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JAMAICA: Atomic Energy Agency has advanced Jamaica’s Nuclear Technology Capacity

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#Kingston, August 13, 2018 – Jamaica – The Planning Institute of Jamaica’s (PIOJ) Director General, Dr. Wayne Henry, says the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been pivotal in advancing the country’s nuclear technology capacity.

He noted that the medical physics department at The University of the West Indies (UWI), which trains nuclear physicists across the region, was expanded under an IAEA project, and the organisation is providing €783,600 for the re-establishment of the Nuclear Medicine Centre, which will significantly enhance the country’s capacity to diagnose and treat cancer, heart and other related diseases.

The project is being spearheaded by the Ministry of Health, the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) and the UWI’s Caribbean Institute for Health Research (formerly Tropical Medicine Research Unit).

Dr. Henry was speaking at the signing of Jamaica’s second five-year IAEA Country Programme Framework (CPF) for 2018 to 2023 at the PIOJ’s head office in New Kingston on Thursday (August 9).  He informed that the IAEA is supporting national projects to: determine the availability of adequate water resources in the Kingston hydrological basin; and optimise irrigation water management to improve crop output and water quality control in the Rio Cobre.

Agriculture has been targeted for the production of economically important crops such as onions and sweet pepper, to produce higher yields and better quality with resistance to disease and adverse climatic conditions and have shorter production cycles.

“This will help Jamaica to survive in the global marketplace and maintain its competitive advantage in certain food areas,” said the PIOJ head.

The scope of the assistance has also been extended to nutrition in children with the aim of promoting healthy growth by assessing the role of parenting and early life influences on body composition and energy expenditure.

The IAEA was established in 1957 with the aim of expanding and accelerating the contribution of atomic energy to global peace, health and prosperity.  Jamaica joined the IAEA in 1965, and benefited from support from the organisation, but it was the installation of the Slowpoke Nuclear Reactor at UWI, which opened the door that facilitated Jamaica’s entry into the agency’s technical cooperation programme.

In 2015 – just over 30 years after the reactor was commissioned – the reactor’s core was successfully converted from high-enriched uranium (HEU) to low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel, as part of a joint effort to eliminate the proliferation risks associated with HEU by the governments of Jamaica, the United States and Canada, with assistance from the IAEA.

“This has become world-renowned as this is the only research reactor in the English-speaking Caribbean,” Dr. Henry said.

He noted that under the diligent guidance of the IAEA, Jamaica graduated from the use of the technology at the International Centre for Environmental and Nuclear Sciences (ICENS) only, to much more extensive applications evidenced in a wide range of programmes and projects.

The IAEA’s support has also enabled passage of the Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection Act, 2015 to, among other things, provide safeguards from exposure to ionising radiation, including misuse that may result in harm to persons or the environment; and facilitate Jamaica’s compliance with international obligations.  In addition, a Hazardous Substance Regulatory Authority has been established to monitor facilities utilising ionising radiation and nuclear technology.

“Undoubtedly, the IAEA’s wide-ranging and groundbreaking assistance continues to affirm the developmental use of nuclear technology… (as it) propels Jamaica towards achieving developed country status by 2030.  I express gratitude (on behalf of the Government) to the IAEA for helping Jamaica in achieving its development aspirations,” Dr. Henry said.

For his part, the IAEA’s Deputy Director General for Technical Cooperation, Dazhu Yang, who signed Jamaica’s new CPF along with Dr. Henry, said the agency supports partnership building in using nuclear technology in a safe and secure manner.

“We facilitate networking and cooperation among member states within and outside the region,” he added.

Jamaica’s new CPF will underpin engagements focusing on water and environment management; health and nutrition; food and agriculture; nuclear and radiation safety and security; energy; and industry over the period.  These are areas that were broadly covered under the initial CPF, which ran from 2010 to 2015.  A total of 170 countries are members of the IAEA, which is headquartered in Vienna, Austria.

The PIOJ serves as the National Liaison Office for the IAEA Cooperation Programme in Jamaica.

 

Release: JIS

Photo Captions: 

Header: Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) Director General, Dr. Wayne Henry (left), converses with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Deputy Director General for Technical Cooperation, Dazhu Yang, during Thursday’s (August 9) signing ceremony for Jamaica’s new five-year IAEA Country Programme Framework (CPF) at the PIOJ’s head office in New Kingston. The new CPF will run from 2018 to 2023.

Insert: Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) Director General, Dr. Wayne Henry, addressing Thursday’s (August 9) signing ceremony for Jamaica’s new five-year International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Country Programme Framework (CPF) at the PIOJ’s head office in New Kingston. The new CPF will run from 2018 to 2023.

 

 

 

Adrian Walker Photos

 

 

 

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New Tilapia Hatchery Slated for Completion Later This Year

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#Kingston, Jamaica, March 27, 2024 – The new tilapia hatchery under construction in Twickenham Park, St. Catherine, is slated for completion towards the end of 2024.

The 12,000 sq. ft. facility, being built at a cost of approximately $574 million, is intended to address the major issue of shortages in good-quality seed stock for fish farmers islandwide.

