More Agency Profiles

In 2012, the National Commission on Reparations, chaired by Professor Verene Shepherd, of The University of the West Indies, was reconvened by former Minister of Youth and Culture, Lisa Hanna.

The Bureau of Women’s Affairs is mandated to mobilize the Government to address the problems that confront women, given the impact of patriarchy and sexism. These problems include high rates of unemployment, violence against women in various forms such as spousal abuse, rape, incest and sexual harassment. Its objective is to enable women to recognize their full potential as individuals...

The National Library of Jamaica was established in 1979 under the Institute of Jamaica Act of 1978. It originated from the collection of the West India Reference Library (WIRL) which was founded in 1894 as a section of the Public Library of the Institute of Jamaica. This public library was the first of its kind in Jamaica. It began operations...

  The Young Entrepreneurs Association (YEA) was started by the Jamaica Employers Federation (JEF) in 2005. It was officially launched by then Prime Minister of Jamaica, Honourable Percival James Patterson on January 25, 2006.   The Jamaica Employers' Federation (JEF) represents the views of employers, locally and internationally and has contributed tremendously to the development of employer/employee relations within Jamaica....

Background Established in  1973, the National Youth Service (NYS) was re-launched in 1995 after a 12 year  break amidst major concerns about the high level of youth unemployment,  academic underachievement, the lack of training opportunities for young people  and their escalating trend toward anti-social behaviour. The organization, therefore, aims to equip youths with the necessary life  coping skills to foster...

The National Centre for Youth Development (NCYD), the youth division in the Ministry of Youth & Culture was established in the year 2000 as the Government department with responsibility for young people aged 15 – 24 years throughout the island. NCYD is responsible for facilitating the co-ordination and integration of programmes, service and activities geared towards youth development, and recommending...

The primary functions of the Jamaica National Heritage Trust are :   To promote the preservation of national monuments and anything designated as protected national heritage for the benefit of the Island; To conduct such research as it thinks necessary or desirable for the purposes of the performance of its functions under the Jamaica National Heritage Act; To carry out...

The role of the Jamaica National Commission for UNESCO is to involve in United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO’s) activities, the various national, regional and international partners working for the advancement of education, science, culture, communication and information so that each Member State may play an ever-increasing role in UNESCO’s work and particularly in the information and execution...

The Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) is a dynamic cultural agency of the Ministry of Youth and Culture. With a strong ‘Brand Jamaica’ flair and vibrancy, it has positively shaped the image of Jamaica by producing a sea of world class arts luminaries who continue to wow the international scene with their unmatched creativity and artistic prowess. Globalization has presented...

The Institute of Jamaica (IOJ) was established in 1879 by Sir Anthony Musgrave, then Governor of Jamaica. Located at 10-16 East Street Kingston, the IOJ is led by its mandate, “For the Encouragement of Literature, Science and Art in Jamaica ”. The Institute has responsibility for the following organizations: The African Caribbean Institute of Jamaica /Jamaica Memory Bank (ACIJ/JMB)The Jamaica...

Since 1984, CPTC have proudly delivered on our mandate to record, archive and promote diverse expressions of Jamaica’s indigenous culture. In less than thirty years, the CPTC has produced over fifteen hundred hours of programming ranging from documentaries, interviews, educational features, dramatic, entertainment and cultural packages. Perennial favourites like Hill an’ Gully Ride (1988) and Rappin’ (1988), are joined by...