News from the OPM

“This region of the world has all the resources to secure peace and prosperity for all the people of the hemisphere.”- Prime Minister Holness Prime Minister Andrew Holness today (June 10, 2022) made remarks at the Ninth Summit of the Americas under the theme Building a Sustainable, Resilient, and Equitable Future. In his address, the Prime Minister underscored that the summit must serve as an opportunity to announce a new blueprint for regional cooperation. In this regard, Prime Minister Holness said Jamaica welcomes the announcement of the Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity. The Prime Minister also noted that Jamaica is committed to the summit process and will continue to work with all hemispheric partners to make a difference toward a better future. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister highlighted Jamaica’s interest to see success in the areas of Food and Energy Security, Climate Finance, Human Capital and Skills Development and Security and Trafficking in Small Arms. The Prime Minister said, “This region of the world has all the resources to secure peace and prosperity for all the people of the hemisphere. We have the leadership in this room to make it happen. Let us commit, to using our best efforts to make the…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness has expressed deep sorrow at the passing of Sarah Newland Martin, OD. Ms. Newland Martin was the General Secretary of the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA), former national swimmer, former sportswoman of the year and social worker.  She was 75 years old. Prime Minister Holness stated that Ms Newland Martin was an exceptional Jamaican who contributed to the development of volunteerism, social work and the community of persons living with disabilities. In 1965, Ms. Newland Martin defied the odds, becoming the only woman with a disability to win the Cross Harbour Swim meet, by swimming the two-and-a-half-mile path in the Kingston Harbour. That same year, she was also crowned sportswoman of the year. Up to the time of her transition yesterday (June 8), Sarah Newland Martin was an active member of several service organizations including the YMCA where she had been serving in the post of national General Secretary for 36 years. “Sarah’s life has been dedicated to service. She has been an advocate for the community of persons living with disabilities and the youth. Her work and impact through her service to several voluntary and social groups have assisted in positively influencing the path of at-risk youth. Her service to the nation through…

“The contractor’s performance should be an important criterion in how contracts are awarded in the bidding process if we are to reach a high level of efficiency in our construction efforts.” – Prime Minister Holness Prime Minister Andrew Holness says improvements to the public procurement process are coming soon, as the Government seeks to make the bidding process more performance-based to ensure greater efficiency in government business. The Prime Minister said; “We must reach this high level of efficiency and quality of output of our contractors, and we are making the necessary policy changes to ensure that performance is a part of the evaluation consideration of the contracting process.” At present, the Prime Minister said, contractors, are not being held accountable for the quality of their output. He said: “Contractors can perform poorly on one job and bid on another job and get it. That should not be the case. The contractor’s performance should be a serious consideration in the works that they are able to bid on and win in the future.” In that regard, the Prime Minister said these policy changes must be implemented for Jamaica to achieve the level of efficiency in construction and other service provisions…

Prime Minister Holness acknowledged that preparation costs may seem great but encouraged citizens to start small. Prime Minister Andrew Holness is appealing to Jamaicans to start preparations for the Atlantic hurricane season, which began on Wednesday (June 1, 2022). The Prime Minister encouraged citizens to begin by identifying safe and waterproof storage for their important paper documents, considering alternative supplies of drinking water should access to water become affected due to storm coverage, store non-perishable food items, and secure their homes and yard spaces. Speaking at the handing over ceremony for a home in Lime Walk, St. Catherine, today (June 3, 2022), Prime Minister Holness also used the opportunity to underscore climate resilience as a central feature in the New Social Housing Programme (NSHP). The Prime Minister said: “We are in the hurricane season. Jamaica is lucky and has been spared serious catastrophe in a number of years, and we hope this continues. However, people living in substandard housing will fare far worse if such bad weather occurs.” In that regard, Prime Minister Holness explained the emphasis placed on making sure NSHP houses are solid structures that can withstand the elements and keep the occupants safe in times of natural…

'We are on the way to making processes more efficient' - PM Holness Prime Minister Andrew Holness today (June 3, 2022) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with deposit-taking institutions for the National Identification System (NIDS) to become the singular identity verification and authentication service. Speaking at the signing ceremony, the Prime Minister said, “This is important in establishing a seamless, robust, integral and efficient National Identification System. We are moving ahead in parallel with the system of digital transfer through the Central Bank with the digital central bank currency so that eventually all our payments, all our social support payments including PATH payments and eventually salaries for the public sector, will be going through our digital system.” In this regard, Prime Minister Holness also noted that the MOU, will bring significant benefits to the Jamaican people including reduced bank charges and using only one form of identification when doing transactions or opening accounts. The Prime Minister also asserted that it is important that the banks “ensure that the promise of digitization does result in a reduced banking cost to the average citizen.” Prime Minister Holness continued: “We are doing our part by providing the NIDS to reduce your cost…

