NATIONAL COHSODs TO DISCUSS YOUTH REPORT

(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) With just one month to go before the much anticipated report on the situation of Caribbean youth is submitted to the Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community, the CARICOM Secretariat has embarked on a series of national consultations to engage key stakeholders in discussions on the findings and recommendations of the draft report.

Supported by members of the of the CARICOM Commission on Youth Development (CCYD), the Secretariat is also convening policy round table discussions with ministers and technocrats of the Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD) at the national level. Meanwhile, a wide cross–section of youth, development partners and interest groups are expected to participate in the stakeholder consultations. These consultations, scheduled for 16-27 November, will be conducted in the 15 Member States as well as in four Associate Member Countries of the Community.

These meetings will provide a platform for the sharing and discussion of critical issues emanating from the draft youth report, which has been informed by qualitative and quantitative assessments involving a wide cross-section of approximately 6,000 nationals between the ages of 15 and 29 in twelve countries: Barbados, Belize, The Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), a strategic partner of the Commission, also assisted with the collection of data on the 10 to 14 age group in Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.

CARICOM Heads of Government at their 26th Regular Meeting in 2007 established the CCYD to advise them on sustainable forward-thinking policies and programmes to improve the well-being, development and empowerment of youth.

Over the past two years, the Commission, with the assistance of youth focal points and CARICOM Youth Ambassadors, has been engaged in qualitative and quantitative research among Caribbean youth, in keeping with the Commission’s mandate to analyse the situation of youth in the CSME and make appropriate recommendations.

The Commission, comprising eight youth and seven technocrats, will submit its report at a special Summit of CARICOM Heads of Government, set for Suriname in January.

The draft schedule of meetings for the consultations is listed below: