Children’s Advocate, Diahann Gordon Harrison, says the just-concluded Regional Caribbean Conference of the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN) was a tremendous success and that it was “the right forum at the right time”. Speaking to reporters at the end of the conference on December 5 in Montego Bay, Mrs. Gordon Harrison said the Office...

Independent Expert for the United Nations (UN) Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty, Manfred Nowak, is lauding Jamaica's soon-to-be-implemented Child Diversion Act as a step in the right direction. “That is certainly a positive development. Diversion at every stage of the criminal justice system is best for juvenile offenders,” the UN official said. Mr. Nowak was speaking with journalists...

Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information, Hon. Floyd Green, says the Career Advancement Programme (CAP) is impacting young people significantly. Delivering the keynote address at a graduation ceremony for more than 3,000 CAP students on December 3 at the National Indoor Sports Complex in St. Andrew, Mr. Green pointed out that the number of students...

The Office of the Children’s Advocate (OCA) says a cultural shift, as well as behaviour change, is critical to eliminating corporal punishment in Jamaica. Children’s Advocate, Diahann Gordon Harrison, says the OCA views corporal punishment as “inflicting a form of violence against children”, noting that there are alternatives to curbing indiscipline. She was speaking to journalists following the opening of...

The first cohort of 109 specialist mathematics teachers is now in training and will be deployed to the education system, upon graduating next year. This was disclosed by Minister of Education Youth and Information, Senator the Hon. Ruel Reid, who noted that the teachers will be bonded for a five-year period. He informed that the five-year bond would ensure that...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, says Government is taking stringent actions geared towards protecting the nation’s children. Speaking via video link on Sunday (December 2) at the 2nd Regional Conference of the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN), at Hilton Rose Hall Resort and Spa in Montego Bay, St. James, the Prime Minister...

The National Parenting Support Commission (NPSC) is stepping up efforts to equip parents to properly raise their children. Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Kaysia Kerr, tells JIS News that the entity is concerned about the number of parents who are showing low coping skills and are consciously ‘opting out’, not wanting to continue the duties associated with parenting. Over the past...