Prime Minister Holness says Jamaica is Producing a Cadre of Software Developers Through the AMBER HEART Academy Prime Minister Andrew Holness says there are tremendous opportunities in the technology sector and the Government, in partnership with the private sector, has made significant progress in pursuing these opportunities.Speaking last evening (Wednesday, June 1, 2022) at the Unveiling of AMBER HEART Institute of Coding and Graduation Ceremony, the Prime Minister said through the public-private partnership between the AMBER Group and the HEART NSTA, the country will have its first cohort of software developers. The Prime Minister said; “We are ensuring that we don’t lose out on the fourth industrial revolution and that we have human resources that can be at the cutting edge of it. We are intent on not just consuming technology, but also creating and developing technology.”  The AMBER HEART Academy pilot project was launched over a year ago and 27 students from various inner-city communities were the first to be a part of the project. Prime Minister Holness stated that “these youngsters represent an important part of the human capital of Jamaica” and their skills are necessary to meet the demands of the fourth industrial revolution. CEO of the AMBER Group, Dushyant Savadia, said…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness says the Amber HEART Institute of Coding is a revolutionary initiative which is proof of how public-private partnership can accelerate our business processes. Prime Minister Andrew Holness yesterday (June 1, 2022) witnessed the signing of a historic memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Amber Group and the HEART Trust/NSTA to establish the Amber HEART Institute of Coding, the first academy of its kind in Jamaica and the Caribbean. Prime Minister Holness hailed the initiative as revolutionary, and said, “this is proof of concept that we can get things done quickly, efficiently and meaningfully.” The Prime Minister further explained that the public-private partnership accelerated the Government’s vision to deliver robust, intense and in-demand training to our young people. In the same breath, Prime Minister Holness said the coding institute demonstrates the Government’s commitment to action and shows that great things can be accomplished if, “we do business as fast as we run.” Additionally, Prime Minister Holness described the institution as an example of innovative thinking in training and development and said it represents an alignment between education and industry. In this regard, the Prime Minister said, “If we’re serious about growth and development, we must put industry…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness says the Government continues to promote a culture of ownership by putting titles in the hands of rightful landowners across Jamaica through the Systematic Land Registration Programme. Speaking yesterday, (June 1, 2022) at the Systematic Land Registration Titling Ceremony in Old Harbour, St. Catherine, Prime Minister Holness underscored that the Government will not just wait on persons to visit the National Land Agency (NLA) to register their titles, but instead, will approach citizen systematically to address the issue of land ownership. The Prime Minister said, “The strategy of this Government is to acknowledge the social justice and equity issues in land settlement in Jamaica. We believe that every single Jamaican should have access to a minimum standard of shelter. We also believe firmly in creating the ownership economy, we believe that every Jamaican household should own some form of asset; land, housing, companies, machinery and equipment, intellectual property, we believe in ownership.” Prime Minister Holness further stated, “I am confident, and I feel very happy that we now have a system in place that will ensure every square inch of land in Jamaica falls under a public register that secures the property rights and interest of…

Prime Minister Andrew Holness says the Government is increasing the upgrade of internet and broadband services across the island. Speaking yesterday, (May 26) at the official launch and unveiling ceremony of public wifi hotspot in West Central St. Andrew, Prime Minister Holness said the Government is making every effort to upgrade internet and broadband services by leveraging partnerships with the various service providers to bring internet to schools and public spaces right across Jamaica. The process includes providing persons with the necessary devices, particularly for learning which the government has already started. The Prime Minister continued; “The government has two strategic interventions, one is to get devices into the hands of those who can’t afford them, which we have been doing with our children. The second is to get the schools connected so that they can use the smart devices.  We will also continue to place internet access in the public domain particularly in public areas so that if you need to do transactions you can do them online.” With the expansion of technology happening across the country, the Prime Minister noted that it is almost imperative at this time, that the society embraces the digital age and disregard fear…