KINGSTON, Jamaica - INSTEAD of possibly two changes in government shortly within the 15-member Caribbean Community, as originally assessed, there could well be a third later in the year.
Changes forecast, and based on public opinion polls, point to expected termination of current first-term administrations with two first-time prime ministers in Barbados and Grenada.
Jamaica
KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC -Following a wave of criticism surrounding the delayed submission of the interim report on the probe into the May 2010 Tivoli Gardens incursion that led to the death of over seventy people, the Parliament of Jamaica will be conducting a full review of the Office of the Public Defender.
During an radio interview on Wednesday, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Michael Peart disclosed that the review will help to determine if intervention is necessary as it concerns the operations of the Office of the Public Defender.
KINGSTON, Jamaica - GOVERNOR General Sir Patrick Allen has encouraged Jamaicans to remain positive, even as the country continues to grapple with several social and economic challenges.
"For Jamaica to be transformed, we must stem the wave of negativism. We must continue to believe in ourselves. We must continue to believe in our ability to develop our potential and to achieve our objectives under God," he said.
KINGSTON, Jamaica - AFTER the recent excitement generated by last week's Chicago Tribune editorial, describing Jamaica as the "Greece of the Western Hemisphere", it is extremely well timed that yesterday marked the start of the two-day "Second Annual Meeting of Governors of the Caribbean Country Department" of the Inter- American Development Bank (IDB).
KINGSTON, Jamaica - After 14 months of working assiduously to meet rigorous regulatory aviation requirements, Fly Jamaica Airways will officially take to the skies on Friday, January 25, with its inaugural flight scheduled to depart for the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
KINGSTON, Jamaica - THE Statistical Institute of Jamaica's (Statin) will introduce its new electronic data collection system (Edacs) to CARICOM. Now that its new data collection system, Edacs, an electronic system operated on the Hewlett-Packard (HP) Slate 2 tablet has been unveiled, Statin is key on sharing the system with other Caribbean territories. "They would be very interested as they face the same problems," said Sonia Jackson, director general of Statin.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados - The President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Luis Alberto Moreno, arrived in Jamaica Wednesday night. Moreno who was met by Finance Minister, Dr Peter Phillips is here to attend the IDB’s second Annual Caribbean Governors Meeting. It will be held today and tomorrow at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel.
KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – The Jamaica government says it will soon move to restrict the discretionary power of the finance minister to grant waivers.
Finance and Planning Minister Dr. Peter Phillips says a comprehensive review of the discretionary power of the Minister of Finance to grant waivers has been completed, with a view to improving the efficiency of the tax system.
KINGSTON, Jamaica - They didn't accomplish as much as they should have, but enough for us not to insist that the Cabinet head back into a special session to get the job done.
We now know that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) wants the Government to be more aggressive about its primary surplus. The target for the next three fiscal years is now 7.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), rather than 6.3 per cent.
We also know that the Government is negotiating some kind of debt-amelioration programme with its domestic creditors.
KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – The Jamaica government says while an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will it some needed assistance, it is not however the solution to the problems facing the country. “The IMF will not solve the problems of Jamaica. We all have to make some sacrifices and it is us as Jamaicans that will have to work together in unity to move this country forward,” Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller said, adding “it must be all of us working together for the growth and development of Jamaica as one Jamaican family shaping our future together”.