Manager for the Promoting Community-based Climate Resilience in the Fisheries Sector Project, Selena Ledgister, says the hatchery’s establishment is critical for securing a sustainable fisheries sector.

“Construction is on in earnest and we are looking before the year is out – which would be by around September or October – to complete the building part of it. The Project will be supporting the purchase and installation of the recirculating aquaculture system. This system will provide over five million advanced fries (young fish) per year, using the recirculating aquaculture system,” she told JIS News.

The bio-secure climate-resilient modular hatchery, being developed in partnership with the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF), will feature a solar standby generator, plumbing system, rehabilitated guard host and administrative building.

Mrs. Ledgister said the hatchery, to be built and operated under environmentally friendly conditions, will impact the lives of fish farmers islandwide.

“I believe we have over 120 aquaculture farmers, and that number is growing; so, this will benefit the industry significantly. The hatchery is also expected to cushion the demand for fish. Fish farmers will also get the supply of advanced fries to restock their ponds. This is a significant impact that the Climate Resilience Project, as well as JSIF, will be creating for the Jamaican fish farmers,” she said.

 

Contact: Twila Wheelan

Release: JIS

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Trust Fund for Poor Children Born On or After August 6, 2022

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#Kingston, Jamaica, March 27, 2024 – Children born on or after the 60th anniversary of Jamaica’s Independence, who are wards of the State or beneficiaries of the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH), will be eligible for the Jamaica 60 HOPE (Hope, Opportunity, Prosperity and Empowerment) For Children Trust Fund.

Jamaica celebrated its Diamond Jubilee on August 6, 2022.

In his contribution to the 2024/25 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives on March 21, Prime Minister, the Most. Hon. Andrew Holness, said the purpose of the Fund is to help to close the wealth gap and address the issue of intergenerational poverty by creating a trust account specifically catered to vulnerable children.

“The HOPE for Children Trust Fund will provide each eligible child with a long-term savings account funded through annual contributions from the Government. Parents, guardians or other donors will also be able to make deposits into the account for the future benefit of any specific child,” Mr. Holness said.

The accumulated funds, including interest, will be accessible on or after the child’s 18th birthday, for specific purposes such as education, purchase of a home or commercial property or investment in a business.

“The central idea behind the programme is to provide children with a lump sum to start them in life upon attaining adulthood. Our initial target is a lump sum of between $600,000 and $800,000, to be available on the 18th birthday of any eligible child,” Mr. Holness said.

He noted that the Government will also explore alternatives to establish and manage the Fund, adding that it could form part of the National Insurance Fund or be administered by private insurance companies.

“This is, I believe, a ground-breaking initiative to truly grapple with inequality in the society. From a historical perspective, there are many households who have no endowment in Jamaica, meaning that they can’t look towards anything bequeathed to them from their family. There is no asset being passed down to them from generation. The only way that they are able to create any wealth is through their labour, through the dint of their effort – literally pulling themselves up by their bootstraps,” Mr. Holness said.

The Prime Minister emphasised that as the economy grows, the Government has a responsibility to take instrumental and decisive steps to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty and correct structural inequalities.

“The intention here is great, the amount may be considered small, but it is the first step in the right direction to truly create a more equitable society,” Mr. Holness said.

 

Contact: Judana Murphy

Release: JIS

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Port Royal Museum to Open in May

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#Kingston, Jamaica, March 26, 2024 – The long-awaited Port Royal Museum is expected to be opened in May of this year, with the first exhibit set to be unveiled at the event.

Construction of the two-storey facility, which will be the first fit-for-purpose museum erected in Jamaica, was done at a cost of $788 million with funding from the Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ).

Major work on the building was completed in December 2023, with finishing touches and furnishings left to be done.

Director of the National Museum Jamaica (NMJ), Dr. Jonathan Greenland, told JIS News in an interview that the new museum will replace the older and much smaller facility at Fort Charles.

“It didn’t touch all the subject areas… so we lobbied for the Port Authority to collaborate with us and develop a museum in Port Royal, and so they’ve actually constructed a huge building with restaurant facilities, lots of parking, multifunctional space and meeting rooms, shops and everything that a modern museum should have,” he said.

The museum will also be fully accessible to members of the disabled community with wheelchair ramps and an elevator.

Dr. Greenland added that the location of the museum is also of notable significance to the history of the sunken city.

“Right on the spot where the museum is going to be, there was a rebellion of the enslaved workers from the dockyard. The leader of the rebellion or uprising was a skilled bricklayer and when you look at the walls around the whole area where the dockyard used to be, he was probably involved in building that,” he said.

He further pointed out that the museum will present a new opportunity for the NMJ to attract even more visitors and facilitate cultural tourism.

“We’re very excited…. and you know Port Royal is a very interesting place and the history is fascinating. We always had loads of visitors from all around the world without doing any marketing whatsoever, and this is going to be a whole different level of merchandising, marketing and tourism. This is fascinating history and it’s going to be quite dramatic,” Dr. Greenland told JIS News.

 

Contact : Jermi-Lee Nelson

Release : JIS

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