| St. Kitts and Nevis'
CARICOM Youth Ambassadors (CYAs) Ian Richards and Jihan
Williams are back in the Federation after engaging in
frank discussions with four Heads of Government from
member states of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) at
the first ever Special Summit on Youth Development,
in Suriname.
The summit, which
ran from January 29-30, 2010, saw the official presentation
of the report from the CARICOM Commission on Youth
Development (CCYD) which canvassed member states,
capturing the dreams and aspirations of young people
within the context of the CARICOM Single Market and
Economy (CSME) and making recommendations to improve
their wellbeing.
"The meeting
was well executed," Ms. Williams noted. "It
was inspiring to be around such passionate advocates
championing the cause of young people. Hopefully all
that was discussed between the CYAs, national representatives
and Heads of Government will be immediately transformed
into practical, effective and efficient plans of action."
Richards agreed with
his counterpart and commended the Government and people
of Suriname for their outstanding hospitality and
professionalism. He added that Suriname's President
His Excellency Runaldo Venetiaan is regionally renowned
for his strong youth advocacy stance, and expressed
pleasure at interacting with him and the other Heads
that attended the historic Summit. However, the CYAs
were disappointed that more state leaders did not
attend the meeting although several countries did
send representatives.
Those present included
Chairman of CARICOM, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerritt
of Dominica, President Bharrat Jagdeo of Guyana, and
Prime Minister Stevenson King of St. Lucia. Although
Prime Minister Honourable Dr. Denzil Douglas did not
attend due to pressing issues in the wake of the 2010
federal elections, his presence was felt.
In a message that
was read at the Summit by Ms. Williams, the Prime
Minster said the youths of the Caribbean must continue
to champion their rights and responsibilities in shaping
a better future for themselves and the generations
to come. He commended the Commissioners of Youth Development
for their seminal work and in particular, for the
analyses and the recommendations which must be seriously
addressed by the heads and ministers of government
as well other stakeholders, including the private
sector and the development partners.
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