Innswood High School Drummers in action at the UDC Mento Festival on the Kingston Waterfront yesterday. - Junior Dowie/Staff Photographer

Tourism enhancement seminar for cities

MONTEGO BAY, St. James:

The Ministry of Tourism, Entertainment and Culture which, between July 11-13, hosted a United Nations World Tourism Organisation seminar on marketing and budgeting in Ocho Rios, will be embarking on another assessment and capacity-building forum to enhance the tourism sector.

The ministry, in collaboration with the Organisation of American States, with support from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency and the Tourism Enhancement Fund, will next week host a one-day workshop and seminar on multi-hazard and contingency planning.

The event will be duplicated in the country's two cities and is scheduled for July 31 and August 2 at the Holiday Inn Sunspree in Montego Bay and the Hilton Kingston, respectively.

The workshop will focus on assessing and preparing private- and public-sector actors in the tourism sector for natural and man-made hazards as well as the best mechanisms to be used when interfacing with the national bodies responsible for disaster preparedness, emergencies and crisis management.

- Contributed

Phone dilemma in Hatfield

IRONSHORE, Montego Bay:

Residents of the upscale Hatfield Meadows area of Ironshore say they will take Cable and Wireless to court to stop the telecommunications giant from the continued practice of disconnecting their telephone service for a billed DSL Internet service they say they are not getting.

The residents say they have been pleading unsuccessfully with Cable and Wireless for over a year to amend the situation and have gone as far as writing to the company's Jamaican president, Rodney Davis, without receiving a reply.

Although a Cable and Wireless executive and technical team have met with the residents, the problem remains, they complain.

The homeowners sa they have sought legal advice on the matter, they would prefer "a quick, simple solution" from Cable and Wireless.

- Contributed

Work begins on Black River market

BLACK RIVER, St. Elizabeth:

After several months of delay, major upgrade work has started on the Black River market in St. Elizabeth.

This, however, is after residents and vendors voiced uncertainty about when the work would get done.

Integral to the upgrade of the market is the secretariat of the Lift Up Jamaica Project and not the Jamaica Social Investment Fund, as Kern Smalling, councillor of the Black River division stated on a recent airing of Television Jamaica's Your Issues Live in the parish capital.

Speaking in an interview with The Gleaner on Tuesday, Superintendent of roads and works in the St. Elizabeth Parish Council, Kenroy Stewart, said the work on the market had started last Friday, and the upgrade of the facility was delayed because of a late disbursement of funds.

He said most of the preliminary infrastructure were in place and the work is scheduled to last 12 weeks.

- Rayon Dyer

Improved water supply for New Road

NEW ROAD, St. Mary:

Residents of the community of New Road and surrounding districts in St. Mary are benefiting from a much-improved water supply system as a result of the help of the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF).

The upgrading was carried out at a cost of approximately $14 million with the JSIF providing $10.5 million, and the community contributing $3.5 million through the New Road Neighbourhood Watch/Citizens Association.

Approximately 600 residents are benefiting from the project, which was supervised by the National Water Commission. Bacchus Engineering Works Limited undertook the contract.

- JIS

Port Authority to buy parish council lands

TRELAWNY:

The Port Authority of Jamaica can now move ahead with plans to buy parcels of land owned by the Trelawny Parish Council after Cabinet approval earlier last Monday.

Abbatoir and Delgado in Trelawny, lands owned by the parish council, will be sold to the Port Authority of Jamaica if they meet with the council's $15 million proposal.

The council is proposing to sell Abattoir lands, with an area of 531.15 square metres, for the sum of $4.5 million and Delgado lands, which has an area of 1486.4 square metres, for $10.5 million.

The Port Authority wants the land as part of the redevelopment of the port of Falmouth.

- JIS

Port Maria Civic Centre rehabilitation approved

PORT MARIA, St. Mary:

Cabinet has approved the award of a US$2.5 million contract to Racar Ingeniros, CA (Racar) for the phase two restoration and refurbishing of the Port Maria Civic Centre in St. Mary.

The project is being executed under the San José Accord and will continue the restoration and refurbishing which began in late 1999.

This was disclosed by Minister of Information and Development, Donald Buchanan, at the weekly post-cabinet press briefing held at Jamaica House, last Monday.

The Urban Development Corporation (UDC), acting as the implementing agency on behalf of the Government, will provide project management and technical services.

Phase one of the project was completed with funding by the Government and the Venezuelan Investment Fund, now the Bank of Economic Social Development of Venezuela.

This phase involved the renovation of the front section of the building to allow for limited use of the facility.

Phase two of the project will see further restoration of the Old Courthouse building and the old prison cells.

- JIS

St Mary to focus on greenhouse technology at Denbigh

ST. MARY:

The benefits of the application of greenhouse technology to agricultural production will highlight St. Mary's contribution to this year's Denbigh Agricultural Show being held from August 4 to 6 at the Denbigh Showgrounds in May Pen, Clarendon.

Lavon Murdoch, the Jamaica Agricultural Society's (JAS) parish manager for St. Mary, said the decision to place special focus on greenhouse technology is based on the fact that it represents the way forward in agricultural production.

The greenhouse model was being strongly promoted in St. Mary by both the Rural Agricultural Development Authority and the JAS as a viable venture to be embraced and implemented by farmers.

- JIS