OPENING REMARKS BY DEPUTY SECRETARY GENERAL CARICOM AMBASSADOR MANORMA SOEKNANDAN, PhD It is an honour and a pleasure for me to welcome you today – both to the Secretariat and to the first Secretariat observance of Girls in ICT day. In observing this day with you – we show continued solidarity with the United Nations and the International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU’s)...

Mr. Speaker, it is appropriate that I express my appreciation to the leader of the Opposition Hon. Andrew Holness and to my colleagues on this side for this privilege. It is of note that this is my 21st year in parliament – always by election, never by appointment. To my constituents who have kept the faith with me through good...

Introduction A British Army officer was assigned the arduous task of visiting a battlefield to check on reports of heavy troop losses. Upon his return, he reported to his superiors: “Gentlemen, I’m afraid the situation is so grave that it is virtually impossible for me to exaggerate…. But I will try.”   Today, in reporting to this Parliament on the...

The Jamaica Urban Transit Company notes with much concern the attacks on its buses perpetuated by persons obviously opposed to the efforts by the JUTC to implement a public transportation system that will best serve the commuters in the Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region. We note with great distress the attacks on the buses over the last two days which has...

Honourable Members: We meet to launch the activities for a new Parliamentary year and to set out the next steps as we continue to improve the lives of our people and further develop our country. Today,  the state of our economy is stronger than it was one  year ago. In this new spring, the signs of growth are appearing. The...

Mr Speaker, in keeping with the GOJ’s policy to expand and modernize the international airports, the GOJ through the Airports Authority of Jamaica (AAJ) embarked on a programme of public-private partnerships (PPP). This programme commenced with the Sangster International Airport (SIA) in April 2003, when the private operator (MBJ Airports Limited) took over the operations of the airport from the...

  Statement by Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Friday, 21st March 2014 on the 25th Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the  Caribbean Community St. Vincent and the Grenadines, 10th – 11th March 2014 Introduction The attention of Members of the Senate is drawn to the 25th Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads...