Cement importers to Jamaica capitalizing on the critical local shortage will benefit from a reduction on the fee levied by the Port Authority of Jamaica to inspect each ton of the product.  
 
The fee will be reduced from $5 to $1 until March 31, 2008, to allow importers to bring more cement into the island to alleviate the current shortage, according to government officials.  
 
Addressing journalists at a post-Cabinet press briefing on Sept. 25, Karl Samuda, minister of industry, commerce and investment, said the $5-per-ton fee posed a serious challenge for importers of the commodity.