News from the OPM

Prime Minister Andrew Holness in response to the Jamaica House Petition on the Cockpit Country is advising that The Cabinet of Jamaica continues to deliberate on matters concerning the area.   He noted that in September, the Jamaica House Petition Portal registered that a petition gained support from more than 15-thousand persons.   The Government had committed to providing a response within 30 days.   However, given consultation with the environmental community as well as them advising of concerns regarding the draft boundaries, the Government has set a revised timeline to give an official response.   This timeline is necessary to ensure that the concerns of the various stakeholders are taken into consideration.   The Prime Minister wishes to emphasize the Government’s support for initiatives aimed at protecting the environment and encourages citizens to be more caring of their surroundings and to adopt sustainable environmental practices.   Contact:    Communications Unit-OPM Tel:   926-0244, 927-4101        Email:  [email protected]/[email protected] Website:      www.opm.gov.jm  Facebook:  www.facebook.com/jamaicahouse  Twitter:  www.twitter.com/opmjamaica

Prime Minister Andrew Holness says reform of the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) is part of the wider move to transform the public sector. Mr Holness says the NSWMA has been going through a process of transformation in an effort to correct the leakage of public funds and corruption which affects the provision and quality of service. This he says is not acceptable. “We have to reform the NSWMA as part of the bigger picture of public sector reform; to ensure that the NSWMA is truly a regulator, regulating the private service provider,” he explained. The Prime Minister commissioned eleven (11) new compactor trucks yesterday (October 24), at Jamaica House. While explaining that the role of government is to regulate, set standards and police those standards; the prime minister also said efficiency within the NSWMA is not only an operational consideration. “There are services that the government is providing that government need not be in that service. One of them is garbage collection,” stated Mr Holness. Investment being made by the Government The Government yesterday commissioned into service the compactor garbage trucks valued at approximately US$1,658,597 or J$214,788,312. “This is an investment that is coming directly from your tax dollars.…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness has extended thanks to Mr Chris Bicknell, Chairman and C.E.O. of Tank Weld Group for the donation of 100 tonnes (approximately 14,000 sheets) of Galvalume roof sheeting to the people of Dominica. The donation of the supplies follows the recent devastation of hurricane Irma in early September. “I am happy for the contribution being made by Tank Weld, a Jamaican company, to help our neighbours in Dominica. Jamaica continues to provide support to the people of Dominica and this donation will significantly increase the relief efforts underway on the island,” stated the Prime Minister. The donation is valued at approximately US$200,000. This will provide new roofs for approximately 1,000 of the hardest hit homes. Tank Weld’s contribution also includes the Port and handling and shipping costs, in cooperation with ship owners Oslo Bulk, the loading of which will begin at the Tank Weld Port in Rio Bueno today.  It is anticipated that the vessel will arrive in Dominica on Tuesday, November 7, 2017. The donation is being routed through the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA). Military engineering units from Jamaica and the Caribbean will install the roofs. Last month Jamaica deployed 120 members of the Jamaica…

