A ban on cigarette smoking will shortly be introduced within a designated area of Emancipation Square in Spanish Town, St Catherine.

According to a release from the Jamaica Information Service, this will be the first smoke-free square in the Caribbean when a declaration is officially unveiled in March. The initiative is a joint project of the Smoke Free Action Coalition in Spanish Town and the St Catherine Parish Council.

At a launching ceremony on Monday in Emancipation Square, Mayor of Spanish Town, Dr Andrew Wheatley, said that the St Catherine Parish Council will be embarking on a public- education campaign to inform the public of the initiative and to raise awareness of the dangers of cigarette smoking.

Additionally, he said, signs will be erected around the square, informing the public that it is a no-smoking zone.

Wheatley also called on the police and citizens of Spanish Town to support the initiative, by helping to enforce the regulation.