Sandrea Falconer, minister with responsibility for information, has announced that the Government is in the process of tabling a new communications policy, which will strengthen access to information in the country.

The minister, who was speaking at the Access to Information (ATI) Advisory Stakeholder Committee National High School Essay Competition launch at Jamaica House yesterday, said that the Government is committed to transparency.

"I am very pleased to inform you that soon, we will be tabling our new communications policy. We have just done the rough draft [and] we will be sharing it this week with government communicators and doing the necessary tweaking," said Falconer.

"This policy will allow for better communication with all our different stakeholders, all the different strata of society, and we will give more people the opportunity to get involved and be in the know," she continued.

"This Government is always committed to transparency. Media and civil society have all been able to enhance their information goals and objectives from challenging government policies and actions to making informed input in policy and assessing the expenditure of public funds," Falconer added.

In the meantime, Dr Carolyn Gomes, executive director of Jamaicans for Justice, urged the Government to make every effort to get the relevant stakeholders involved.

"The ATI Act sets the tone for the future that we all dream of. Our experience over the last 11 years has been a magnificent template for transparency. There have been challenges, but there has been nothing else but consultations in a bid to work together for the best," she said.