All tourism workers in Jamaica who interface with cruise-ship passengers must be vaccinated. That’s the word from Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, who has said that cruise lines will not be calling in Jamaica if all persons who intend to...
WESTERN BUREAU: The country’s youth are to be given priority in accessing the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which is being touted as one of the safest for use in children and adolescents, when 200,000 doses arrive in the island next week to boost the...
WESTERN BUREAU: As the island witnesses a third COVID-19 wave, a group of medical practitioners are lobbying for the implementation of early home-based treatment to minimise hospitalisations and death in the country. The doctors, who staged a press...
WESTERN BUREAU: As international tourism trends reflect a shift from the traditional ‘sun, sea and sand’ to experiential-type travel, prospective investors in Jamaica are being urged to capitalise on soft adventure, natural parks, hiking, mountain...
WESTERN BUREAU: As early as age five, Michael Daley knew he wanted to be a doctor and he would correct his neighbours when they assigned the wrong title to him. “Call me Dr Michael,” he would tell them. In fact, the former Herbert Morrison High...
WESTERN BUREAU: Jamaica’s tourism sector is facing a middle-management crisis, which Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) president, Clifton Reader, is calling on the island’s newest training group, Key Advantage, to fix. “We have the right...
WESTERN BUREAU: Jamaica’s tourism stakeholders are steering clear of any blame that they have contributed to the latest COVID-19 surge on the island, which is threatening to reverse recent decisions made by the Government to relax restrictions on...
WESTERN BUREAU: Hospital bed occupancy is at pressure-point, positivity rate in transmission has increased significantly, and vaccination is too low for Jamaica to effectively fight a third wave of COVID-19. The raw truth has forced Minister of...
WESTERN BUREAU: Stuck between a rock and a hard place, Jamaican-trained medical students are rethinking their career plans, owing to the climate of uncertainty regarding future residency and stability in the healthcare sector. An indication jitters...
WESTERN BUREAU: Jamaica’s Ministry of Health and Wellness is not averse to helping the Chinese to import their state-owned COVID-19 vaccine Sinopharm into the island if asked to assist. Director of Family Health Services at the health ministry, Dr...
WESTERN BUREAU: OF THE 15 street victims who were identified by the St James Municipal Council 22 years ago, six have died, while nine remain in the system, says the organisation’s chief executive officer, Gerald Lee. The 15 were among some 18...
WESTERN BUREAU: When arrival numbers were down, it was local travel agents who boosted the Jamaica Tourist Board’s (JTB) ‘Rediscover Jamaica Campaign’, accounting for 68 per cent of the bookings between June and December 2020. And their zest has...
WESTERN BUREAU: Correspondence denouncing the wearing of African Bantu knots by graduates of Manning’s School in Westmoreland two weeks ago was not evidence of a discriminatory hair policy, principal Steve Gordon has said. The western Jamaica...
WESTERN BUREAU: Jamaica is poised to welcome more than 300 travel agents and tour operators for the upcoming Jamaica Product Exchange (JAPEX) and the Jamaica Bridal Expo, which will be staged back-to-back at the Montego Bay Convention Centre in...
WESTERN BUREAU: Another person might have died from fear, but Paulette Williams refused to yield to the treacherous flood rains caused by Tropical Storm Elsa that threatened to sweep her away on Sunday. Trapped in her car on the New Yarmouth-Kemps...
WESTERN BUREAU: As Canada, the United Kingdom, and Europe reopen their markets to Jamaica, year-end tourist arrivals to the island have been revised upwards by half a million visitors from the original forecast of 1.3 million. Jamaica’s tourism...
WESTERN BUREAU: Some 63 shelters have been activated across the parish of St James as the region prepares for the likely impact of Hurricane Elsa on Jamaica. The shelters are among the partial activation of the Emergency Operation Centre, triggered...
WESTERN BUREAU: Tourism transportation operators now have access to $70 million interest-free under a special memorandum of understanding signed by the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) and Jamaica National Small Business Loan (JNSBL). The...
WESTERN BUREAU: One of the country’s most respected architect is demanding an apology to the nation for the wanton development breaches that are taking place across the island without proper due process. Dr Patricia Green, lecturer at the...
WESTERN BUREAU: Even with four of its flagship hotels still closed, the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) anticipates that it could surpass its stayover visitor arrivals of previous years, ending the year with record numbers. The islands of St...
WESTERN BUREAU: A document is now being drafted by Jamaica and Mexico that will enable large airlines from as far as Middle Eastern destinations such as Saudi Arabia to offer multiple experiences in Latin America and the Caribbean under a single...
WESTERN BUREAU: An opposition lawmaker has called for progressive taxation to be imposed on the tourism industry to protect small-scale stakeholders, who are at a competitive disadvantage, from deep-pocketed operators of all-inclusive hotels. The...
WESTERN BUREAU: As high-rise buildings become dominant features throughout the capital city, Kingston, a government technocrat has admitted to the need for a single-family and multifamily zoning category for the metropolis. Senior building...
WESTERN BUREAU: As billions of unclaimed Jamaican dollars lie dormant in the country’s banks, Opposition Spokesman on Finance Julian Robinson wants the funds accessible to small and micro-businesses that are suffering under COVID-19 conditions....
WESTERN BUREAU: A local urologist is urging insurance companies to expand coverage of illnesses to erectile dysfunction, an ailment that has a crippling impact on relationships and perceptions of male self-worth and which is a growing concern for...
