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Salutations Over the past couple of months, I have been meeting with the leadership of a number of agencies and branches associated with the Ministry as well as with stakeholders to get a better understanding as to where we are at. During my meeting at the Export Division some three weeks ago, I made a commitment to plant some 150...

PRESENTATION TO PARLIAMENT ON THE 1ST SUPPLEMENTARY BUDGET - FY 2011/12 By THE HON. AUDLEY SHAW, M.P. Minister of Finance September 7, 2011 Introduction Mr. Speaker, in March 2010 Parliament approved a most profound amendment to both the Financial Administration and Audit (FAA) and the Public Bodies Management and Accountability (PBMA) Acts - the Fiscal Responsibility Framework (FRF) for Jamaica....

Mr. President As I see it, the state of the nation is that of a house under renovation.  A caution sign immediately comes to mind: “Pardon the inconvenience as we improve conditions to serve you better." When you reconstruct, rehabilitate or renovate, the inconveniences you face are infuriating, but you suffer them because you know better will come. I know...

[Click here to view entire speech (PDF)] Mr. Speaker, two weeks ago I invited this House and the nation to draw inspiration from the tremendous progress made during the single calendar year of 2010. I spoke of our success at side-stepping economic collapse when the global crisis hit us, halting our decade-and-a-half-long fiscal slide, and our success at stabilizing the...

[Click here to view entire speech (PDF)] This debate has been conducted in the manner to which we have long been accustomed. One side seeks to showcase what has been achieved, the other side seeks to demonstrate how little, if any, has been achieved. I question whether the interests of the people are best served by this approach. I question...

[Click here to view entire speech (PDF)] Mr. Speaker, after three and a half years at the helm of the Transport and Works Ministry, I am happy to be now reaping the levels of success that were envisioned from the start, which took creativity, grit and determination to accomplish. With strategic application backed by in-depth analysis of the inherited positions,...

Mr. Speaker, exactly a year ago, Jamaica faced a very different reality. Certainly for me, and the Economic Management Team at the MOF, it was a time of intense activity and immense pressure because of what was at stake. Jamaica was grappling with the fall-out from the most severe economic crisis the world had seen in 80 years. Not only...

This year, International Women’s Day March 8, marks 100 years of observance of the day. As Minister with responsibility for Women Affairs and Gender Issues, I am honoured to pay tribute to all women across the world. Of course I must specifically acknowledge the contributions made by Jamaican women to the social, cultural and economic development of our nation. International...

I am sure I speak for all my colleagues in expressing appreciation to Prime Minister Tillman Thomas, the government and people of Grenada for the warm hospitality we have received and the fine arrangements that have been made for this conference. Grenada is the spice island of the Caribbean but it is much more than that and we are enjoying...

Parents, teachers, students, educators, friends, once again we look forward to the start of a new school year. For some of us it is a time of great anticipation and great expectations, for others it is the beginning of a period of struggle and sacrifice. For me, it is the beginning of a process by which the society makes better...

THANKS AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Approaching three years into my stewardship of the Transport and Works portfolios, I am happy to be now delivering the kind of strategic applications that are geared at modernising all portfolio areas. This first phase of delivery has come out of in-depth analysis of the pluses and minuses of the systems that were inherited in September 2007,...

Mr. Speaker, permit me to thank this Honourable House for allowing me a third opportunity to speak on the state of agriculture and fisheries in these sectoral debates. Please allow me to thank the Honourable Prime Minister for his confidence in my stewardship and my Cabinet colleagues for their support. My team at the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries headed...