In the heart of the old capital, Spanish Town, two former death row inmates, a social worker and approximately 25 other persons convene a meeting behind closed doors. As they do every Friday morning, the men and women, trained by the Peace Management Initiative (PMI) as violence interrupters, are knocking heads to come up with measures to stem the violence in sections...

Randy and Davian McLaren had dreams of starting their own business, and so the two brothers set out to realise that dream in 2015 working from their veranda in Rockfort, East Kingston. “One old sewing machine and big dreams; that was all we had,” Randy, the older of the two brothers, told JIS while recounting the story of how the...

The celebration of our 54th anniversary of Independence is being led by the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport under the primary theme ‘Let’s Get Together and Feel Alright’, a line from Hon. Robert Nesta Marley’s ‘One Love’ song. Independence will also be celebrated through fashion with the theme ‘Wear It Gold and Strike It Bold’. Throughout the season,...

In 1989 the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) recommended that July 11 be observed globally as World Population Day to draw attention to population issues.In observance of World Population Day this year, the UNDP is focusing on teenage girls and the enormous challenges many face, such as the burden of being forced into early marriage and...

President of the National Parent-Teachers' Association of Jamaica (NPTAJ), Everton Hannam, is urging parents to continue providing financial support to schools after the abolition of auxiliary fees by the Government comes into effect in September 2016. “If you want your child, your children or ward to be able to participate and contribute to a society and be competitive in the...

Every year scores of Jamaicans are killed in road accidents, pushing the Government to come up with new measures to curb the vicious cycle. While there are various factors contributing to the high number of fatalities, the National Road Safety Council says ‘driver indiscipline’ continues to be one of the main factors. In 2011, this statement proved true for Kerry-Ann...

The National Road Safety Council has revealed that at least 183 Jamaicans have been killed in road accidents since the start of 2016. While there are many factors that contribute to road accidents, adhering to some common road safety tips could make a big difference between life and death. As Jamaica Observes Road Safety Month, the JIS would like to...

As part of robust initiatives to tackle the Zika virus outbreak the Ministry of Health is providing $1 million to each of the 63 Members of Parliament (MP) to support activities at the constituency level. While making the announcement in the House of Representative on June 7, Health Minister, Hon. Dr. Christopher Tufton, noted that the money will be made...

Twenty-one cases of the Zika virus have been confirmed in Jamaica, and the government continues to implement several measures to combat the mosquito-borne illness. Under phase 2 of the Ministry of Health (MOH) Public Health Response programme, the health sector is being equipped to handle any increase in severe cases of the virus. Additionally, through the National Health Fund, the...