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| Participants at the Premier's Initiative Symposium pose for a group picture. Premier Amory appears 3rd from right on the back row, and to his right is Minister Malcolm Guishard. |
Charlestown Nevis (October 17, 2005) -- At the end of a one-day youth forum dubbed Premier's Initiative Symposium held at the Mount Nevis Hotel on Sunday, the Honourable Premier, Mr Vance Amory, expressed his satisfaction at the way the participants had managed to accomplish the affairs at hand.
About forty-six youths drawn from various community and church groups had assembled at the Nevis Conference Centre at the Mount Nevis Hotel in St. James Parish for the symposium that was held under the theme Tourism: Gateway to Economic, Social, and Technological Development.The enthusiasm which you have shown and the willingness to work in groups for me is very positive and it is something which I know the Administration is going to replicate and we are going to design a model to replicate this, said the Premier at the close of the forum. He added: I believe the response has gone way beyond our wildest dreams and expectations and I want to thank all of you for your participation.
Premier Amory, reminded the participants that he had challenged the Ministry of Youth and Sports, on September 18, to mobilise young people so that they could take advantage of the opportunities that would be created with the coming of a one hundred and fifty room five star hotel, golf course and villa development on Pinney's Estate.
Sessions held at the symposium were on Tourism and Agriculture by the Director of Research and Development in the Ministry of Tourism, Ms Elmeader Brookes, Health and Social Issues by the Chief Surgeon at the Alexandra Hospital, Dr Cordel Rawlins, Education and Technology by Education Planner, Dr Bronte Gonsalves, and Safety and Security Presentation by Acting Superintendent of Police, Mr Joseph Liburd.
At the end of each session, the participants would be divided into four groups where they would brainstorm the issues presented and give back their views. Mr Ivan Henry, a consultant from Barbados tabulated their responses and presented them to the forum, while Sheikh-Nur Hagi chaired the plenary session.
Premier Amory who participated in the entire day-long process told them: I want to thank you for sharing the vision which we have and helping us to redesign the way forward in respect of how we can put in place, policies and programmes to ensure that our people, led by yourselves, become leaders in the new thrust in the development of Nevis.
He further challenged them to take the spark, which had been ignited at the symposium, and to spread it among other persons in the their households, communities, peer groups and to get their peer groups to begin to address the issues out there in a more positive way because all Nevisians would benefit in the short and the long run.
Also taking part in the symposium was the Honourable Minister for Tourism and Culture, Mr Malcolm Guishard, who articulated the role of his ministry and how it has spurred economic development in Nevis, as most of the questions asked by the participants were directed to him. Others present were the Junior Minister for Youth and Sports, the Hon Laughton Brandy, the Junior Minister for Education and Library Services, the Hon Mr Livingston Herbert, and Secretary to the Nevis Island Administration Cabinet, Mr Oban Lawrence.
Facilitator of the symposium, Ms Jacqueline Brookes, Director of Community Education, noted that the idea of holding the symposium was conceptualised after a discussion with Minister Guishard and herself, saying, we thought it would be nice to have young people together in a forum to discuss what government can do to assist them to help them in helping themselves.
We thought it would be a good idea to have the young people involved in policy making and development of programmes. We thought long and hard on a theme and we decided to use the presentation of the 18th of September, the launch of the new hotel, as a spring board and so we decided to use as a theme, Tourism Gateway to Education, Social, Technical and Economic Development.
Ms Brookes said that she was satisfied with the level of participation by the youths as well as the presenters whom she said were well versed in each of the areas that they made presentations. Accordingly she told Government Information Service that following the success of the Mount Nevis Hotel symposium, plans would be put in place to have similar symposiums held in the near future.
She observed that the Principal Assistant Secretary in the Ministry of Community Affairs, Youth and Sports, Mr Brian David, along with four Youth Officers of the Department of Youth and Sports were present at the meeting and noted that she wanted them to be in on this so that they can use the information that is given by the youths to help them in developing programmes for the new year.
