With tourism in full recovery mode, online home-rental platform Airbnb has been giving more Jamaicans a chance to earn a living from the lucrative hospitality sector. In fact, Portfolio Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, said that 29 per cent of the 2.6-million stopover visitors who came to Jamaica last year did so through Airbnb, which he notes was partially due to...

The Department of Correctional Services (DCS) has realised savings of over $100 million on food purchase, with the institution attaining self-sufficiency in several agricultural items as a result of its Rehabilitation Programme. During the current financial year, inmates in the correctional system have produced more than 250,000 pounds of chicken, 252 million eggs, and several thousand pounds in other items,...

Young people living in Rose Gardens and neighbouring communities in Central Kingston now have access to a digital library housed in the Audrey V. Sewell Library and Reading Room. The facility is based in a new classroom block at New Hope Preparatory School, named in honour of late First Elder of the North Street Seventh-day Adventist Church, Norris A. Crooks,...

Undertaking the mammoth task of leading the transformation of the Real Estate Training Institute (RETI), newly appointed Principal, Dr. Tina Beale, is determined to enhance the quality of real estate education in Jamaica. Guided by the principles of equality, diversity, and inclusivity, she wants an organisation with real estate practitioners who are more adaptable and flexible. Dr. Beale took the...

Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association (JMEA) President, John Mahfood, says the country is on the “right track” towards achieving higher levels of sustainable economic growth and development. He tells JIS News that the Government’s record trillion-dollar budget for fiscal year 2023/24, represents the culmination of significant economic reforms undertaken over the past eight years. The President notes that the reforms...

Residents in the eastern parish of St. Thomas have voiced their opinions and are upbeat about the 2023/24 Budget Debate, which concluded in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (March 21). They identified several topical items, the most popular being the proposed 44 per cent increase in the minimum wage and the waiver of fees for admission to some courses...

There is heightened business confidence in the economy coming out of the presentation of the 2023/24 Budget Debate, where Government outlined its development priorities, including planned expenditure in key areas such as security, roads, water, and housing. Business leaders are optimistic that the trillion-dollar budget, which was presented against the background of the country’s full recovery from COVID-19, will accelerate...

Approximately 240 students from three communities in the Corporate Area and St. Catherine are being taught the basics of investing and money management through a series of gamified financial literacy workshops dubbed ‘Math and Money Challenge’. The initiative is being undertaken by Natty Platforms Limited through funding from the United States Embassy in Kingston and aligns with the Government’s objective...

Commercial banana and plantain farmers can benefit from the $38-million Catastrophe Fund established by the Banana Board, if they register before March 31. The Catastrophe Fund supports the recovery of farmers in the industry affected by natural disasters. General Manager of the Banana Board, Mrs. Janet Conie, tells JIS News that the Board has been visiting communities to encourage registration....