Effort to build vibrant youth economy

Over the next 120 days, the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment will concentrate on digitized research and engagement, collaborative impact and creating opportunities for young people.

Speaking today at the opening ceremony of the National Youth Stakeholder Consultation at the Hilton Barbados Resort, Minister Dwight Sutherland said his Ministry must seek to make third sector organisations its partner in impact and transformation, while scaling up the work of the island’s most impactful creative groups, sports organisations, service clubs and community groups.

He said that, in doing so, the Ministry will be able to fast-track transforming the lives and overall wellbeing of thousands of young Barbadians by leveraging the reach, skills, and energy of youth-centric third sector organisations.

“Perhaps, most importantly, I believe the Ministry of Youth must seek to build out a vibrant youth economy. Jobs and business opportunities in renewable energy, creative economy, internet economy, ocean and maritime, modern agriculture and smart manufacturing must go beyond being a future promise and become an everyday reality for our young people,” he said.

“My vision is the creation of a Youth Economy Work group that collaborates with Ministries of Government, the private sector, investors and education institutions to create a Barbados Youth Economy Road Map, containing policy and strategy recommendations capable of producing over 1 000 high quality new work opportunities for young people every year,” he added.

Sutherland said he was working to make his Ministry the most technologically advanced within the Barbados Government.

He said tablets in the hands of officers on the ground, real-time spatial mapping, and trend analysis through powerful software and sophisticated use of social media platforms, fuelled by compelling campaigns, and achieving deep engagement must become the Ministry’s new normal.

The National Youth Stakeholder Consultation is held in commemoration of Caribbean Youth Day, on September 30, and is the culminating event of the 50 Days of Activism for Youth (DAY) campaign that commenced on August 12, International Youth Day.

The exercise focuses on the development of mechanisms and strategies to increase efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of youth programmes; identifying synergies and developing alliances for collaboration in an effort to achieve both national and international goals for youth development; prioritizing issues to be addressed and creating plans of action for these.

The anticipated outcomes include a blueprint to guide engagement of organisations that provide programmes and services to youth; prioritisation of youth issues to be addressed; and indicating agencies that will focus on the types of interventions that will be required. A policy paper is expected to be developed to advise policy makers on suitable plans of action to achieve the desired goals.
anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb