KINGSTON, Jamaica — Prime Minister Andrew Holness says that he will early next year formally launch a commission to study the rising incidents of crime and violence in Jamaica.

Holness was speaking at a town hall meeting held at the Howard University College of Medicine in Washington DC on November 26.

He said the commission will be mandated to make recommendations to the Government as to what can be done to ensure that Jamaica is a more caring and loving society, adding that the crime situation is one that the Government “takes very seriously.”

Holness pointed out that the Administration has invested significantly in providing the security forces with the necessary resources to do their jobs.

“We have invested in marine patrol aircraft to have surveillance of our borders to help with the interdiction of drug traffickers and gun smugglers and contraband movement through our waters,” he told the audience.

He noted that the Government is undertaking a number of other measures to improve security, including the full mobilisation of the security forces in communities where crimes are being committed.

“We are working very hard to address this problem, but it is not in a haphazard way. There is Plan Secure Jamaica, which is a multifaceted approach to making security a ‘Whole-of-Government’ endeavour, and, indeed, we are bringing on the entire government to address the security issue, and it is working,” he added.