Reggae Month

Improving the quality of life of persons in Kingston and St. Andrew is at the heart of the work carried out by the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation KSAMC Junior Council. The KSAMC Junior Council is a youth led organization formed to give youth an opportunity to play their part in meeting the needs of citizens of Kingston and St. Andrew. The youth organization will continue its efforts with the staging of their first information Expo and back to school treat on August 22 at Rollington Town Primary School, from 11 am to 5pm. The free expo and fair is being staged under the theme, Protecting the vulnerable: Establishing hope through local government.

As the wards of the state and staff members of the Jamaica National Children’s home face life after Friday’s blaze, the government has committed to ensure that the section damaged by the fire is rebuilt. Thankfully the fire left no one hurt, but destroyed the dormitory area of the Children’s home. The children have been relocated to another child care institution, and are in high spirits and a team of counsellors have been assigned to provide continuous psychosocial support for the children and their caregivers over the coming weeks.

The Jamaica Constabulary Force is boasting 147 new graduates from the National Police College, ready to play their part in efforts to secure the rock. National Security Minister Dr. Horace Chang who gave the main address at the recent graduation ceremony charged the graduates of batch 120 to be steadfast in their new duty as officers of the law. He also urged them to make public safety a priority and to serve with pride and professionalism.

Fifty-five students have been awarded bursaries and scholarships valued at 2.5 million dollars by the Jamaica Public Service JPS and Partners Co-operative Credit Union PCCU Limited. Students were selected based on academic merit, work ethic, discipline and financial need. The scholarships and bursaries were presented at a recent handover ceremony on Thursday. Forty Seven children of members, who were top performers in the inaugural Primary Exit Profile PEP examinations, will receive bursaries of 12,500 dollars per annum over five years.

Rank and file members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force JCF will now be able to travel to and from work in greater safety and comfort, following the procurement of eight buses by the Government. Commissioner of Police, Major General Antony Anderson, handed over the vehicles to the Jamaica Police Federation JPF recently at the Commissioner’s Old Hope Road offices. Major General Anderson says the presentation of the buses is in keeping with the JCF’s welfare programme for members.

The UN General Assembly has proclaimed the period 2015-2024 as the International Decade for People of African Descent. This order to strengthen national, regional and international cooperation in relation to the full enjoyment of economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights by people of African descent, and their full and equal participation in all aspects of society. The wheels have been set in motion for Jamaica’s celebration of the UN Decade, and one of the first activities will be a public education campaign.