The deadline for entries for the 10th annual Michael Manley Award for Community Self-Reliance and fifth Environmental Foundation of Jamaica (EFJ) Award has been extended to Tuesday, May 26, eleven days beyond the original date.
The award for community self-reliance honours the project with the best mix of community initiative; cooperative participation; economic, social, cultural and environmental impact; youth involvement, gender equity and sustainability. At stake is a cash prize of $200,000 and a bronze resin trophy sculpted by Kay Sullivan.
The EFJ Award, comprising $100,000 cash and a commemorative plaque, is presented to the project with the best credentials in environmental conservation or child survival and development.
Entry forms may be obtained from the Michael Manley Foundation or on its website, www.michaelmanley.org.
J'cans to be trained to work in Canada
Fifty Jamaicans are to be trained as resident-care attendants to fill vacancies in Canada under a training project to be delivered through the partnership of a Jamaican and Canadian college.
The project will see the Brown's Town Community College in St Ann training resident-care attendants, based on British Columbia school Sprott-Shaw Community College's academic curriculum.
The programme, which is being done in partnership with the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and Marmicmon Integrated Marketing and Communications, was launched at the Hilton Kingston hotel on Sunday.
Under the programme, Sprott-Shaw will develop the curriculum and supervise its delivery. Brown's Town Community College will train the attendants, Marmicmon will be in charge of job placement, while the ministry's liaison office in Canada will help the workers get settled in the North American country.
Health ministry still on its toes
Jamaica's Ministry of Health has distributed additional equipment and supplies to regional health authorities (RHAs) as part of its heightened surveillance and monitoring of the influenza A (H1N1) virus.
Protective gear and other equipment needed for testing and treatment of possible cases of influenza A, widely known as swine flu, are being made available to critical facilities, through the RHAs.
The island's health-care facilities have already identified isolation areas which are equipped and ready to receive patients if necessary and are fully prepared to deal with any possible cases of the virus, the ministry said.