Denham Town in Kingston has been declared the second Zone of Special Operations, Special Security and Community Development Measures. The zone was officially declared and gazetted at 8:30am. The announcement was made this morning (October 17) during a special press conference called at Jamaica House by Prime Minister Andrew Holness. The Prime Minister said Denham Town was declared a special zone after it was deemed to have met the criteria set out for an area to be considered a zone. These include: ongoing warfare; rampant criminality; escalating violence and murder; and a threat to rule of law. In reassuring the public, Prime Minister Holness said all members of the joint police/military force were trained in human rights, as is required in the law. He explained that they were trained in the protocols and operations of the accountability and accounting framework. In addition, all ballistic signatures of weapons used in the zone have been registered and documented and a system of identification of all members of the joint force is also in place. Work together to fight crime - PM Prime Minister Holness urged Jamaicans to work together and take a positive attitude towards fighting crime. “If we all come together…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness says Geo-spatial Information System (GIS) technology will play a major role in assisting the government’s security objectives. This he said will allow for more informed and systematic intervention, in line with the approach that is being taken to address the level of crime and violence in the country. “We are enhancing the use of GIS in crime analysis by now including mapped locations of reported criminal offences from which real maps can be created to show hot spots of criminal activities,” explained Prime Minister Holness. The Prime Minister was speaking at the Inaugural Jamaica GIS User Conference today (October 10) held at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in Kingston. “The use of advanced analytical tools and advanced imaging technologies enable continuous flow of data between intelligence, law enforcement agencies and security companies in real time and post operations,” said Mr. Holness. He pointed out that GIS technology has already been used to inform decisions about the Zones of Special Operations. “It is the GIS technology which identifies the clusters of crime. It is the GIS technology that allows us to create the geographic boundary,” he noted. According to Prime Minister Holness GIS allows the authorities the opportunity…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness says proper connectivity of the country’s road network will drive development and prosperity. The Prime Minister explained that a “lack of connectivity in the road network has created bottlenecks in the country’s development.” Prime Minister Holness made the comments during the official opening of the Marcus Garvey Drive Improvement Project yesterday (October 05) at Garmex HEART Academy in Kingston. He said the Government, in addressing this problem, is taking a strategic approach on how public resources are used for infrastructure development. “When we decide to fix this road (Marcus Garvey Drive) that is carrying forty thousand motorists every day; that is near to the ports; near to where we can develop logistics; that is where the connectivity will drive the prosperity. And this is beneficial to all Jamaicans whether you live in Kingston or in Westmoreland”, stated Mr Holness. He emphasised that while the Government does not have the fiscal space to repair all roads a planned approach must be taken. Strategic infrastructure planning  Politicians, he explained, “must be very strategic in how they set priorities for expenditure. So it stands to reason that if you are going to spend significant resources on roads then the…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness has reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to achieving five percent growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in four years. Mr Holness says the country must think big as this is the first step in doing big and great things. “Jamaica must never lose its ambitiousness. That is what defines us, our ability to reach further than we can stretch, to speak louder than our voice. And we must never tell our children it can’t be done,” declared the Prime Minister. Mr Holness also added that he is not daunted if for one quarter the country experiences a 0.1% decline in the growth rate. “The truth is our growth figures mimic what happens in agriculture, and in the quarter that was affected, we had very serious rains. But as we transform our economy, not away from agriculture but to be less dependent on agriculture to things like developing the roads so we can actually do logistics operation, our economy will grow. Growth will come; it must happen if we continue to do the things we are doing,” he expressed. We must redouble our efforts He continued, “We must not celebrate when we don’t achieve our targets, we must…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness is reaffirming the government’s commitment to build a bypass in Montego Bay to ease the flow of traffic and facilitate a more productive environment.   “The Government has a role to ensure that the infrastructure is in place to facilitate greater investment. We are committed to building that (Montego Bay) bypass. We don’t want to make errors so we are now in the process of doing all the studies. We are doing designs to see the best place to get the alignment for the bypass. I want to reassure the people of Montego Bay, that I am right behind the bypass to get it done,” said Prime Minister Holness.   The Prime Minister made the commitment yesterday (October 4) during his keynote address at the 5th anniversary celebration of Itelbpo Smart Solutions located in the Montego Bay Freezone.   In addition to creating the proper infrastructure, Prime Minister Holness pointed out that government is also working to address another constraint to the growth of Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry – the labour force.   Mr. Holness underscored the need for a trained workforce to keep a pace with the demand for the services required in Jamaica.…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness yesterday (September 28) convened a meeting of the National Security Council (NSC). The Council received updates from the Jamaica Defence Force and the Jamaica Constabulary Force regarding the progress of operations in the Mount Salem community of St. James, where the first Zone of Special Operations was declared on September 1, 2017. The Council was informed of the progress made in the Zone, which has recorded no reports of abuses by the Joint Force or by the citizenry, who are largely supportive of the intervention.  The Prime Minister lauded the level of professionalism which has been displayed by the Joint Force in the execution of their duties. He further urged that this high standard be maintained and serve as an example of the service that must be offered across the entire country. He further stated that the high standard of professionalism will serve to build trust within the community. Mr Holness likewise stressed the pivotal contribution that citizens must themselves make in assisting to restore order and the rule of law. The Council also considered the planning and progress of community development initiatives in the Zone. This included a review of the framework and the initial plan…