Politics
Jamaica: Derrik Kellier named new Agriculture Minister
A new agriculture minister has been appointed in Jamaica about a month after his predecessor, Roger Clarke, died after suffering chest pains at an airport.
Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller announced Monday that Cabinet minister Derrik Kellier will lead the agriculture and fisheries ministry. He is already minister of labor and social security.
Simpson-Miller says agriculture is a key part of the island-nation’s economy and it will “continue to receive focused attention.”
In late August, Clarke was on leave from leading the agriculture ministry when he died at a Miami hospital after experiencing chest pains at the city’s international airport.
Kellier is a veteran politician with the ruling People’s National Party (PNP). The prime minister’s office says he is also a farmer and a businessman.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press