting facility, Jarrett Park, in Montego Bay, at a cost of US$17,000. The lights, which have already been ordered are expected to be installed by early November, and will see the complex hosting football matches at night, as well as other activities. Having discovered that the lighting at the park...

The Professional Engineers Registration Board (PERB), the body with responsibility for regulating the engineering profession, will be taking action against persons who offer engineering services to the public without proper registration. Leo Lawson, a member of PERB and Chairman of the National Contracts Commission, while participating in a Engineers Week lecture recently at the Terra Nova Hotel in Kingston, announced...

Four Jamaicans are among the more than 500 candidates seeking office in tomorrow's provincial elections in Ontario, Canada. They are Alvin Curling, Mary Anne Chambers, Monica Purdy who will run for the Ontario Liberal Party (OLP), while Yvette Blackburn is a candidate for the Ontario New Democratic Party (NDP). The other party fielding candidates for the elections is the Progressive...

Eight high Schools in Clarendon will this year be participating in a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) Regional Heritage Debate Competition in celebration of Heritage 2003. The competition will focus on the contribution of National Hero George William Gordon to the improvement in the working conditions and lives of Jamaicans. The schools to participate include Central High, Vere Technical High, Clarendon...

Prime Minister P.J. Patterson deposited several Instruments of Ratification, when he met with United Nations Legal Counsel, Hans Corell, at the United Nations (UN) Headquarters in New York, on September 29. The Instruments included: the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime; Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children; Protocol against the Smuggling of...

The Ministry of Water and Housing through the Rural Water and Sanitation Programme is seeking to pioneer a new approach of executing water supply projects in Jamaica. Funded jointly by the Government of Jamaica and the Inter American Development Bank (IDB) at a cost of US$12.5 million over a four-year period, the programme, now in phase one, is being piloted...

Phillip Chung, senior plant protection specialist at the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), has urged the nation's farmers to exercise caution when administering pesticides to their crops. He said that as a first rule, farmers should only use pesticides as a last resort. "Never use pesticides unless it is necessary, because the less you put pesticides in the environment, the...