A comprehensive review of the Scientific Research Council (SRC) Act will be undertaken to modernise and harmonise it with current governance, accountability, and scientific mandates.
“Jamaica cannot build a 21st-century innovation economy on a 1960 legislative framework,” Minister without Portfolio with responsibility for Science, Technology and Special Projects, Dr. the Hon. Andrew Wheatley, said while making his contribution to the 2026/27 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on June 2.
“The SRC Act was enacted in 1960, before Jamaica’s modern governance frameworks, before our ST&I Policy, before biotechnology, digital transformation, and climate resilience became operational realities for a national research institution,” he said.
He noted that the review will, among other things, ensure that the SRC has the legal foundation to fully execute its expanded role in ‘Jamaica National Science, Technology and Innovation Strategic Plan 2026 to 2035’, and its governing framework: the ‘House of Innovation’.
Meanwhile, Dr. Wheatley informed that for financial year 2026/27, the SRC will implement a Laboratory Information Management System to digitalise its operations; launch a digital solutions programme for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs); expand its accredited analytical scope, and launch the Conversation in Science Podcast, a new public engagement initiative to deepen science literacy and support evidence-based national dialogue.
Source: Jamaica Information Service