BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - TODAY (Sept. 20) approximately US$300 000 worth of furniture and equipment were handed over to the Government of the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis by the United States Government for the recently completed New Horizons Rehabilitation Centre at Harris'.
The Rt. Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas, in the presence of both US and local dignitaries, gracefully accepted the donation which was handed over by Barbados-based United States Ambassador to St. Kitts and Nevis, His Excellency Larry Palmer, at a small ceremony held at the location of the rehabilitation centre in Harris'.
His Excellency, at the ceremony, said that the donation given reflects the continued partnership between the United States and St. Kitts and Nevis.
"Whether it is helping to provide things like beds, desks, computers and security equipment to the facility, they are helping to build law enforcement capacity or advancing legal reforms. We are all working together to reach people who are most at risk from economic hardship or natural disaster," he said.
He commended the Federation's government for committing much needed resources to develop the rehabilitation centre "that will serve to protect vulnerable youth and offer a second chance to those who have run afoul of the law".
He said that he hopes that the efforts will lead to the effective and lasting rehabilitation of young offenders into productive citizens and a stronger and more comprehensive juvenile justice system that reduces crime across the Federation.
PM Douglas, before accepting the handover, heartily thanked the Ambassador for the generous investment.
He said that it is not every child that has the good fortune to be born into the perfect family, noting that they are all endowed with some innate potential "and it is therefore up to this government to try to discover and indeed develop the best of their abilities, that potential that lies within our youths who are at risk".
Minister with responsibility for Health, Social Services, Community Development, Culture and Gender Affairs, Marcella Liburd outlined some of the challenges which New Horizons is intended to tackle.
She explained that some of the programmes to be offered are intended to promote the continuous growth and learning of our young people. Educational, vocational and cultural training, life skills as well as the guidance and support greatly needed for the reintegration in society will buttress and prepare them to become responsible citizens of St. Kitts and Nevis and indeed to assist in strengthening their families.
"This is indeed a defining moment for us as we are undertaking critically important work to ensure that we harness and nurture the untapped potential of our young people. In order to accomplish this, the government has committed to a focused investment in the preventative intervention model as against the punishment prosecutorial model," she said.
She described the rehabilitation task as a challenging but achievable one, stating that it is one with creative and collaborative partners to effect attitudinal changes so woefully needed to welcome back our children who are in conflict with the law, to their families, to their communities, to their nation.
The donation took the form of desks, chairs, computers, security equipment and beds among a host of other things valuing at exactly US$296 563. The Centre is expected to be opened shortly.
