The Universal Service Fund (USF) continues its drive to increase digital inclusivity across the island through its many projects that seek to facilitate Internet access in underserved communities across the island. The USF is the lead entity in the implementation of several major projects aimed at strengthening the country’s digital infrastructure, in line with the Government’s mandate to build out...

Bishop Owen Martin is determined to change the community that helped to shape him into the spiritual leader he is today. Born and bred in the community of Savannah District, Hayes, Clarendon, the New York-based pastor is committed to impacting young lives through what he described as an “academic mission”, dubbed, ‘Operation Change, Let the Children Come’. Bishop Martin tells...

With the new school year swiftly approaching, members of the Jamaica Information Service (JIS) have helped to put a smile on the faces of residents at the Mount Olivet Boys’ Home. Twenty-nine residents received shoes, uniforms, books, and other stationery at the annual Back-To-School Visit, held on Saturday, August 19 at the Home in Walderston, Manchester. Before the handover of...

Implementation of the National Identification System (NIDS) is expected to facilitate seamless access to benefits for persons with disabilities. Executive Director of the Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities (JCPD), Dr. Christine Hendricks, says the NIDS will allow for the international access sign for persons with disabilities to be placed on it. She explains that this will enable them “to...

Captain Natalie James wore a proud smile on Thursday, August 18, as she was officially named among the 19 recipients of the 2023 Marcus Garvey Public Sector Graduate Scholarship. Nineteen years of her professional life have, so far, been spent working in Jamaica’s public sector, first at the Registrar General’s Department (RGD) for 10 years and then the Passport, Immigration...

Farm Heights in St. James walked away as champions of the Social Development Commission (SDC) ‘Reach the Youth’ Quiz Competition, held at the Montego Bay Civic Centre in Sam Sharpe Square on Wednesday, August 16. The victors beat Goodwill 82-59 in the three-section match of the final round to cop the coveted title in the competition that saw more than...

The National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have joined forces to reduce the amount of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in Jamaica. POPs are a group of organic compounds that have toxic properties, persist in the environment, accumulate in food chains and pose a risk to human health and the environment. Human exposure, even...

Parents and guardians are being implored to take additional measures to protect children from excessive heat exposure as the country continues to experience soaring temperatures. Consultant Paediatrician and Consultant Paediatric Nephrologist at the Bustamante Hospital for Children, Sandrica Young Peart, tells JIS News that several illnesses can occur from excessive heat exposure caused by the increased heat in the environment....

At age 22, Javian Bassier is the sole operator of a three-acre Scotch bonnet pepper farm, on which he incorporates innovative agrotechnology. The Vere Technical High School alumnus, who hails from Spring Plain in Clarendon, tells JIS News that he has been passionate about agriculture since childhood. He has been a member of the Clarendon 4-H Club for over five...