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The Government is now working on a pilot project to demonstrate the potential of cassava as a local substitute for imported starches such as rice and flour. The project will be undertaken by two government agencies, over seven years. Investment Officer for the Agricultural Support Services Project (ASSP) in the Agriculture Ministry and Co-ordinator for this initiative, Dean Passard, explains...

An Act to amend the Mortgage Insurance Act was passed in the Upper House yesterday (June 20). The Act expands the definition of 'lender' to include financial institutions licensed under the Financial Institutions Act and reduces the portion of insurance fees to be paid into the mortgage insurance fund from four-fifths to three-fifths. The Bill further seeks to clarify the...

With the observance of National Food Safety Week (June 15-20) having ended yesterday the Consumer Affairs Commission (CAC) is urging consumers to ensure that their food supplies are clean and safe. Speaking with JIS News, Communication Specialist at the CAC, Dorothy Campbell pointed out that "the whole idea of observing the week, was to bring about awareness and sensitization to...

More than 100 police officers, from 14 divisions, have been trained in Community-Based Policing (CBP) to be deployed to various communities islandwide. Training of additional officers is expected to be completed island by next month. CBP, which has been implemented in several communities, is a law enforcement philosophy and organizational strategy based on partnership between citizens and police to address...

Thirty residents of Spanish Town and Portmore received gardening kits at the official launch of the urban backyard garden programme held yesterday(June 21) at the Portmore Lions' Civic Centre, Portmore, St. Catherine. The initiative, which was announced by Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Christopher Tufton in his budget presentation, aims to assist householders to grow fruits, vegetables and herbs in containers...

Prime Minister Bruce Golding along with several Government Ministers, Members of Parliament, top government executives, mayors and community leaders , today toured St Mary making stops at the Boscobel Aerodrome, the North Coast Highway and a private medical facility at Pampano Bay. He also took the time out to visit Mount Industry, in St Catherine, for a brief presentation to...

The Honourable Olivia "Babsy" Grange, Minister of Information, Culture, Youth and Sports, MICYS) is calling on the Press Association of Jamaica (PAJ) to ensure that the memories of journalists such as Norman Cuff are carefully preserved and that their record of performance is held up for examination and emulation by the succeeding generations of journalists. Minister Grange described the late...

Minister of Water and Housing, Dr. Horace Chang, has hailed the donation of motor vehicle and equipment to the National Water Commission (NWC) by the Japanese Government, stating that the gift will improve the entity's ability to monitor and control the supply system. The donation, which includes two four-wheel drive Suzuki Jimny motor vehicles, two power quality analyzers, valve locaters,...

The Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) has expressed concern about the mounting electricity bills now facing Jamaicans and has said that it is in the company's interest to guide consumers in their conservation methods. Speaking at a recent JIS Think Tank at the agency's headquarters, Head of Corporate Communication at JPS, Winsome Callum, noted that Jamaicans are having a hard...

Training of community personnel to assist in the operation of disaster relief shelters in Hanover, including 15 deemed critical shelters, is underway in earnest in the parish. Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) Parish Co-ordinator, Olga Headley, told JIS News that 15 of the 50 shelters in the parish have been declared as critical shelters because of the...

Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) Parish Manager for St. James, Wentworth Mitchell, has encouraged farmers to diversify their crops as a means of increasing income and cushioning the effects of bad weather Mr. Mitchell, who was addressing the annual general meeting of the St. James Association of Branch Societies of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), held in Montego Bay on...

Commissioner of Corrections, Major Richard Reese, has hailed the community service order and the parole supervision programmes, noting that these initiatives have helped to reduce the prison population, while providing rehabilitation for offenders. "We have in excess of 4,000 persons being managed in the community serving community service orders. Had those persons been in prison, we would have in excess...