PRESIDENT of St. Francis Community Developers (SFCD), Mr. Alex Foster has become the lone Caribbean national to have received the coveted International Youth Worker Award from the Commonwealth Secretariat Headquarters in the United Kingdom (UK).

This is the fifth international commendation for the Rose Hall Town resident who overcame rural poverty, single parent upbringing, rejections as well as lack of funding to pioneer projects, in order to snatch the Caribbean Regional Award from four other finalists, namely Carolina Muni Ferreira (Cayman Islands), Tanya Merrick Powell (Jamaica), Carlos Williams (St. Vincent and the Grenadines) and Raymond Ockille (Trinidad and Tobago).
At a media conference in the SFCD Headquarters, East Side Line Dam, Rose Hall, Corentyne, on Wednesday, Foster disclosed that the five finalists were drawn from among 19 persons, who entered from the Caribbean region.
The winner was whisked to London, England, where he joined other regional winners from Africa, Asia, the Pacific and the UK to be honoured at the Commonwealth Secretariat on October 30, 2013.
At the awards ceremony, Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba said: “It is so important to recognise the professionalism and passion that youth workers bring to their efforts with young people. These awards are a way of showing respect and appreciation for the many ways that they can change young people’s lives.”
The awardees have worked with young people to develop their knowledge and skills in areas including health, education and business.
Accepting his award at that forum, Foster said he called for more men to join the youth work profession and act as role models.
“I hope that this award will renew my energy to continue this work in the years to come,” he stated at the event that was a part of the launching ceremony of Youth Week 2013 and which was celebrated around the Commonwealth during a year-long activity to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Commonwealth Youth Programme.
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS
Foster, who is currently in his 28th year of youth work, has recorded several notable achievements, winning the Commonwealth Youth Award thrice as Leader of SFCD in 1991, 1992/93 and in 1994/95, when the organisation created world history by becoming the first group in the 54-member Commonwealth to have secured this award more than once.
In 1999, Foster was selected from among 500 applicants, internationally, to become one of the 60 most influential young social entrepreneurs in the world.
As a result of the recognition of being one of the most influential individuals, he was given the opportunity to travel around the world in a bid to experience other models of development and share his knowledge, too, thereafter implementing best practices, at his organisation.
Further, in 2000, world history was again created when Foster, as Head of SFCD,secured a third Commonwealth Youth Service Award.
In 2006, the non-governmental organisation was named one of the most successful, sustainable, and influential groups working for the comprehensive development of youths in the Commonwealth. Towards this new status, a book titled ‘St. Francis Community
Developers – Making a difference, 20 years of Unbroken and dedicated service (1986-2006), currently being utilised across the 54 Commonwealth nations as a model for best practice and source of inspiration of how a youth group in a rural community can become an international developer.
At the regional level, Foster was the first runner-up in 1988/89 for the Caribbean/ Commonwealth Youth of the Year Award and, in 2001, he was honoured by Republic Bank, Ernst and Young and CIBC as the Caribbean Entrepreneur of the Year.
In Guyana, he secured Guyana’s first Youth of the Year Award and was the country’s youngest national awardee in the year 1988.
Meanwhile, as the Chief Executive Officer of the Friends of St. Francis, he has pioneered projects locally which have enabled thousands of young people to secure loans, equipment, tools, new skills and full time employment.
His efforts have included facilitating medical support for specialised care and referrals related to HIV/AIDS health issues; promoting participation in the Commonwealth Youth Credit Initiative; enabling young parents to continue their education; managing 12 preschools; introductions of model farm development which will benefit 8,000 students and 380 prisoners along with upgrading of two Amerindian Hostels in the Ancient County.