The Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA) has revamped the arrangements for persons importing personal shipments valued up to US$5,000 to involve the mandatory use of the entity’s Express Clearance Process facility. The JCA’s Chief Information Officer (CIO), André Williams, says the arrangements now see cargo consolidators, e-commerce couriers, and freight forwarders, administering the declarations and other associated procedures for this category...

With restrictions on public gatherings in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) more persons are shying away from joining queues to conduct business. One group of young innovators, who call themselves ‘The Outliers’ have designed a solution to this issue, which they pitched at the ‘Hack-Celerate’ Caribbean hackathon held in May, through partnership between National Commercial Bank...

Parents and guardians across the parish of St. Elizabeth are celebrating their children’s positive results in the 2020 Primary Exit Profile (PEP) assessment. Students’ placement and scores became available on Friday (June 26). For parent, Basil Brown, it was like a dream come true when he heard that his 12-year-old son, Jahmani, who attends the Holland Primary School, was placed...

Primary and preparatory schools in St. James say they are pleased with the results of the recently released Primary Exit Profile (PEP), despite the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) on the full administration of the examination. The Ministry of Education, Youth and Information released the results of the assessment on Friday, June 26. With the closure of schools in March...

When the Primary Exit Profile (PEP) examination results were announced on June 26, and Jaydean Scott of Adelphi, St. James, was placed at the Montego Bay High School for Girls in the parish, she was overcome with pride. In an interview with JIS News, 11-year-old Jaydean, a student of Howard Cooke Primary School, said her passing to attend the Montego...

Consultant Anaesthesiologist at the St. Ann’s Bay Regional Hospital, Dr. Peter Scarlett, says the correct use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) by health professionals during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is imperative in safeguarding their well-being. Dr. Scarlett explains that as a physician working in the operating theatre, he has concerns for his own safety. But he is of...

Hundreds of principals and vice principals are slated to benefit from the National College of Education Leadership’s (NCEL) full implementation of the Virtual Instructional Leadership (VIL) programme, which is being rolled out in July. The initiative was conceptualised by NCEL, in partnership with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), to enhance the information and communications technology (ICT) competencies of school...

Nine years after the Green Island Branch Library in Hanover, which fell into disrepair, was closed, the 45 year-old facility was reopened on June 23 following a $14 million renovation funded by the Sandals Foundation.  Sheer jubilation erupting from the small gathering of community members and other stakeholders attending the reopening ceremony, in keeping with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) safeguards,...

Urial Davis is grateful for the Compassionate Grant of $10,000 that he received from the Government last month. He says that the support, under the COVID Allocation of Resources for Employees (CARE) programme, has been a big help for his family. "I was very grateful. Trust me, you could see the smile on my face," he tells JIS News. “When...