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Cabinet has approved the appointment of Heather Pinnock, Chief Technical Director in the Ministry of Water and Housing, to the Board of Directors of the Housing Agency of Jamaica, which replaces the National Housing Development Corporation. The other Board members are: David Chung (Chairman); Christopher Stone; Norman Brown; Conrad Pitkin; Emory Woodstock; George Patrick Corrodus; Wayne Ebanks; Genefa Hibbert; Sylvester...

In light of recent violent attacks on children, Assistant Chief Education Officer in the Guidance and Counselling Unit of the Ministry of Education, Mary Nichols, is appealing to parents to get their children acquainted with self-defense techniques. "We should start teaching our children self defense. We have to really get into some serious self defense techniques and allow our children...

Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Christopher Tufton, has said that the Ministry will be working with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to develop a pilot for a new financing facility for farmers. The development of this model forms part of the Ministry's plans to strategically reposition itself by restructuring several bodies for which it has responsibility, and specifically to dissolve...

Minister of Information, Culture, Youth and Sports, Olivia Grange, is calling on Jamaicans to join forces in the fight against gender-based violence and other obstacles that encumber the pursuit of gender equality and development. The call was made at the launch of the Planning Institute of Jamaica and the United Nations Population Fund (PIOJ/UNFPA) 2008 World Population Report, at the...

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, Senator Don Wehby, is calling on Jamaicans to embrace United States President-elect Barrak Obama's campaign mantra, "Yes we can!" as together Jamaicans seek solutions to the challenges facing the country at this time. "Our challenges are great; we need economic growth, we need to protect our citizens from...

Preparations are well advanced for the establishment of the Caymanas Economic Zone in St. Catherine, with development expected to begin within a few months, with a view to begin employing persons, particularly in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry, within two years. Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Karl Samuda, who made the disclosure at yesterday's (November 12), post-Cabinet...

Cabinet has approved a proposal for the establishment of a 24-hour toll free hotline, for the reporting of cases of child abuse. The three-digit emergency number, 211, will be available seven days per week. Making the announcement at yesterday's (Nov. 12) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House, Minister of Information, Culture, Youth and Sports, Olivia Grange, explained that the service,...

Cabinet has given approval for the issuing of instructions to the Chief Parliamentary Counsel (CPC) to effect amendments to the Financial Administration and Audit (FAA) Act, to include monetary penalties in the procurement regulations. Speaking at the weekly post-Cabinet press briefing held yesterday (Nov. 12) at Jamaica House, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Culture, Youth and Sports, Faith...

Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Karl Samuda, has said that he will be working with private sector groups to focus on the training of workers at all levels within the workplace. "We adapt so easily, we are the most easily trained people in the world. That is why the Government, working with the private sector, will be focusing so...

Jamaican national, Barrington A. Russell, Sr., was sworn in as Mayor of the City of Lauderdale Lakes, in the United States of America (USA), in a brief ceremony on November 10, after being successful at the polls on Election Day, November 4. Mayor Russell succeeds former Mayor, Samuel Brown, also a Jamaican national, who retired, having served in that position...

The Honorable Olivia "Babsy" Grange, Minister of Information Culture, Youth and Sports, says that her Ministry is fully aware of the importance of rewarding the young people of Jamaica for their initiatives and innovative programmes to empower themselves to become "well rounded progressive citizens of their country." Minister Grange said her Ministry had ensured that all functioning registered community youth...

The Clarendon police is reaping some success in its efforts to foster more harmonious relations between police and citizens of the parish. Deputy Superintendent of Police attached to the May Pen Police Station, Marcia Reid, told JIS News that the police has been working closely with the various community groups to arrive at solutions to some of the problems that...